“What’s for dinner?” Probably the three most annoying words for anyone who hasn’t got anything in the fridge, is lacking serious inspo and doesn’t fancy spending the evening walking aimlessly around the local shop at the end of the road in search of some satisfying grub.

The struggle is real. Even more so if you’re trying out a new diet. We’ve been vegan for four years now and when we first made the change it was a minefield. Everything we knew about food changed and we had to relearn how to cook. In the first month, we probably spent a good chunk of our time walking around the supermarket in circles studying labels. That was until we figured out the magic art of meal prepping, saving us a whole load of time and meaning we’d always have good food waiting for us at the end of a long day.

We prefer our food fresh, so we usually prep for two to three days at a time. Although you can totally prep for the entire week if that works for you. Here are our top meal prepping tips:

1 Think about your week. 2 Set aside a bit of time to think about the week ahead, what you’ve got going on socially and think about what sort of grub you want to eat. Trust us, it’s better doing it on a Sunday afternoon then spending every night for the rest of the week pondering the same dilemma – “what’s for dinner?” 3 Have a flick through some cookbooks for inspiration or have a look online. There are so many brilliant plant-based recipes online and all the recipes on our socials and website are totally free and guaranteed to satisfy everyone, whether they’re vegan or not. 4 So, you’ve done your research. Note down what you like the look of, grab a piece of paper or start a spreadsheet. Draw up five or seven columns, depending on how many days you’re prepping for. Then add in four rows for breakfast lunch , dinner and snacks. 5 Choose your recipes and fill in your grid. Figure out what you can prep in advance, how many people you’re cooking for each day and then make your shopping list. We prefer to do an online order and have everything delivered at once. 6 Think about storage: it’s all very well and good cooking seven days worth of food, but you’re going to need something to store your meals in and some fridge space. Invest in some airtight containers – we prefer glass ones over plastic – label them up so you know what’s what and then you’re good to go. 7 Get cooking!

You’ve got your ingredients, you’ve got your storage boxes, now it’s time to get cooking. Once cooked, let the food cool before storing in the fridge. We prefer to keep our food fresh and tend to prepare a couple of days in advance but it’s totally cool to prep enough food for the entire week.

Whether it’s batch cooking a curry to feed you for dinner and a couple of lunches or going the whole hog for the week, meal planning is a great way to get through the week and reduces any thinking time about what you are going to eat and when. Your future self will be so thankful. It’s also a great crash course in plant-based cooking – you’ll be a master in no time! If the above seems like too much hard work, but you like the idea of following a meal plan, then you can find ready-created meal plans online. We have loads at bosh.tv – we’ve got you covered!

Top tip: Spare veggies? Chop them up anyway and either freeze them or put them in a pasta sauce

Credit: Lizzie Mayson

Curry house jalfrezi

The spicy and flavourful jalfrezi has now overtaken tikka masala as Britain’s favourite curry! This stock can be prepared in advance and frozen or kept in the fridge in an airtight container, so make a double batch to save time. Be sure to taste the curry as you go to get the perfect balance, as spices can vary in strength.

Serves three to four

Ingredients

1 large aubergine

4tbsp sunflower or olive oil

1 onion

1 red pepper

A small bunch of fresh coriander

5 green bird’s-eye chillies

12 cherry tomatoes

3tbsp curry powder

1tsp garam masala

¼–2tsp hot chilli powder

8tbsp tomato purée

500g cooked basmati rice, or use 2 x 250g microwavable bags of basmati rice

Salt

For the stock

1 onion

5cm piece fresh ginger

5 garlic cloves

500ml + 1tbsp water

½ fresh red chilli

3 cherry tomatoes

1tbsp sunflower or olive oil

¼tsp ground coriander

¼tsp ground cumin

¼tsp ground fenugreek

¼tsp ground turmeric

¼tsp paprika

Equipment

Baking tray

Fine grater or microplane

Medium saucepan

Liquidiser

Method

Preheat grill to 200C.

First cook the aubergine. Trim the aubergine and cut it into 2cm chunks, spread over the baking tray, sprinkle with two tablespoons of oil and a good pinch of salt. Toss to coat. Grill for 15 minutes, turning occasionally. Remove when golden brown all over but not burnt.

Meanwhile, make the stock. Peel and finely chop the onion. Peel the ginger by scraping off the skin with a spoon and grate. Peel and grate the garlic. Put the ginger and garlic into a bowl and mix with one tablespoon of water to make a paste.

Finely chop the red chilli and tomatoes. Place the saucepan on a medium heat and pour in the oil. Add the onion and sauté for five minutes. Add a teaspoon of the ginger and garlic paste. Add all the remaining spices and half the water and stir. Simmer fo ten minutes, until browned and reduced completely. Pour in the rest of the water, stir and transfer to the liquidiser. Blend to a smooth liquid. Clean out the pan.

Back to the curry. Peel and thinly slice the onion. Cut the pepper in half and cut out the stem and seeds, then thinly slice. Pick the leaves from the coriander. Finely chop the stems and roughly chop the leaves. Trim and thinly slice two of the chillies. Quarter the tomatoes.

Pour the remaining oil into the clean saucepan. Place over a high heat. Add the onion, pepper and sliced chillies and fry for three minutes, stirring regularly. Stir in the chopped coriander stems and remaining ginger and garlic paste (from making the stock). Add the curry powder, garam masala, ¼ teaspoon of hot chilli powder, tomato purée, grilled aubergines and stock. Taste and add more salt, garam masala and chilli powder if needed. Stir in the tomatoes. Simmer gently for ten minutes, stirring frequently, until slightly thickened.

Heat the rice or cook it following the instructions on the packet.

Transfer to a serving dish. Cut the remaining chillies in half lengthways and use them to garnish the curry along with the chopped coriander leaves. Serve with the rice.

Credit: Lizzie Mayson

Piri-piri easy chorizo bake

This is a quick and easy to knock up, eat-the-rainbow ready revelation. Coloured heritage tomatoes are a great addition if you can get hold of them. The piri-piri sauce is wonderful, so consider making double and keeping half for another recipe. Serve with brown rice for an even healthier meal.

Serves four

Ingredients

2 medium sweet potatoes

1 lemon

1 red pepper

1 green pepper

1 yellow pepper

3 garlic cloves

300g “eazy chorizo” (see below) or shop-bought veggie chorizo sausages

20 cherry tomatoes

20g fresh coriander

500g cooked basmati rice, or use 2 x 250g microwavable bags of basmati rice

Olive oil

Salt and black pepper

For the piri-piri sauce

1 red onion

4 garlic cloves

1 red pepper

2 red chillies (scotch bonnet, red or bird’s-eye)

2tbsp smoked paprika

1tsp dried oregano

2tbsp red wine vinegar

A large bunch of fresh basil

1 lemon

Equipment

Roasting tin

Liquidiser

Fine grater or microplane

Large microwaveable bowl, optional

Method

Preheat oven to 180C.

First cook the sweet potatoes. Peel the sweet potatoes and cut them into 2cm cubes. Put them in a large microwaveable bowl, sprinkle over a pinch of salt and pepper and drizzle with olive oil. Cut the lemon in half and squeeze over the juice, catching any pips in your other hand. Toss to coat. Cover the bowl with a plate and microwave on high for 6 minutes, until soft. Alternatively, cook in the oven at 180C for 30–35 minutes, until soft.

Cut the peppers in half. Cut out the stems and seeds and cut the flesh into 2cm cubes, then put them in the roasting tin. Use the back of a knife to lightly crush the three garlic cloves and add them to the tin. Drizzle over a little olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Add the sweet potatoes to the peppers and put the tin in the oven for ten to 15 minutes, until the peppers have small, black patches on the skins.

Meanwhile, make the Eazy Chorizo sausages following the recipe below. (Or cut up shop-bought sausages into bite-sized pieces and cook following the instructions on the packet.)

To make the piri-piri sauce peel and roughly chop the onion and garlic. Cut the pepper in half and cut out the stem and seeds. Rip the stems from the chillies, cut them in half lengthways and remove the seeds if you prefer a milder sauce. Put the onion, garlic, pepper and chillies in the liquidiser with the paprika, oregano, red wine vinegar and basil. Grate in the zest of the lemon, then cut it in half and squeeze in the juice, catching any pips. Add a drop of water and blend to a smooth paste. Taste and adjust the seasoning if necessary.

Remove the roasting tin from the oven. Transfer the sausages and piri-piri sauce to the tin and mix everything together. Add the cherry tomatoes and put the tin back in the oven for 15 minutes, until the potatoes and peppers are cooked and the sauce is piping hot.

