Eating plant-based is an easy way to reduce your carbon footprint. If you want to take your eco-friendly cooking skills to the next level, this round-up of low-waste vegan recipes will help you find clever (and tasty) ways to use commonly discarded ingredients and leftover grains and veggies and keep food scraps out of the trash. Satisfy your stomach and support the planet with these resourceful recipes!
Leftover Veggie Chickpea Omelette
This quick and flavorful vegan omelette comes together in just 30 minutes—and is a brilliant way to give leftover vegetables new life. From onions and mushrooms to bell peppers, broccoli, and asparagus, just about any leftover steamed, baked, or sautéed vegetable can shine in this satisfying meal, which hits the spot for brunch, lunch, or dinner.
“These are fabulous. The kids loved them as well. Need to double the batch.” —Shelly
“These are fabulous. The kids loved them as well. Need to double the batch.” —Shelly
Root-to-Leaf Radish Pasta
Ready in just 30 minutes, this clever low-waste recipe uses the entire radish to create a pasta dish packed with earthy flavor. Both the radish bulbs and the leaves have a mild peppery taste, which pair perfectly with fragrant garlic and cheesy nutritional yeast. Starchy pasta water creates a delicate creamy sauce to keep the central focus on the radishes. You can also add any extra leafy greens you have on hand to use up leftovers before they go bad.
Potato and Broccoli Tots
Don't throw away your broccoli stalks; they’re great in these tasty veggie tots! Just grate the broccoli stalks and a potato; then combine them with soaked ground flaxseed, chopped broccoli florets, and nutritional yeast. Serve as an appetizer or snack with salsa, ketchup, or Creamy Cilantro-Garlic Dressing.
Carleigh Brodug’s Any Vegetable Curry
When plant-based cooking sensation Carleigh Bodrug gets to the end of the week, this delicious curry is her go-to recipe for using up leftover veggies. A fragrant curry sauce coats every bite of the veggies in creamy goodness, while baked tofu makes this a meal in itself.
Beet Greens and Spinach Saag with Tofu
Transform beet greens—the leaves and stems at the top of the beet bulb that are often overlooked—into a vibrant green saag sauce that’s seasoned with cumin, turmeric, cinnamon, cloves, and cayenne. Cubes of tender tofu and kernels of sweet corn are simmered in the fragrant sauce to put a vegan spin on a classic Indian paneer dish. This creamy, earthy recipe is delicious on its own, served over brown rice, or with a side of whole wheat naan. Sprinkle with cilantro, and dig in!
Air-Fryer Rice Paper Dumplings
These versatile air-fryer rice paper dumplings are another great way to use up leftover veggies. The filling combines finely chopped leftover veggies and tofu, with fresh ginger and soy sauce for extra flavor. Air-fry for 8 to 10 minutes and serve with additional soy sauce for dipping.
Sheet Pan Dinners 101 (with Recipes)
Sheet pan dinners are a quick and easy way to make a satisfying meal using what you have on hand—and don’t limit yourself to just veggies! In this how-to guide, we show you how to incorporate quick-cooking grains, as well as precooked lentils or beans for extra heft. Roasting at high temperatures means that everything cooks quickly and has an intense roasted flavor.
Roasted Eggplant Gyros with Watermelon Rind Pickles
Hearty eggplant and sweet potatoes are coated in savory Greek seasoning and roasted until deliciously tender to make up the “meat” of these plant-based gyros. A cashew-based tzatziki sauce delivers a creamy, tangy punch of flavor to each pita pocket, while spicy watermelon rind pickles take this recipe to a whole new level of yum. Since we normally only enjoy the juicy red flesh of a watermelon, this is a great way to use up the dense leftover rinds and give them a second life by infusing them with delectable Mediterranean spices.
How to Make Vegetable Broth
Keep veggie scraps out of the landfill and turn them into a savory stock that can be used in tons of different plant-based recipes. Our helpful guide teaches you how to extract the most flavor from your scraps and includes several different seasoning variations. Once you learn how to make your own broth, you’ll never go back to the store-bought version again!
