Check out this weekly vegan lunch meal prep plan with 5 simple and delicious vegan lunch recipes. If your goal is to eat healthy but you just can’t find the time and energy during weeknights to spend hours cooking wholesome and delicious meals, give meal prepping a try!
Weekly Vegan Lunch Meal Prep With Sushi and Lasagna
- Why should you start meal prepping?
- Instructions for this weekly vegan lunch meal prep
- Weekly vegan meal plan
Why Should You Start Vegan Meal Prepping?
For a long time during my studies, I would go to the grocery store after class (there was a supermarket on my way home), buy whatever I needed for dinner and then when I got home, cook dinner. That worked until I finished uni and started a job. No longer did I have the time (or energy, or nerves…) to do daily trips to the grocery store and cook every night. That’s when I started meal prepping and making weekly meal plans.
You should start meal planning because…
- meal prepping supports a healthy and well-balanced diet – no more ready-made highly-processed meals or unhealthy takeouts
- you no longer have to worry about what to eat or cook after a long day because you already took care of that at the beginning of the week – have you heard of decision fatigue?
- you can add variety to your weekly meals with smart planning and cleverly combining different ingredients – meal prepping does not mean you have to eat the same thing over and over again!
- meal prepping saves you money because preparing your own meals is a lot cheaper than getting take-out or eating in restaurants
- it saves time and stress during the week for cooking and grocery shopping because you do all that on one day (typically Sundays) and then you’re done for the entire week ahead
- you can avoid waste when grocery shopping – if you know exactly what you will cook and how much you need, you avoid buying excess food
- let’s be honest – there’s nothing better than coming home tired after a long day and all you gotta do is open the fridge and your delicious meal is ready!
Meal Prep Day – Instructions For This Weekly Vegan Lunch Meal Prep Plan
For this vegan meal prep, here’s what we’re going to prepare:
- buckwheat and walnut bolognese sauce
- oven-baked tahini tofu and vegetables
- tofu and sunflower seed cream cheese
- coleslaw
- carrot lox
Not interested in the entire meal plan? You can also find the individual recipes linked below.
Vegan Meal Prep Instructions
Here are the instructions for this weekly vegan lunch meal prep with sushi and lasagna (for 1 person, so 5 lunch meals):
- First prepare the oven-baked tahini tofu. Preheat the oven to 200C. Cut a 300g block of tofu into sticks or cubes. In a bowl, combine 2 tbsp tahini, 1 tbsp maple syrup, 1/2 tbsp sriracha and 1/2 tbsp soy sauce. Add tofu to the marinade and mix well. Place on a baking sheet so the tofu doesn’t touch.
- Next, get two servings of your favorite veggies (for example 1 small red pepper and 1 small zucchini). Wash and cut into bite-sized pieces. Season with your favorite spices (for example paprika and dried herbs) and place on the baking sheet as well. Bake tofu and veggies in the oven for 25-30 minutes.
- For the carrot lox, peel 2 carrots (you can of course make more) and cut into thin strips. Cook for a few minutes until slightly soft but not overcooked. To a jar, add a mixture of soy sauce (a few tbsp), liquid smoke, sesame oil, dried wakame, pepper and a thinly sliced clove of garlic. Add the carrots and fill up with water until covered. Store in the fridge and let marinate for at least a day.
- To make the buckwheat and walnut bolognese, cover 2/3 cup (110g) of buckwheat kernels with water for ~10 minutes to soak. You can make the cole slaw or tofu cream cheese in the meantime. After 10 minutes, drain the water and add buckwheat to a food processor with 1/2 cup (50g) of walnuts. Pulse a few times until crumbly. Dice 1 small onion and mince one clove of garlic. Add to a pot with a splash of water and sautee for a few minutes, then add 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper and cumin each and 1 tbsp paprika powder. Cook ~2 minutes, then add the buckwheat walnut mixture and 1 can of crushed tomatoes. If the mixture is too thick (the buckwheat absorbs a lot of liquid!) add more water. Simmer for ~20 minutes, then add Italian herbs and salt and pepper to taste.
- For the tofu cream cheese, soak 1/4 cup (35g) of sunflower seeds in water for ~10 minutes first. Then drain and add to a food processor with 150g of tofu, juice of 1 lemon, 1 small clove of garlic, 1 tbsp nutritional yeast, 1 tsp onion powder and salt and pepper (to taste). Blend until smooth, adding water one tablespoon at a time until the desired consistency is reached. Adjust the spices to your taste, you can add paprika or dried herbs for example.
- For the coleslaw, take 1/2 small cabbage (red or white) and cut into very thin strips. Add to a large mixing bowl, optionally you can add one grated carrot or a thinly sliced red onion. Add salt and pepper as well as a few tbsp of apple cider vinegar or white balsamic vinegar. Mix everything together and let marinade for at least a day.
Here’s a quick check list for you of all meal prep steps:
Meal Prep Monday: Vegan Sushi With Tahini Tofu
To make Mondays lunch, you need 2 nori sheets and 1/2 cup of uncooked sushi rice (you could also use risotto rice). Cook the sushi rice, then add 1 tbsp of rice vinegar. Then make the sushi with the prepped tahini tofu – I added some spring onion and cucumber for fresh veggies and color.
Meal prep tip: When you make the tahini tofu sushi, you can instead cook 1 cup of rice and save half for Thursday.
Here you can find more on making your own sushi rolls.
Meal Prep Tuesday: Spaghetti With Buckwheat & Walnut Bolognese
Simply cook one serving of your favorite pasta (I used spaghetti) and reheat half of the prepped buckwheat and walnut bolognese. Combine and enjoy!
Meal Prep Wednesday: Buddha Bowl with Tahini Tofu, Baked Veggies, Vegan Cream Cheese and Cole Slaw
This lunch recipe is really easy to assemble – just place the prepped tahini tofu, baked veggies (half of what we made), vegan cream cheese (~ a third of what we made) and cole slaw in a large bowl. You can serve with with crackers or bread.
Meal Prep Thursday: Vegan Sushi with Carrot Lox and Vegan Cream Cheese
To make Thursdays lunch, you need 2 nori sheets and 1/2 cup of uncooked sushi rice (again, you could also use risotto rice). Cook the sushi rice, then add 1 tbsp of rice vinegar. Then make the sushi with the marinated carrot lox, vegan cream cheese and optionally add some spring onion and cucumber.
Here you can find more on making your own sushi rolls.
Meal Prep Friday: Vegan Lasagna With Cream Cheese
To make the vegan lasagna, you need some lasagna sheets, the remaining buckwheat and walnut bolognese, baked veggies and tofu cream cheese. Start with a layer of buckwheat walnut bolognese, add a layer of lasagna sheets, then some cream cheese and veggies. Repeat until your lasagna dish is full. Bake in the oven for 30-45 minutes.
I really hope you found this little meal prep guide helpful! Meal prepping does not have to be repetitive, you don’t have to eat the same thing each day. To be honest, that would be very boring very fast. Instead, with clever meal planning and preparation it is so easy to follow a wholesome plant-based diet with delicious and simple meals!
If you try this meal prep or any of the meals included in it, I would love to hear from you! Leave a comment below or say hi on instagram!
