5 Tips for Veganuary + Meal Ideas

What is Veganaury?

Veganuary is a campaign promoted each January to encourage people to try a vegan lifestyle for the first month of the year. Eating vegan for 31 days can be a rewarding and positive experience, for your health and for the planet.

The idea is simple, but can seem overwhelming to some. All you need to do is avoid animal products (meat, dairy, eggs, honey) for the month and focus on plant-based foods instead. Veganuary is a low-pressure way to explore vegan eating without a long-term commitment. Even if you do not participate 100%, you can join the challenge to add more plants to your plate and improve your health to kick off the new year!

What happens when you go vegan for 30 days?

A month of removing animal products from your diet can have a variety of health benefits. While 4 weeks is not an extensive amount of time, eating a healthy plant based diet for the whole month will give you a boost in energy, more mental clarity, better skin, and you may drop a few pounds!

As for planetary benefits, a vegan diet uses an average of 54% less water, which adds up to saving 18,250 gallons for just one month of Veganuary. Plus, a vegan diet creates 75% less carbon emissions, so if enough people switch to a vegan diet, it would drastically reduce climate change.

Is it hard to go Vegan for a month?

It may seem like a daunting undertaking to change everything you eat for a month. But, it may not be as drastic as you think. If you already eat a generally healthy omnivorous diet, the changes you will need to make might be small. However, if you are a hardcore fast-foodie, there may be some big changes – but the benefits will likely be greater too.

No matter where you’re coming from, I’m glad you’re here! Give yourself a high-five for taking up the Veganuary challenge for a healthier you and healthier environment!

To help guide you through this month, here are five tips to help you make the most of Veganuary:

5 Tips for an Enjoyable Veganuary

1. Veganize your favorite meals

Make note of what you regularly eat and look up recipes for vegan versions. This is 2026 and the internet is loaded with vegan recipes for just about everything (yes, even steak and chicken wings).

But try to stick with recipes that match your chef skill levels – it can be frustrating and easier to give up when you mess up a recipe and you’re hungry!

2. Be open to vegan alternatives

The vegan food revolution is underway and new vegan alternatives are popping up on grocery shelves every single day. There are tons of vegan meats, cheeses, milks, yogurts, eggs, ice creams, etc.

I’ve tried many of these vegan products over the last 10 years of being vegan, and trust me, they have improved so much lately! There are times when I have to double check the label because I don’t believe it myself.

Here are a handful (out of many) brands that I recommend:

Dairy Alternatives:

Cheese: Violife brand has great cream cheese, shredded cheeses and sliced cheese options.
Milk: For non-dairy milks, I use Silk’s original soy milk or Oat-ly original full fat oatmilk
Yogurt: I love the Forager yogurt to make low fat dips and dressings, and the Kite Hill brand and So Delicious has tasty flavored yogurts that aren’t too sweet.
Butter: I prefer the Earth Balance brand of dairy-free butter.
Others: Kite Hill also makes dairy-free raviolis that are definitely worth trying (Trader Joe’s also has great vegan raviolis that are much cheaper than Kite Hill).

Meat Alternatives:

Burgers: Dr. Praeger’s brand has a great burger alternative.
Sausage links are best from Field Roast brand, and Jack & Annie’s brand breakfast sausages (links and patties) are delicious and pretty healthy too.
Hot dogs are good from Lightlife brand and they have tasty burger patties if you can find them (I’ve only seen them in restaurants, not store shelves so far).
Jerky: Primal Spirit has tasty not-beef jerky that I’d say are in a tie with Pan’s mushroom jerky.
Deli Meat: I recommend the Tofurky brand. If you’re up for a challenge and would like to make your own, try my seitan deli meat recipe.
Chicken: When it comes to chicken alternatives, Gardein’s (black label) Ultimate Chicken Tenders are amazing and the Daring brand is best for grilled-style chicken pieces to use in stir fry, salad, and pasta.

Egg Alternatives:

Mayonnaise: Follow Your Heart brand Vegenaise is my go-to vegan mayo if I don’t make it myself (there is an oil free mayo recipe in my cookbook, Rooted)
Scrambled eggs: I recently tried the Just brand Eggs From Plants and it was a good alterantive, but pretty expensive. I prefer to use tofu for a scramble because it is less processed and much cheaper (see my egg scramble recipe and egg patty recipe)
Baking: I use a “flax-egg” which is just ground flaxseed and water (1 egg = 1 TBSP flaxmeal + 3 TBSP water, sit for a few minutes until it thickens)

3. Plan your meals

If you’re not used to eating a vegan diet, planning is essential to stay on track.

Breakfast: keep it simple with cereals or oatmeal with added muesli on top. Or make avocado or peanut butter toasts. If you have a go-to breakfast, find a vegan version and meal-prep all or pieces of it so it is easy to throw together in the morning. Check out my Vegan Breakfast Recipes for more ideas.
Lunch: Meal prep your lunches (and remember to bring it to work with you). Preparing lunches ahead of time can help keep you on track. For lunch ideas you can make ahead, browse through my Meal-Prep Friendly Recipes.
Dinner: Plan your dinners and stock up on the ingredients ahead of time. It can be fun to make new recipes and find new favorites. Whether you’re into tacos, soups, rice bowls, or pasta, you’re sure to find a few new favorites in my Vegan Dinner Recipes.

4. Follow vegans on social media

There are so many vegan influencers that post mouthwatering recipes or “what I eat in a day” videos every single day. Seeing their posts in your feed will help keep you on track, give you meal ideas, and reveal how awesome vegan food can be.

You can find me on Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest, and YouTube @RootyFruityVegan, or click the links below. Make sure to check out my Instagram account to see what I eat in a typical day this Veganuary and discover new recipes!

5. Educate yourself by watching TV (so easy!)

The last ten years have produced some great documentaries about the plant based lifestyle’s benefits for human and environmental health. Watch the following documentaries to learn more about veganism’s benefits and how to stay healthy on a plant based diet, because there is no doubt you will get questions from people around you.

If watching these documentaries convinces you to stay vegan, check out my post on 10 Steps to Go Vegan.

Now that you’re ready to take on Veganuary, here are 8 recipes to get you started: