Veganuary is in full swing this month and if you’ve signed up, you’re halfway there! We hope you’ve enjoyed your month of going vegan and that you know there are many ways to eat exciting plant-based meals. If your jam is more the route of “Meatless Monday” instead of full-blown full-time vegan or vegetarian, that’s okay too.
When the weather is still cold – and with our periodic cold snaps this winter in the UK – we always find that a comforting winter soup can be just the ticket to warm you up as well as packing in those essential nutrients. Here are our vegan winter soup picks to keep you going.
Try these lovely recipes on their own or accompany them with a nice crusty or soft bread roll on the side. They’re packed full of nutrients and economical too. The first three recipes can be whipped up for less than £1 per serving!
The recipes are versatile and they’re great for eating a few days in a row or freezing leftovers for later. You can also add different protein sources such as soya products like tofu, chickpeas, beans, or lentils; hide your least favourite veggies in them such as sprouts, kale, or spinach; and add garnishes such as nuts, seeds, vegan cheese, broccoli, nutritional yeast, oils, citrus, and chopped herbs to make the flavours interesting and fresh, especially if you’re eating the same soup in succession.
1 Roasted tomato and red pepper soup (99p per serving)
Every good home chef needs a basic tomato soup recipe! For a quick weeknight meal, this easy soup requires only ten minutes of prep and most of the meal is inactive cooking time in the oven. You can have it from chopping board to table in under an hour.
This recipe calls for 11 ingredients, which might seem like quite a few, but they’re mostly things you’d usually have to hand – tomatoes, onions, carrots, red pepper, chickpeas, veggie stock, and bread. You may have to run to the supermarket for fresh coriander if your wilting bunch in the fridge has seen better days.
You can add an optional vegan sour cream garnish and make croutons to go on top.
Instead of a basic tomato soup, this soup uses Mexican-inspired fajita seasoning to add interest.
This soup really packs a powerful punch with 11 grams of protein per serving, 12 grams of fibre, and four of your five veggies per day.
Find the recipe here from Sainsbury’s.
2 Pea and leek soup (34p per serving)
Peas are packed full of protein and who doesn’t love a tasty Welsh leek? This bright green soup is a variation of leek and potato soup conjoined with pea and mint soup. It requires some cupboard/fridge basics like potatoes, leeks, veggie stock, and frozen peas with optional mint leaves for garnish and mixed seeds like sunflower seeds and pumpkin seeds.
It only takes 10 minutes to prep and 30 to cook. It’s low calorie (275 calories), high in protein (12 grams), and high in fibre (10 grams).
Check out this delicious Sainsbury’s recipe here.
3 Fragrant squash and noodle soup (84p per serving)
For another 30-minute recipe with minimal prep time, this Asian-inspired soup uses up that butternut squash you always buy but never know what to do with as well as broad beans, pak choi, coconut milk, curry paste, and a few other bits and bobs.
Plus, this soup has noodles! You can garnish with toasted cashews, coriander, and red chilli slices.
Sainsbury’s is stepping up its game with these recipes; follow this link for the recipe.
4 Classic carrot and coriander soup (88p per serving)
One of the most common soups offered to vegans at eateries is good old carrot and coriander – not great for those of you who think coriander tastes like soap, which is actually genetic – but good for those who have a few potatoes and carrots on hand and want to cook-up something simple, yet wholesome.
It’s a quick 20-minute soup that only requires a little oil, dried and fresh coriander, veggie stock, an onion, a potato, and a few carrots.
Find this BBC Good Food recipe here.
5 Celeriac, hazelnut, and truffle soup (around £2 per serving)
For more exotic flavours and something a little more boujee – since truffle oil and hazelnuts are a little more pricey – this luxury soup is a tasty way to use up celeriac, which is a lovely yet low-carb root veggie with a mild yet earthy celery flavour but with the texture of turnips and potatoes.
This soup is creamy and warming and is garnished with hazelnuts and a drizzle of truffle oil. Go easy on the truffle oil as the flavour is strong and can overpower the soup if poured with a too-generous hand.
Discover the BBC Good Food recipe at this link.
UK-based vegan Instagrammers
If you’re looking for further inspiration, a great place to go to get inspired by beautiful images and short clips is Instagram.
If you think eating vegan food is simply about packing in boring and bland boiled veggies in piles, think again. Vegan food done right is tasty, vibrant, and nutrient-dense to help you look and feel your best. It’s not all about salad or soups – although that’s a good place to start.
Here are our top twenty picks for vegan Instagrammers based in the UK that inspire us with recipes and tips.
- Pixie Turner (RNutr) @pixienutrition
- Accidentally Vegan UK @accidentallyveganuk
- BOSH! by Henry & Ian @bosh.tv
- The Plant Powered Princess @theplantpoweredprincess
- Deliciously Ella @deliciouslyella
- Vegan Mummy @vegan__mummy
- Vegan Life Mag @veganlife_mag
- Laura Strange @myglutenfreeguide
- Quorn @quorn_uk
- All Plants @allplants
- Linda McCartney Foods @lindamccartneyfoods
- Emily’s World @_emilysworld
- Vegan London: Food and Lifestyle @vegansofldn
- Jay McGuiness @birdspotting
- Niki Webster – Rebel Recipes @rebelrecipes
- So Vegan @sovegan
- Fearne Cotton @fearnecotton
- Naomi Smart @naomismartuk
- India Reynolds – Vegan recipes from Reyn @recipesfromreyn
- Lucy Watson @lucywatson
Which are your favourite vegan Instagrammers and influencers? Let us know on our social media pages or in the comments.
The takeaways
After you’ve made some delicious winter-warming and super-healthy soups, you can be a little naughty with our recipes for vegan treats.
If you haven’t read our blog about vegan protein sources check it out and our information all about Veganuary.
We’d love to hear from you so reach out on social media if you’re planning to make one of these soups or share with us your fave recipes.