5 Budget Vegetarian Meals for Easy Cooking in the Campervan

Cooking in a camper can be an adventure, especially when it comes to preparing delicious budget vegetarian meals in limited space with a small stove. Moreover, while navigating the challenges of van life, you also need to consider costs. Therefore, focusing on easy cooking with these budget vegetarian meals will keep your camper kitchen organised while allowing you to enjoy campervan meals that save you money to stay on the road a little longer.

 

 

What Are Easy Budget Vegetarian Meals to Make in a Campervan?

Denise has been a vegetarian for years, and given the environmental and practical aspects, we always enjoy vegetarian meals together. In fact, here are five budget vegetarian meals that we eat regularly; they may not be fancy, but they are extremely enjoyable and cost less than €15 for two. Additionally, all of these campervan meals are vegetarian-based, though they can be prepared with meat and/or fish or even made vegan. We are excited to share these go-to budget vegetarian meals with you to enhance your camper menu and make cooking easier.

 

It’s important to mention that we love cheese and sauce. Consequently, these are the top ingredients in our delicious budget vegetarian food!

 

All meals are based on portions for two people, or slightly more (we have one standard eater and one big eater).

 

 

 

Falafel Wrap

This Middle Eastern budget vegetarian meal is not only healthy but also delicious and can easily be made vegan! It takes about 15 minutes to prepare—perfect for easy cooking.

 

 

What Do You Need?

 

• 200g pack of falafel
• Small bag of lettuce
• 10 cherry tomatoes
• 1 avocado
• 100g feta
• Small can of chickpeas
• 6 wraps
• Garlic sauce or aioli
• 2 eggs

 

Approx. €10

 

How to Prepare this Budget Vegetarian Meal

 

1. First, boil 2 eggs for approximately 7 minutes until hard-boiled.
2. Next, cut the tomatoes, avocado, and feta into small pieces.
3. Then, fry the falafel balls in a pan until crispy and warm.
4. Open the wraps and make a line of garlic sauce down the middle.
5. Afterward, divide the egg, lettuce, tomatoes, and chickpeas on the wraps. Be careful not to overfill, or you won’t be able to close the wrap!
6. Finally, add the falafel balls to the wrap. Sprinkle feta on top, roll up the wraps, and enjoy this delicious budget vegetarian food!

Pasta with Cream Cheese and Spinach

This recipe has an Italian vibe. The vegetarian pasta is filling and full of cheese—we love it! Furthermore, this meal takes about 20 minutes to make, making it an excellent choice for easy cooking and budget vegetarian meals during van life.

 

 

What Do You Need?

 

• 150g cream cheese with herbs
• 120g penne pasta
• 200g spinach
• 200g mushrooms
• 30g pine nuts
• A bag of parmesan cheese flakes
• A block of vegetable stock
• 1 onion

 

Approx. €12

 

How to Prepare this Budget Vegetarian Meal

 

1. First, fill a small pot with water and place it on the stove; add half of the block of vegetable stock.
2. While that heats, heat a dry frying pan and roast the pine nuts for a few minutes until brown and crispy. Note that they burn quickly, so watch carefully! Once cooked, set them aside.
3. Next, return the pan to the stove with a dash of oil to heat.
4. Cut the onion into small cubes and add them to the pan.
5. Clean the mushrooms under water and dry them with a paper towel. Slice them and add to the onions.
6. Then, add the spinach to the pan and stir everything together.
7. After that, add the penne to the boiling water and set the timer for 9 minutes.
8. When the penne is done, drain the water and add it to the vegetables.
9. Now, stir in the cream cheese. Add salt and pepper to taste.
10. Finally, serve the pasta in a bowl, topped with pine nuts and parmesan cheese flakes for a delicious budget vegetarian campervan meal.

Juicy Veggie Burger

One of our favourites is this incredibly tasty vegetarian burger with an Australian twist. Interestingly, this recipe is for the big eaters: two burgers each! In addition, it takes about 20 minutes to make, perfect for quick and easy budget vegetarian cooking.

