Searching for the perfect main dish for that plant based feast? Here are 40 of my favorite vegetarian main dishes for Thanksgiving!

Being a vegetarian can be a little bit awkward on a holiday often referred to as Turkey Day. Judging by all the "What do you eat on Thanksgiving?!" questions I get, a lot of people seem to think it's impossible to celebrate the holiday without a plateful of turkey. (Really, it is possible!) These vegetarian entrees for thanksgiving prove just that.
Last year, I had a lot of people visiting my blog in the days leading up to Thanksgiving in search of advice on how to cook for their vegetarian guests. So I thought I'd make myself useful and put together a post with some vegetarian entrees for thanksgiving. If you're cooking for a vegetarian this Thanksgiving, here are some helpful tips. Here are some vegan Thanksgiving ideas too.
Make Vegetarian-Friendly Sides
Most vegetarians are happy just eating sides on Thanksgiving. But make sure they're vegetarian! Stuffing cooked in a turkey or gravy made with drippings don't count.
Ask What Your Guest Will Eat
I know people who consider themselves vegetarians and eat poultry and fish. Others don't eat meat, but will eat broth, gelatin, shortening, etc. Because so many people define vegetarianism in so many different ways, the best thing you can do is be clear on what your guest can and cannot eat before you make any meal plans.
Have Your Guest Bring a Dish
This is probably the easiest solution! These vegetarian entrees for thanksgiving will make that much easier.
While there are a few vegetarian faux turkey options out there, I much prefer a homemade main dish made with real ingredients. If my Savory Pumpkin Galette and Quinoa-Stuffed Acorn Squash Rings aren't your thing, here are 40 more vegetarian main dishes for Thanksgiving.
P.S. Don't miss our complete Vegan Thanksgiving Cookbook, for the ultimate plant based feast!
40 Vegetarian Main Dishes for Thanksgiving
Stuffed Vegetables
These Kale-Stuffed Portobello Mushrooms are a lighter, healthier remake of Chicken Florentine.
This Hoisin-Glazed Stuffed Acorn Squash is so incredibly flavorful, yet so simple to make. Protein-packed chickpeas and veggies are tossed with a sweet and savory sauce, and roasted to perfection. This is an easy vegan dinner that's pretty enough to serve at a dinner party! And it's 100% vegan and vegetarian too.
Vegetarian Stuffed Peppers with Millet Black Bean Pilaf and Roasted Red Pepper Sauce
These Vegetarian Stuffed Peppers are stuffed with a millet black bean pilaf and topped with a beautiful roasted red pepper carrot pesto sauce. These beautiful vegetarian stuffed peppers happen to be vegan-adaptable and gluten-free too. If you’re vegan, either leave out the cheese in roasted red pepper carrot pesto, or substitute with a simple roasted red pepper sauce. This recipe accommodates a variety of special diets, and can be enjoyed by many people, whether or not they’re on a special diet.
These delicious butternut squash stuffed shells are filled with creamy cashew cheese and roasted butternut squash, all topped off with a creamy butternut squash sauce. It's a little sweet, a littel savory, and a whole lot of delicious.
Four of these omega-3-packed bites served over grains makes a great supper.
This colorful Squash With Wild Rice and Chanterelle Stuffing will make a perfect centerpiece and main dish for your vegetarian Thanksgiving dinner.
Sweet Vidalia onions are stuffed with brown rice, lentils, and an aromatic blend of spices. Vegan, low-fat, and gluten-free.
With organic chia seeds, organic red palm oil, and herbs, gluten-free kasha and vegetables is transformed into a colorful side dish that is fabulous stuffed into winter squash.
These Italian-inspired Vegan Stuffed Peppers are loaded with hearty roasted vegetables. Bell peppers are roasted and stuffed with couscous, chickpeas, and fresh veggies. Colorful, flavorful, healthy, and ready in under an hour! It's vegetarian, vegan, and gluten-free.
Tarts, Quiches & Pot Pies
Pot pies don't get much easier than this! Cheesy broccoli is topped with puff pastry and baked until flaky and golden brown.
These vegan pot pies are the perfect centerpiece for your holiday feast. Loaded with fresh veggies in a creamy sauce and topped with a layer of perfectly flaky pie crust. This is a meatless main dish that’s sure to be a crowd pleaser!
The squash and onion mixtures can be cooked in advance and refrigerated for up to three days. Assemble the galette just before baking.
Ground flax adds nutty flavor and tender texture to a wholesome whole-wheat crust. Enjoy this pie for brunch, lunch, dinner, or even at a holiday buffet.
This crustless tofu quiche is so tasty and easy to prepare that you may come to prefer serving it for Thanksgiving over the heavy egg-and-cheese variety.
This rustic galette is filled with roasted brussels sprouts, grapes, walnuts and Parmesan cheese, all drizzled with a balsamic reduction.
This Swiss Chard and Cheddar Quiche uses Swiss Chard, baby lettuce and loads of cheddar cheese, and is easy to make ahead of time for a quick holiday breakfast or brunch.
Everyone loves the nostalgic classic, vegetable pot pie. This mild dish of hearty veggies enclosed in pie crust is also a crowd-pleasing vegan option for a Thanksgiving or Christmas menu.
Pizzas & Flatbreads
Make a batch of roasted butternut squash and caramelized onions ahead of time and get two meals out of them.
Flatbread with Kale, Swiss Chard, Pine Nuts, Currants, Brown Butter and Ricotta Salata
For this Flatbread with Kale, Swiss Chard, Pine Nuts, Currants, Brown Butter and Ricotta Salata recipe, the nutty tones of the butter give the greens a rich, deep flavor and the subtle color differences of the cooked greens are especially attractive with the red currants, brown pine nuts and white cheese that are loaded on top.
In this recipe for Butternut Squash Pizza with Roasted Garlic and Goat Cheese, sweet roasted butternut squash and fragrant rosemary sit on top of a bed of roasted garlic white sauce that is covered with caramelized onions. Then, the whole thing is sprinkled with whole cloves of roasted garlic and chunks of goat cheese. It's sweet in the way that savory things roasted and caramelized for a long time tend to be.
This vegetarian Wild Mushroom and Potato Pizza recipe on Whole Grain Naan is topped with fontina cheese and drizzled with white truffle oil.
The creamy gorgonzola with specks of blue-black cheese melts, the warmed slices of Granny Smith Apples and wedges of juicy figs cradle the shaved slices of Parmegiano-Reggiano. You will enjoy this recipe for Warm Fig, Apple and Gorgonzola Flatbread.
This Mediterranean Flatbread is fancy enough to serve for Thanksgiving. It starts out with a flaky phyllo dough crust, that melts in your mouth. Then it's layered with incredible flavors from pesto, sun dried tomatoes, feta cheese, and kalamata olives!
A mushroom tarte tatin is a wonderful way to showcase mushrooms in their own right. They have a wonderful flavour and deserve their own outing as the star of the meal occasionally - which makes this perfect for Thanksgiving.
Meatless Loaves
This Beans and Walnuts Vegan Meatloaf takes a classic comfort recipe and makes it into a meatless dish that everyone will love. Changing the meat for beans and walnuts makes this "meat"loaf vegetarian- and vegan-friendly as well as lower calorie!
There’s just something about the combo of hearty, stick-to-your-ribs lentils, shredded carrots and sweet apple, chunky celery, toasted walnuts, and a sweet tangy glaze to finish it all off. This Glazed Lentil Walnut Apple Loaf is total comfort food to me.
Seitan Roast Stuffed with Walnuts, Dried Cranberries, and Mushrooms
Homemade seitan (“wheat meat”) is wrapped around a savory stuffing in this elegant vegan main dish.
Adorn your table with this wow-worthy dish baked in a loaf pan for a spectacular presentation.
Juicy mushrooms take center stage in this vegan mushroom wellington - a fun spin on the classic beef wellington.
This easy Vegan Lentil Loaf Recipe is the perfect main dish to serve for Thanksgiving, Christmas, or Easter. It's a healthy vegetarian meatloaf that's packed with veggies and plant-based protein. Easy to make and freezer friendly, you'll come back to this lentil loaf again and again!
Serve up this Vegan Lentil Meatloaf with Tomato Glaze for your main entree for Thanksgiving. This meatloaf is made with plant-based protein, loaded with spices and seasonings, and tastes incredible.
Casseroles
Cashews make a creamy, alfredo-like sauce for this lasagna -- without the dairy!
This mac and cheese has a ton of flavour going on – there’s pumpkin puree, pumpkin beer, sautéed apples, caramelized onions, and smoked applewood cheddar cheese – and it all works together so well!
Layers of sage-flecked squash and rich, creamy ricotta serve as both filling and sauce.
This is my healthy, gluten-free substitute for eggplant parmigiana. Not frying the eggplant saves time and calories, and both of those can be at a premium. Its very saucy and perfect over pasta.
Duxelles (pronounced dook-SEHL) is a paste of finely chopped mushrooms and shallots used to flavor classic French dishes. A food processor makes quick work of the chopping. The mixture is extremely versatile—try it spread on toast as an appetizer. This recipe is also a good way to use tough stems…
Thius is not just any shepherd’s pie! The mashed potato topping has a whole head of roasted garlic, a block of goat cheese and a decent amount of cream! And under the layer of potatoes is a fantastic, flavourful layer of roasted spaghetti squash.
This easy vegan broccoli quinoa casserole of made out of quinoa, broccoli, and vegan cheese makes for a Thanksgiving dish that's both nourishing and comforting.
A pasta bake casserole with kale, baby bella mushrooms, and ricotta cheese.
Rigatoni and creamy pumpkin bechamel sauce team up to create this simple, scrumptious macaroni-and-cheese-esque baked pasta dish.
Everyone has a favorite mac and cheese recipe. This butternut squash mac and cheese, which uses sweet, creamy butternut squash in the sauce, is mine.
Vegan Thanksgiving Cookbook
If you're looking for even more vegetarian and vegan recipes for Thanksgiving - be sure to check out our complete Vegan Thanksgiving E-Cookbook!
It's packed with my favorite tried and true Thanksgiving recipes to make the holidays easy and delicious.
I hope you all have a wonderful Thanksgiving!
Averie @ Averie Cooks says
Thanks for linking up my Pumpkin & Cheesy Baked Potato Casserole! This is a fabulous roundup and I hope you have a great holiday!
Kiersten says
You're welcome--I hope you have a great Thanksgiving too!
Natalie says
Yum! Even though our Thanksgiving has passed, this is a great roundup of meals to try anytime! Thanks for including my mac and cheese in your list!
Kiersten says
It is totally on my list of things to make soon! So many fall flavors in one dish. 🙂
sarah @ two tarts says
WOW what a great round up. 40! I'm impressed. sending to my mom right now...she's vegan!
Kiersten says
Thank you! And I made your winter squash & black bean burgers this week--they are so good! 🙂
HilLesha says
Great list!
Jennifer H says
I need to tell my SIL about your site. She's a vegetarian and would love these recipes!
Anne - Mommy Has to Work says
So many yummy dishes!!
Brenda Williams says
All of these look and sound so good. Thank you for sharing them with us.
Kelly @ Texas Type A Mom says
I'm not a vegetarian but these look like pretty fabulous ways to celebrate even without the meat. Sometimes the meat is overrated anyway. I'm not a huge fan of turkey to begin with.
Kiersten says
Yeah, I never cared for turkey much either even when I did eat meat. The sides are so much better!
Shell Fruscione says
Those all sound so yummy! I fill up on sides usually anyway on Thanksgiving & don't really eat more than a couple of bites of turkey so I could totally make it through the day without meat- especially with yummy recipes like these!
Kare @ Kitchen Treaty says
A belated thank you for including my baked pumpkin rigatoni! Yay!
This is such a great selection of main dishes. I'm inspired by the loaf section. I tend to veer away from loaf recipes and I'm not even sure why. I think I need to give one of those recipes a try. Loafs need love too, right?!
I hope you had a fabulous Thanksgiving and I can't wait to see what you have up your sleeve for December.
Kiersten says
I have no big theme weeks planned for December--I was thinking about it, but laziness won out. 😉
vimal sharma says
Thanks for puting for vege dishes recipies
Roshani says
Just love these kind of recipes – simple, light, fast and delicious. Can’t wait to try this. Thanks!
Eileen Dight says
This is the best collection of vegetarian dishes I have ever seen! My mouth was watering as I scrolled through, and I wanted to try most of them. I’m increasingly interested in vegetarian choices for the sake of the environment and this collection is inspiring.