All the classics, new family favorites, and everything in between. You won’t be able to get enough of these amazing meals on your Thanksgiving table!
Yes, you can have the best Thanksgiving recipes, even when you’re vegan.
The first year we went vegan, I had no idea what to make for this epic food holiday; however, with years of experience and hundreds of recipes later, I’m confident you can have the best meal without any animal products on the table.
We’re here to help with more than 6 dozen vegan holiday recipes, we have all the mains, sides, desserts, and everything in between. Dare we say, we can put together a better holiday table spread than those filled with meat and dairy? Let’s show you!
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Watch our Vegan Thanksgiving Menu 2021 Video:
Frequently Asked Questions:
We’ll cover mains, sides, appetizers, breakfast, desserts, and even bread options in this guide!
For starters, vegans eat the same things that everyone else eats. Only, there are no animal products involved in their meals.
A traditional Thanksgiving meal has turkey, stuffing, cranberry sauce, green bean casserole, mashed potatoes and gravy, macaroni and cheese, pumpkin or sweet potato pie, and usually a lot more!
A vegan Thanksgiving menu has all of these things or some variation of them, just made in a way that doesn’t contain animal products, including eggs and dairy.
We answer this is almost every single post we have, but since there are so many here, it’s hard to give one definitive answer. We do our best to make our recipes allergen friendly, and describe that in each post.
Most of these recipes can be Top 9 Allergen Free if you follow our steps in each post.
All of the recipes below are vegan, which means they are naturally dairy and egg free if you have those allergies.
This is probably the only thing that we do not currently have a recipe for. But we didn’t want to leave you empty handed if you are set on replacing that. We do have a few main dish ideas below though.
There are many store bought vegan options from companies like Tofurky and Gardein and they can usually start to be found in October as a seasonal item. These typically are made out of wheat gluten, soy, or a combination of both. Check out our vegan turkey roasts review and video!
However, we know that many of you want whole foods plant based options and so for that, we’d check out the alternatives that we listed below.
Hosting and Being a Guest as a Vegan
What should I do if I’m hosting a vegan over?
The best that you can do is be as accommodating as possible. Vegans have come to expect that not everything or even most of what is at a meal is going to be suitable to them; however, that doesn’t mean that you can’t surprise them.
Make simple swaps like using oil or vegan butter in recipes, especially side dishes where butter is the only non-vegan ingredient.
Get more hosting tips here.
Is it wrong to take a meal to someone’s house if I’m the only vegan?
If you don’t host Thanksgiving and you celebrate, then likely you are going somewhere else.
It’s not rude to take over a plate of things you have made ahead of time. Our first vegan Thanksgiving, we made vegan meatballs, mashed potatoes and broccoli. We put it in reusable containers and warmed it up at the host’s house.
Now, if you do this be prepared people will ask questions, but it’s a great time to expose others to veganism.
We did bring a vegan dessert to share and guess what, no one knew it was vegan. But it surely brought joy to the guest with a dairy allergy that was happy to learn there was something they could have. Everyone wins!
The Best Vegan Thanksgiving Menu
Every year prior to being vegan, I would look forward to the same thing every single year. I can say without a doubt that my palate has been expanded and I look forward to trying new dishes, especially for the holidays.
No matter what you choose, we hope you have a delicious and fun filled holiday!
Vegan Thanksgiving Breakfasts
Below are 10 ideas for a delicious vegan Thanksgiving breakfast.
Don’t see what you want? No worries! Check out more than 4 dozen other vegan breakfast ideas!
Don’t see what you are looking for? We likely have it or a variation? For example, you may not want the pumpkin cinnamon rolls listed above, but we have over 25 different vegan cinnamon roll variations! Make sure you check out all our vegan breakfast ideas!
Vegan Thanksgiving Appetizers
If you have one of those families (whether you host or not) that do holidays ALL day long, then appetizers are a must. Also, if you are one of those families (no judgement) that say dinner is at 4pm, but every year it doesn’t start until at least 6pm, then you also need appetizers. Here’s some of our favorite vegan appetizer recipes!
Vegan Thanksgiving Main Dishes
These Thanksgiving Vegan main dishes are not your typical main dishes if you only usually have a turkey; however, they are vegan plant based options to switch up that we think you will love! PS: New traditions are fun!
Get even more vegan Thanksgiving main course ideas!
Vegan Thanksgiving Soups and Chilis
Soups and chilis are a great way to have an option that not only can you prep ahead, but that is filling, and a great addition to any meal. Here’s a few vegan soup ideas for Thanksgiving.
Vegan Thanksgiving Sides
Sides are the best part of any Thanksgiving menu, right? Honestly, you can make a whole meal with just sides and not even worry about a main dish.
Don’t see what you like, check out more than 20 vegan side dish ideas!
Here are some delicious vegan side dishes for Thanksgiving:
Looking for cold side dishes? We have you covered! From potato salad to macaroni salad, broccoli salad to quinoa salad and more! Check out our cold vegan side dishes!
Vegan Thanksgiving Bread Options
Bread is a must on any Thanksgiving menu. You need it to dip in the gravy and just yum, carbs! Here’s some delicious options:
Vegan Thanksgiving Desserts
Dessert is the best part. Thanksgiving is the biggest reason to eat all the desserts without any guilt, so check out some ideas we have below of popular choices, but check out all our vegan dessert ideas if you need more inspiration!
We could go on and on with desserts, so definitely make sure whether it’s cake, cookies or pies, that you check out even more of our vegan dessert recipes!
What’s on your vegan Thanksgiving menu? Leave a comment and let us know which vegan Thanksgiving recipes you’ll be trying!
This post was originally published on 11/17/19 and updated on 9/29/2020, 11/2/2020 and most recently 11/10/2021 and updated again in 11/2025.