 

 

TIP: Add a hash brown/rosti on each burger for an extra treat—this makes it even better and is typically Australian!

 

What Do You Need?

 

• 4 hamburger buns (or similar)
• 1 avocado
• A bag of grated cheese
• 4 eggs
• 1 onion
• A small bag of iceberg lettuce
• 4 burgers (vegan/veggie/meat)
• Mayonnaise

 

Approx. €14

 

How to Prepare this Budget Vegetarian Meal

 

1. First, place the buns on a dry frying pan over the stove and sprinkle grated cheese on top to melt. Remove the buns when the cheese has melted and the buns are crispy (you can also warm them in an oven).
2. Next, cut the onion into small strips and cook them in a frying pan on low heat with a drizzle of butter. Remove after about 5 minutes.
3. Meanwhile, slice the avocado and place it on the buns with the lettuce.
4. Then, fry the burgers in oil or butter until cooked and crispy.
5. Afterward, fry the eggs sunny-side up.
6. Finally, assemble the eggs and burgers on the buns, finishing with a dollop of mayonnaise. Enjoy your delicious budget vegetarian meal!

Mix of Shakshuka & Ratatouille (Vegetable Stew)

This budget vegetarian recipe is ideal if you have leftover vegetables and want something healthy. Moreover, we often make this vegetable stew, combining Eastern flavours with a touch of French cuisine. It’s a great option for budget vegetarian meals.

 

 

What Do You Need?

 

• 1 onion
• 2 cloves of garlic
• Provencal herbs
• 1 baguette
• 1 can of diced tomatoes
• 4 eggs
• 1 red bell pepper
• 1 zucchini

 

Approx. €10

 

How to Prepare this Budget Vegetarian Meal

 

1. First, chop the onion and garlic finely, and cut the zucchini and bell pepper into small pieces.
2. Fry the garlic and onion in oil. After a few minutes, add the other vegetables to a large pot.
3. Then, add the diced tomatoes and herbs to the pot (add salt and pepper to taste), stirring occasionally while leaving the lid on.
4. When the vegetables are soft, use a spoon to make 4 holes in the stew for the eggs.
5. Crack an egg into each hole. While we prefer 4 eggs, you can adjust as needed.
6. Cover with the lid and check occasionally until the eggs are cooked.
7. Finally, serve the stew in bowls, with pieces of baguette for dipping. It’s a delicious budget vegetarian campervan meal!

Filled Peppers with Feta

Delicious Greek vegetarian flavours! This recipe comes together quickly and is budget-friendly. In fact, we use the oven for this, but you can also prepare it in a pan. It takes about 20 minutes to make, making it a perfect option for easy budget vegetarian cooking.

 

 

What Do You Need?

 

• 3 peppers
• A block of vegetable stock
• 140g orzo
• 1 block of feta cheese
• Greek herbs
• 350g tomato passata
• 1 onion
• 2 cloves of garlic
• Tzatziki (optional)

 

Approx. €10

 

How to Prepare this Budget Vegetarian Meal

 

1. First, put a small pan with water on the stove. Once boiled, add vegetable stock and cook the orzo for about 10 minutes.
2. Dice the garlic and cut the onion into small cubes. Then, add them to a well-oiled pan to fry.
3. Cut the peppers in half and roast them in the oven for a few minutes. Alternatively, oil the peppers and wrap them in aluminum foil to cook in a pot with the lid on.
4. When the orzo is cooked, mix it with the onion, garlic, herbs (to taste), and the passata.
5. Next, fill the peppers with the orzo mix and top with feta.
6. Place the stuffed peppers in the oven for 8 minutes or in the pot with oil for a few minutes (with the lid on).
7. Finally, serve on a plate with tzatziki. Enjoy this delicious budget vegetarian food!

 

 

You can find many more camper-friendly budget vegetarian meals on Camperkeuken’s Instagram account. Check it out—it’s delicious!