Pluck the leaves from the coriander and dispose of the stems. Coarsely chop the leaves and sprinkle them over the vegetables. Serve with the basmati rice alongside.

Eazy chorizo

Once we’d developed this quick DIY chorizo recipe we never looked back. Hitting a standard shop-bought veggie sausage with fennel, paprika, red wine and maple syrup gives an instant chorizo vibe.

Makes 300g

Ingredients

300g plant-based sausages

2tbsp olive oil

1½tsp sweet smoked paprika

½tsp cayenne pepper

¼tsp ground fennel

A pinch of salt

A pinch of pepper

2 garlic cloves

4tbsp red wine

½tbsp maple syrup

Equipment

Medium frying pan on a medium-high heat

Fine grater or microplane

Slice the sausages into 2cm rounds. Put them in the hot pan and pour over the olive oil. Fry for five minutes, turning now and again, until golden. Sprinkle over the paprika, cayenne pepper, fennel, salt and pepper. Peel and finely grate the garlic into the pan and fry for another two minutes.

Carefully add the red wine and maple syrup to the pan. Cook until the wine has reduced and you have a sticky glaze, stirring occasionally. Toss to ensure the sausage is covered. Take off the heat once all the liquid in the pan has evaporated and serve.

Credit: Lizzie Mayson

Shepherd's pie

This is perhaps one of Ian’s favourite dishes: the British classic, shepherd’s pie. Served with garden peas, it is perfect for a cold winter evening. You can prepare the filling and mash the day before and keep them in separate airtight containers in the fridge, then assemble the pie when you’re ready to cook it. It might take a few minutes longer if you’re cooking it from cold.

Serves four to six

Ingredients

2 medium red onions

1 celery stick

3 garlic cloves

4 sun-dried tomatoes, plus 2tbsp oil from the jar

1 sprig fresh rosemary

3 sprigs fresh thyme

1 large carrot

500g mushrooms

2tbsp tomato purée

1tbsp yeast extract (eg Marmite)

1tbsp balsamic vinegar

250ml red wine

100ml vegetable stock

400g pre-cooked puy lentils

salt and black pepper

For the potato topping

1.2kg Maris Piper or other floury potatoes

40g dairy-free butter

150ml unsweetened plant-based milk

1tbsp Dijon mustard

Equipment

Fine grater or microplane

2 large saucepans

Food processor

Potato masher

20 x 30cm lasagne dish

Piping bag fitted with a wide star nozzle, optional

Method

Preheat oven to 180C.

First make a start on the potato topping. Peel and chop the potatoes into large chunks. Put in a saucepan, cover with cold water and add a generous pinch of salt. Put over a high heat, bring to the boil and cook for 12–15 minutes. Drain into a colander and leave to dry before tipping back into the pan.

Now to the filling. Peel and finely dice the red onions and celery, peel and grate the garlic and finely chop the sun-dried tomatoes. Remove the leaves from the rosemary and thyme by running your thumb and forefinger from the top to the base of the stems (the leaves should easily come away), then finely chop. Peel and finely chop the carrot and put the mushrooms in the food processor and blitz to mince.

Put the second saucepan over a medium heat. Pour in the sun-dried tomato oil, add the onion and a small pinch of salt and fry for five minutes, stirring. Add the garlic, sun-dried tomatoes, rosemary and thyme and cook for two minutes. Add the carrot and celery and stir for four to five minutes. Add the mushrooms, turn up the heat slightly and stir for two to three minutes, until the mushrooms start to sweat. Reduce the heat and cook for five to seven minutes, stirring occasionally.

Stir the tomato purée into the pan. Add the yeast extract and balsamic vinegar and stir for one minute. Add the red wine, stock and lentils, turn up the heat and simmer until most of the liquid has evaporated – about ten minutes. Taste, season and take off the heat.

Mash the potatoes. Add the dairy-free butter, milk and mustard to the potatoes and mash until really smooth. Taste and season.

Spread the filling over the bottom of the lasagne dish. Spoon the potato into the piping bag, if using, and pipe tightly packed walnut-sized whips of potato all over. Otherwise, spoon over the potato and spread it out with the back of a spoon, then drag over a fork to make rows that will catch and brown in the oven.

Put the pie in the oven and bake for 25–30 minutes, until starting to crisp and turning a golden brown. Remove and serve.

Bish Bash Bosh! by Henry Firth and Ian Theasby is out now. How To Live Vegan is out on 3 October (HQ, HarperCollins).

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