Whether you’re already enjoying a vegan diet and are looking to cut back your spending, a vegetarian who wants to go vegan, or someone who heard going vegan is expensive, whatever brought you to this page, we’re here to help.
Going vegan or cooking more plant-based meals is a great way to learn more about nutrition and cooking,whilst improving your overall diet. Vegan diets also reduce your carbon footprint, as following the diet requires only one third of the land needed to support a typical meat and dairy diet.
Cook vegan food at home
Eating really amazing vegan food doesn’t need to cost the earth! A lot of people ask ‘is being vegan expensive?’ but we want to squash this myth! We want you to get inspired and try some amazing flavours whilst saving money. There are loads of budget-friendly plant-based meals including vegetable stews, curries, soups, salads and more.
Spag bol is a classic, and can be rustled up really easily. Using staple ingredients such as pasta and frozen soya mince you can get a hearty meal full of flavour and protein.
If you’re struggling for some ideas to cook, consider getting yourself a vegan cookbook to help inspire you!
Bulk buy frozen fruit and vegetables
Frozen fruit and vegetables are amazing, and you may not know this, but they can be way more nutritional than ‘fresh’ fruit and vegetables. The reason for this is when fruit and veg is picked, it then gets packed and flown (another not so environmentally friendly thing) to its location then on to a supermarket. Once picked, fruit and veg starts to lose its nutritional value. If your fruit and veg has sat for a few days, you can guarantee it’s lost a good chunk of its vitamins.
Frozen fruit and veg is often picked and then frozen very shortly after, it can then be shipped in larger quantities meaning less CO2 is produced per KG of food. Once frozen, the fruit and veg then retains its nutritional value until cooked, defrosted, and eaten!
Ensure you keep on top of your nutrition with vitamins and supplements
When following a vegan diet, you may become deficient in some vitamins and minerals, afterall, you are cutting out some major food groups.
To ensure you get a balanced diet, you may want to consider choosing a multivitamin. Choosing the right vegan multivitamin is important as it fills the gap of any vitamins or minerals you may miss from cutting out animal products.
At Vegums, we worked day and night to ensure our multivitamin is the perfect partner to a vegan diet. Our handy vitamin gives you 100% of your vitamin B12, vitamin D3, vitamin B6, selenium, folic acid, and iodine. Everything you need and nothing you don’t.
Shop local seasonal produce
Part of following a vegan lifestyle is trying to reduce your carbon footprint as much as possible.
Eating seasonally is a great way to not only keep yourself in great shape, but also keep the earth and your wallet healthier. When your veggies are grown out of season, they have to be managed and shipped across the world, which makes them more expensive. Eating local seasonal produce which can be grown in natural conditions and only transported short distances makes them much less expensive, and is more beneficial for the environment!
Meal prep and plan for the week
Learning how to go vegan on a budget can be difficult, but planning for the week ahead is a great way to ensure you stay two steps ahead.
A lot of people struggle eating healthy nutritious vegan food when at work or out and about. Meal prepping and planning your lunches for the days out at work or school will not only help you stay healthy, but also help you save money.
One of our favourite healthy choices is a soya mince based chilli. Simply make enough for the week and freeze batches in reusable lunch boxes and defrost when you need.
Get creative and make your own
Using milk alternatives such as oat milk can end up being quite expensive. Although they are better for the environment and the animals, they can end up putting a bit of a dint in your wallet.
Instead, we want to help you get creative and start making your own oat milk.
To make oat milk simply add 1 cup rolled oats + 4 cups water to a high-speed blender and blend on high for 30-45 seconds. Then strain through a clean t-shirt or towel for best results.
If you’d like to read a full guide on making oat milk, click here.