Low Calorie Vegetarian and Vegan Ready Meal Options
By the wlr team
Since November is Veg Pledge month, we scoured the big 3 UK supermarkets for easy and convenient vegetarian and vegan meal options to try. Here's the tastiest looking low calorie finds from Sainsbury's, Tesco and Asda.
~ Love Your Veg with Sainsbury's ~
Sainsbury’s Love Your Veg! ready meals are mainly for vegetarians although their vegan offering is expanding. Many meals in the range have good reviews so you may be in for a treat if you give some a try.
There are 4 vegan and 2 vegetarian meals in this group, those that have reviews on Sainsbury's were 4 or more stars when we did our research.
Rainbow Vegetable Stew & Dumplings | 354 Calories
Tomato and lentil stew with beetroot, butternut squash and kale topped with basil and spinach dumplings. One reviewer says: "the dumplings were amazing"
Channa Masala & Cauliflower Pilau Rice | 460 Calories
Spiced Potato and spring greens top chickpeas in medium spiced tomato and coconut sauce with chickpea and cauliflower pilau rice. Many comments mention this meal has just the right balance of spice.
Vegan Smoky Bean Burrito Bowl | 454 Calories
A Wheat Tortilla filled with mixed beans and rice in a spicy tomato sauce topped with sweet potato and chillies. This meal contains 2 of your five-a-day, but you might be tempted to add a cool cucumber salad.
Vegan Butternut Squash & Lentil Lasagne | 310 Calories
Lentil and tomato ragu layered between butternut squash, topped with a coconut-based white sauce and parsley crumb. This is very low calorie, so plenty of room to add some vegan garlic bread.
Vegan Sticky Miso Aubergine Udon Noodles | 423 Calories
Grilled aubergines, Udon noodles and vegetables with a sticky white miso, mirin rice wine and ginger sauce.
Mushroom & Spinach Crispbakes | 438 Calories
Mushrooms, spinach, mature Cheddar and soft cheese mixed with rice, coated in breadcrumbs. Reviewers love these, but we're a bit bothered by the fact that Sainsbury's shows cals per serving as 219, when 1 serving is two of these.
~ Tasty Tesco Options ~
The Plant Chef range from Tesco has some nice looking choices and they have recently added new meals to the range. The entire range is vegan firendly. Plant Chef Derek Sarno aims to turn "crowd-pleasing classics into 100% plant-based dishes with big, bold flavours that pack a tasty punch".
Here's a selection that should keep things interesting while you're watching the calories.
Roast Cauli Masala | 523 Calories
Soya pieces and marinated cauliflower in a tikka sauce. The meal includes pilau rice.
Bangers & Mash | 430 Calories
Sausages made with pea protein served in ale and onion gravy sauce. The meal includes mashed potato, a bag of steamed veg would finish it off nicely.
Teriyaki Noodles | 336 Calories
Mildly spiced spring greens, mushrooms and peppers in sweet teriyaki sauce with turmeric noodles.
Mushroom Pizza | 360 Calories
You'll need to share this as the calorie count is for half of the pizza. Plenty of headroom to add a mixed salad and some zingy dressing, or maybe a serving of the coleslaw below.
Plant Chef Coleslaw | 96 Calories (50g Serving)
Shredded cabbage, carrot and onion in vegan mayonnaise. We've included this as a side option, or something to top your jacket potato. It had a great review on Tesco: "This is a keeper"
BBQ Jackbake | 358 Calories
BBQ pulled jackfruit in barbecue sauce with diced roasted potatoes. You need to oven cook this one to get those lovely crispy spuds.
~ Veggie Favourites from Asda ~
Asda don't have a massive range of vegetarian or vegan ready meals, but those they have are fairly well rated.
Vegetarian Spaghetti & Veggie Balls | 479 Calories
Veggie balls in rich Arrabbiata sauce. This popular Asda product recently had its recipe updated so it is now suitable for vegans.
Vegetarian Mushroom Stroganoff & Rice | 420 Calories
Mushrooms in a rich sauce with paprika and brandy. A hit with Asda shoppers and not just the vegetarians, one reviewer says "I’d rather have this than a takeaway".
Veggie Feast Thin Stonebaked 10" Pizza | 360 Calories
Mozzarella and cheddar top a tomato base with sweet peppers, red onion and sweetcorn. Calories are for half a pizza so enjoy it with a nice big salad.
Vegetarian Three Bean Chilli & Rice | 446 Calories
Pinto, butter and kidney beans in smokey tomato sauce with rice, suitable for vegans. Some found it too hot, some found it just right.
Vegetarian Cauliflower Cheese Crispy Grills | 386 Calories
Mature cheddar, potato and leeks covered in golden crumb. You get 2 in our serving size, try with a tomato and red onion salad.
Published: 28 October 2019
Make a Vegetarian Plan that Works for You
You'll find hundreds of vegetarian and vegan meal ideas in wlr, from ready meals to recipes for making your own. It's easy to put them together to make a plan, give it a try!
More Info & Resources
For more meat-free meal ideas have a look at our vegetarian weight loss meal plan and vegan diet plan
If you fancy a little cooking, try one of our low calorie vegetarian recipes
Veg Pledge tips and more info on the Cancer Research website
Supermarket sites: Sainsbury's | Tesco | Asda