Not-Picky Fruit Crisp
This tasty fruit crisp is quick, easy, and delicious and a great way to use up fruit that’s on a quick march to the compost bin! Apples, peaches, berries, pears, mangoes, and cherries work well. The oat topping gets its richness from tahini (you can also use nut butter) and turns golden brown when baked.
The Best Broccoli Slaw
Serve up this scrumptious slaw at your next vegan BBQ and impress your guests with how tasty commonly discarded broccoli stems can be! Carrots and scallions are tossed with the broccoli stalks in a tangy Dijon mustard dressing and seasoned with fresh parsley for extra oomph. You’ll love the flavor of this classic cookout dish and how much fresh produce it saves from being tossed in the trash.
30-Minute Blueberry Jam (No Pectin Needed)
This small-batch blueberry jam has only three ingredients—blueberries, maple syrup, and lemon. Lemon seeds and juice have natural pectin, which helps thicken the jam, so don’t throw them away. Instead, add the lemon seeds to the jam as it cooks. We recommend using a tea infuser, but you can also put the seeds directly in the pot and remove them after cooking.
Carrot Top Pesto
If you’ve picked up a bushel of carrots from the farmers market, this pesto recipe is a great way to make use of the leafy tops. Simply blend them with fresh basil, pine nuts, nutritional yeast, garlic, and lemon juice until a thick paste forms. Season with salt and pepper to your taste, and then use as a pasta sauce, sandwich spread, or as a flavor-booster for soup by adding a dollop of pesto on top.
Brown Rice Breakfast Pudding
Feeling peckish after dinner? Grab that leftover cooked rice, and you’ll have creamy rice pudding in 15 minutes! Sweetened with dates and raisins, this breakfast-come-dessert is excellent any time of the day. The recipe calls for a cinnamon stick, but you can also use ½ to 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon instead.
“Really simple to make. Delicious and filling.” —Selena
“Really simple to make. Delicious and filling.” —Selena
Flexible Pasta and Bean Soup
The handy recipe provides a simple formula for combining leftover ingredients, such as root veggies, beans, frozen veggies, and whole grain pasta, to create a scrumptious meal. The recipe includes suggestions for Mexican-, Mediterranean-, and Italian-style ingredient combinations, but feel free to experiment and create your own unique flavors.
Orzo Salad with Kale Ribs
When cooking with kale, most recipes suggest tossing out the fibrous stems once you’ve plucked off the tender leaves. Here, we chop up the kale stems, cook them alongside orzo until tender, and toss them into a vibrant mix of artichoke hearts, bell pepper, and shallot to create a veggie-packed pasta salad. The stems add a gentle crunch, like the texture of crisp asparagus spears, to perfectly complement the chewy pasta. Cheesy nutritional yeast and tangy white wine vinegar round out the fresh flavors of this low-waste meal.
Green Velvet Soup
Have some straggler leafy greens in the fridge? This versatile recipe is a great way to use up leftovers so they don’t go to waste. The greens are blended up with potatoes, frozen veggies, and creamy cannellini beans to create a velvety soup perfect for slurping. Scallions and fresh tarragon add tasty herbal undertones while a dash of hot sauce picks up the heat. Serve with a side of whole wheat bread, or toast cubes of stale bread into crunchy croutons to level up your zero-waste cooking!
Clean-Your-Pantry Lentil-Vegetable Stew
Transform leftover dried lentils (or beans) and vegetables into a warm and flavorful stew with this handy recipe. Fresh ginger gives the broth some kick, while mushrooms provide earthy, umami goodness to every slurp. Kick things up with one of your favorite seasoning blends, such as Italian, Cajun, Mexican, Thai, or ras el hanout. Serve with whole grain bread or crackers.
By Megan Edwards ,
These recipes look relish will definitely give them a try x
Thank you for all these wonderful recipes.
I also use my carrot tops – which I DO like – instead of parsley or cilantro, which I DON’T like. 🙂 A handful of leaves are good in soups and stews, they make a great, edible garnish when you’re serving something, and the stems are good to add to the other ‘scraps’ when you’re making broth.
I also dehydrate my carrot tops for smoothies! Just beautiful! And no waste! Also, I use it in soups and stews!