Warming Plant-Based Stews and Casseroles

This carrot potato mushroom stew (Broke Bank Vegan) shows how the most basic cheap ingredients, can make a stellar filling meal. Beginning with the classic Italian combo of celery, onion and carrots, the stew then adds in baby potatoes, mushrooms, tomatoes and seasoning, along with good veggie stock.

Keep this recipe away from pets due to unsafe ingredients (garlic, onion, mushrooms). Read more on food safety for people and pets. 

Just bin alliums (onions, garlic, leeks, shallots, chives) as like tomato/citrus/rhubarb scraps, acids could harm compost creatures. If using tinned ingredients, pop lids inside or pull ring-pulls back over holes before recycling, to prevent wildlife getting trapped. 

The flavour in this soup is amplified by adding two other ingredients. Tamari (like posh soy sauce) and balsamic vinegar (from Italy). Both are expensive. But if making your own food, you are saving money long-term.

As you can then base meals around cheap ingredients like potatoes, tinned beans and vegetables, and use a tiny amount of quality flavouring ingredients to make the dish.

Vegan stews and casseroles stand out for their variety and deep flavours. Without animal-derived ingredients, everything relies on the natural tastes of vegetables, beans, grains, and clever seasoning.

• Generous chunks of veg and pulses make the base.
• Plant-based proteins give body and keep you full.
• Rich sauces and stocks add bold taste.
• Aromatics and herbs lift the whole dish.

A Hearty Affordable Butter Bean Stew

This butter bean stew (Crowded Kitchen) is an ideal recipe to master, as it’s warm and filling, packed with protein and calcium, heaped with fresh vegetables and cheap to eat! Tinned butter beans are on sale everywhere, and with vegetables form a complete meal.

Ideal for cold autumn and winter nights, this is a filling meal on its own, or especially if served with good bread. Like all ‘bean stew’ recipes, you can just sub any canned beans leftover in the cupboard.

All you do for this recipe is fry onion and garlic in a pan, then add chopped vegetables (carrots, celery, peppers) along with herbs and spices, with tomato paste.

When the vegetables are cooked, just whisk in some flour to good veggie broth, then add this with the tinned drained beans to the post, and cook for around 30 minutes. Add your fresh spinach right at the end, with fresh parsley if wished. Salt to taste, and you’re done!

Butter beans, also known as lima beans, are a kitchen staple with their smooth texture and mild flavour. They’re great for adding to soups, stews, or salads. Rich in protein and fibre, they’re a good choice for those aiming to eat healthier.

Butter beans are versatile and can be mashed, baked, or thrown into a curry. Got a tin of these in your cupboard? Why not try making a creamy butter bean soup or add them to a veggie bake for something different? With their ability to soak up flavours, they’re a simple way to elevate any meal.

A Comforting Pea, Potato & Carrot Stew

This pea, potato and carrot stew (Ela Vegan) is a quick and easy recipe, that is also comfort food delicious. This recipe has quite a few ingredients, but they are all easy to find and buy: carrots, potato, celery, garlic, herbs and coconut milk).

The creamy soup is also easy to make, and given extra flavour with good veggie stock. Season to taste, and blend half if you wish, for a creamier soup.

Mushroom Irish Stew (with vegan stout!)

This Mushroom Irish Stew (The Simple Veganista) uses mushrooms to replicate meat in this famous Irish dish. Packed with filling potatoes, veggies and herbs, this is a simple ‘pour everything in a pot and cook it’ recipe, with optional vegan Worcestershire sauce (no fish) to bring the flavours out.

Choose Artisan Vegan Stouts

This recipe uses Guinness (which is now vegan-friendly) but if you wish, you could use an artisan English stout like Shoreham Stout (brewed in Brighton) or Stroud Brewery. Alcohol-free vegan stouts include Check This Stout or Sober Brummie.

Guinness is not even Irish! The company is now owned by a big multi-national. But was founded by a man who was anti-Catholic (though to be fair, he did use profits to build peace). But when Ireland became independent, he would not let the new government use the harp logo, as he’d already taken it!

So the government simply turned the harp to face the other way. If you look closely, you’ll notice that the harp on the Irish government logos does indeed face the opposite direction, to the Guinness one!

We suggest enjoying this, whilst listening to Putumayo’s wonderful album Celtic Women!

Authentic Recipe for (vegan) Irish Stew!

Irish stew (A Virtual Vegan) is a one-pot hearty meal that can be made on the stove, in a slow cooker or in an Instant Pot. Vegan-friendly Guinness gives an incredibly rich, deep flavour to the gravy that is loaded with chunky, sweet, tender vegetables.

Make it with just the veg, or add some optional vegan “meat” or mushrooms to make it even more satisfying and flavourful!

A Vegan Stew Recipe (with homemade dumplings)

These vegan dumplings (The Veg Space) are sure to impress your Eastern European guests (keep fresh dough away from pets).

Very easy to make by steam-cooking in a pot, serve with Kate’s Vegan Stew with Pearl Ale & Barley. She also has a nice recipe for a vegan sausage casserole.

Vegan Lancashire Hotpot: Perfect Comfort Food!

Lancashire hotpot was invented in the days of the thriving cotton industry, when potatoes and lamb were cooked over a low fire. This vegan Lancashire hotpot (The Veg Space) is made with tinned lentils, mushrooms, Maris Piper spuds and ready-made vegan sausages.

So good, people from Yorkshire may even try it!

This recipe uses Maris Piper potatoes for best results, along with tinned lentils for taste and protein. The ‘lamb replacement’ in this case are vegan sausages. We like Moving Mountains as they aren’t owned by a meat company (like Richmond) and very tasty, affordable and easy to find.

If you prefer not to use ‘fake meat’, you can sub with tinned borlotti beans instead. Serve this vegan hotpot with steamed green beans and broccoli or mashed carrot and swede.

A Coronation Street ‘hotpot’ Legend!

What a stunner!

Betty Driver was an actress and singer whose name will ring bells for fans of Coronation Street. Born in Leicester, she became famous for her role as Betty Williams on the long-running soap.

Her warm, down-to-earth character was a staple on screen for decades, and her roots in the city remained a point of pride. Leicester has always had a strong connection to the arts, and Betty’s story highlights the city’s role in sending talent to the national stage.

Betty in real life was a vegetarian and awful cook, laughing that she wouldn’t be able to make a hotpot to save her life! Still her healthy lifestyle led her to live to the ripe old age of 91.