The 9 Best Vegan Cookbooks of 2021

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The Rundown

Best Overall: Vegan for Everybody

"If you’re looking for a single volume to give you a sweeping view of the possibilities of vegan cooking, this is the book for you."

Best for Beginners: The Plant Based Diet for Beginners

"From Hawaiian luau burgers to split pea soup, there’s a good cross-section of options for novice vegans."

Best Easy Recipes: Fuss-free Vegan: 101 Everyday Comfort Food Favorites, Veganized

"This cookbook dispels the myth that veganism means being limited in your food choices."

Best Instant Pot: The Vegan Instant Pot Cookbook

"Make the most of your favorite kitchen appliance with this vegan cookbook."

Best Indian: Vegan Richa’s Indian Kitchen

"From curries to dals, this cookbook includes 150 recipes inspired by regional Indian cuisines."

Best Italian: Chloe’s Vegan Italian Kitchen

"If you think Italian food is off-limits for vegans, this book will convince you otherwise."

Best Mexican: Salud! Vegan Mexican Cookbook

"This cookbook offers rich flavors and classic dishes with a plant-based focus."

Best Soul Food: Sweet Potato Soul

"Craving food that has depth and complexity? Check out the range of creative recipes in this book."

Best Baking: Modern Vegan Baking

"No, you don’t have to give up cookies, cakes, and pies if you commit to a vegan lifestyle."

Whether you’re a new or experienced home cook, it’s easy to get stuck in a routine, making the same dishes over and over. At the end of a long day, most of us just want to put a meal on the table without a lot of fussing. That’s when it’s time to invest in a new cookbook for inspiration! Whether you’re committed to veganism or simply are trying to add more plant-based meals to your usual fare, vegan cookbooks use whole foods and delicious spices to make meals more interesting and wholesome.

Adding more plant-based foods is good for the environment and your health. Research has found that plant-based diets—when properly planned so that your intake of nutrients such as B12 and iron is sufficient—may lower blood sugar and cholesterol levels. Vegan cooking is as creative and varied as you make it. With the number of cuisines featured in vegan cookbooks, you’ll find recipes for everything from appetizers to share with friends to sweet treats to celebrate a special occasion.

Ahead, our top picks for the best vegan cookbooks:

Best Overall: Vegan for Everybody

'Vegan for Everybody: Foolproof Plant-Based Recipes for Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner & In-Between' (Book Review)

If you’re looking for a single volume to give you a sweeping view of the possibilities of vegan cooking, Vegan for Everybody is the book for you. America’s Test Kitchen is known for its methodical testing of each recipe they publish, and this cookbook is no different. For the blueberry muffins recipe alone, the test kitchen baked 100 batches to get it right. With 200 recipes for every meal of the day, it’s a great primer.

You’ll find recipes ranging from cauliflower steaks with salsa verde to pumpkin cashew cheesecake. It’s thorough, beautifully illustrated, and includes some great recipes, although some recipes do have quite a few steps.

"It's a vegan cookbook that allows me to satisfy the bottomless pits that are my family. The kids were big fans of the butternut squash chili with quinoa and peanuts." ~ Katherine Martinko, Treehugger Senior Writer

Best for Beginners: The Plant Based Diet for Beginners

This cookbook is geared for newbies, and you won’t feel intimidated by the easy recipes that help you adopt a whole food lifestyle. There’s advice on how to cook basics such as potatoes and lentils, as well as a focus on using easy-to-find ingredients that you won’t have to hunt down at some specialty grocer.

From Hawaiian luau burgers to split pea soup, there’s a good cross-section of options for novice vegans. There's also nutritional information included with each recipe, shopping lists, and even a guide to choosing vegan dishes when dining at restaurants.

Best Easy Recipes: Fuss-free Vegan

This cookbook dispels the myth that veganism means being limited in your food choices. As the title suggests, the recipes cover all the comfort foods you crave including cheesy nachos, pizza, and chocolate cake—but with a vegan focus. The author hosts a popular blog, It Doesn’t Taste Like Chicken, where she shares additional vegan recipes. We love how simple and delicious the recipes are and that the ingredients are easy to find.

Best Instant Pot: The Vegan Instant Pot Cookbook

Make the most of your favorite kitchen appliance with this vegan cookbook, which offers recipes like miso mushroom risotto and red lentil almond curry. If you’re in a hurry and want to create wholesome meals, this cookbook offers more than 90 bright, pretty dishes that you can make in your Instant Pot. The book also offers an introduction to making the most of the Instant Pot itself. The author Nisha Vora is a former lawyer turned foodie, who offers more tips at her popular foodie blog, Rainbow Plant Life.

Best Indian: Vegan Richa’s Indian Kitchen

From curries to dals, this cookbook includes 150 recipes inspired by regional Indian cuisines. The author, who writes the popular blog Vegan Richa, focuses on introducing both familiar and new Indian flavors to home cooks. You can learn to cook with spices you haven’t used before or boost your protein intake with foods such as lentils and legumes. The book is well-organized and includes beautiful photos.

"Vegan Richa's Indian Kitchen" Is a Serious Indian Cookbook for Vegans

Best Italian: Chloe’s Vegan Italian Kitchen

If you think Italian food is off-limits for vegans, think again. This cookbook features tons of amazing dishes including butternut ravioli with brown sugar and crispy sage and classics such as potato gnocchi and eggplant parm. There are even dessert recipes such as almond biscotti and Italian wedding cake. Author Chloe Coscarelli won first place in 2010 on the show, Cupcake Wars, making her the first vegan to win a Food Network competition.

Best Mexican: ¡Salud! Vegan Mexican Cookbook

Salud! Vegan Mexican Cookbook: 150 Mouthwatering Recipes from Tamales to Churros — Courtesy of Walmart

Mexican meals don't have to mean meat! This cookbook offers rich flavors and classic dishes with a plant-based focus, including recipes such as Oaxacan-style mushroom tamales, tortilla soup, and jackfruit tortas. Author and Chef Eddie Garza learned how to cook Mexican dishes from his grandmother, and his plant-based recipes honor those culinary traditions.

Best Soul Food: Sweet Potato Soul

Craving food that has depth and complexity? The incredibly creative dishes in this cookbook range from coconut collard salad to sorghum cornmeal waffles to black-eyed pea hummus. There’s a helpful section on pantry staples, which introduces what basics new vegans should stock. Note that a few recipes call for processed items such as vegan butter or mayo that some cooks may prefer to avoid, but all the recipes are wonderfully flavorful.

Best Baking: Modern Vegan Baking

No, you don’t have to give up cookies, cakes, and pies at all if you commit to a vegan lifestyle. This cookbook includes 125 recipes for everything from red velvet cupcakes to pecan pie to rosemary fig focaccia. The book focuses on baking with whole ingredients and has thorough explanations of how vegan swaps work, but there are very few photos. The book is also great for anyone who wants to bake special treats for folks with lactose intolerance and/or egg allergies.

Final Verdict

Our top pick is Vegan for Everybody: Fool-proof Plant-based Recipes for Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner (view on Bookshop) for its tested recipes and thorough presentation. If you’re new to plant-based eating, we like Fuss-free Vegan: 101 Everyday Comfort Food Favorites, Veganized (view on Bookshop) for its simple but comforting recipes.

Why Trust TreeHugger?

We want to inspire readers to prepare healthy, flavorful meals with variety when adding more plant-based foods to their diets. Arricca SanSone specializes in writing about home, food, shelter and gardening.

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