5 Weeknight Dinners You Can Make With Plant-Based Ground Meat

Target keywords: vegan weeknight dinners, plant-based ground meat recipes, vegan ground beef recipes Canada, easy vegan dinner ideas
Estimated read time: 5 minutes

Weeknights are busy. You don't want to spend an hour in the kitchen, you don't want a sink full of dishes, and you definitely don't want to eat something disappointing after a long day.

Good news: plant-based ground meat is one of the most versatile ingredients you can keep in your fridge. It cooks fast, absorbs flavour like a dream, and works in just about any dish that traditionally calls for ground meat. With The Better Butchers' pea protein and oyster mushroom ground — available in Natural, Chorizo, and Italian — you've got a clean, protein-packed base for an entire week of dinners.

Here are five of our favourites.

1. Vegan Tacos (30 Minutes, One Pan)

Best with: Chorizo Plant-Based Ground

Is there a more perfect weeknight meal than tacos? They're fast, customizable, and universally loved. Our Chorizo ground is already seasoned with smoky, bold spices, so all you really need to do is cook it off in a hot pan and load up your tortillas.

Quick method: Heat a splash of oil in a skillet over medium-high. Add the Chorizo ground and cook for 6–8 minutes, breaking it up as you go, until it's slightly crispy at the edges. Warm your tortillas, then pile on your toppings — shredded cabbage, fresh salsa, pickled jalapeños, avocado, a squeeze of lime.

Pro tip: Double the batch and use leftovers in a breakfast burrito the next morning. The Chorizo is incredible with scrambled tofu and roasted potatoes.

2. Vegan Bolognese (40 Minutes, Freezer-Friendly)

Best with: Italian Plant-Based Ground

A proper bolognese is the kind of meal that feels like a hug. Rich, slow-simmered, deeply savoury — and our Italian ground is made for exactly this. It holds its texture beautifully in a long-cooked sauce and soaks up every bit of flavour from the tomatoes, garlic, and herbs.

Quick method: Sauté diced onion, carrot, and celery in olive oil until soft. Add garlic, then the Italian ground. Cook for a few minutes, then add a big pour of red wine if you have it, a can of crushed tomatoes, a bay leaf, and a pinch of sugar. Simmer on low for 20–30 minutes. Serve over spaghetti with fresh basil and a generous amount of vegan parmesan.

Pro tip: This sauce freezes perfectly. Make a double batch on Sunday and you've got an instant weeknight dinner for next week too.

3. Vegan Stuffed Peppers (45 Minutes, Hands-Off Baking Time)

Best with: Natural or Italian Plant-Based Ground

Stuffed peppers look impressive but require almost no effort — most of the cooking time is just the oven doing its thing while you relax. Use the Natural ground if you want to season it your own way, or the Italian for something with a bit more herbaceous punch.

Quick method: Cook the ground meat in a pan with diced onion and garlic. Mix with cooked rice or quinoa, black beans, corn, diced tomatoes, cumin, and smoked paprika. Halve your peppers lengthwise, fill generously, top with vegan cheese if you like, and bake at 375°F for 25–30 minutes until the peppers are tender.

Pro tip: Any leftover filling is delicious on its own as a burrito bowl the next day — just add some greens and avocado.

4. Vegan Chilli (45 Minutes, One Pot)

Best with: Natural or Chorizo Plant-Based Ground

A big pot of chilli is the ultimate make-ahead weeknight win. It tastes even better the next day, it feeds a crowd, and it practically cooks itself once everything is in the pot. The Natural ground lets the chilli spices shine, while the Chorizo adds an extra smoky depth that's absolutely worth trying.

Quick method: Brown the ground in a large pot with onion and garlic. Add kidney beans, black beans, diced tomatoes, vegetable broth, tomato paste, chilli powder, cumin, smoked paprika, and a pinch of cayenne. Bring to a boil, then simmer for 30 minutes. Serve with crusty bread, over rice, or loaded up with all the toppings — sour cream (vegan, of course), green onions, corn chips, fresh cilantro.

Pro tip: A square of dark chocolate stirred in at the end adds a subtle richness that takes chilli to the next level. Trust us on this one.

5. Vegan Lettuce Wraps (20 Minutes, No-Cook Assembly)

Best with: Natural or Chorizo Plant-Based Ground

When you want something light, fresh, and fast, lettuce wraps are the answer. Cook the ground meat with a punchy Asian-inspired sauce, spoon into crisp butter lettuce cups, and top with crunchy vegetables. Done in 20 minutes, minimal dishes, genuinely delicious.

Quick method: Cook the ground meat in a hot pan. Add a sauce of soy sauce (or tamari), sesame oil, rice vinegar, fresh ginger, garlic, and a little maple syrup. Toss to coat and cook for another minute or two. Spoon into butter lettuce leaves and top with shredded carrots, sliced green onions, crushed peanuts, and fresh mint or cilantro.

Pro tip: These work brilliantly as an appetizer or starter if you're having people over. Make a double batch of the filling — it disappears fast.

Stock Up and Always Have Dinner Ready

The key to easy weeknight cooking is having the right ingredients on hand. Keep a few packs of The Better Butchers ground meat in the fridge or freezer and you've always got a solid dinner base ready to go — clean ingredients, high protein, and genuinely great flavour.

All three varieties — Natural, Chorizo, and Italian — are available online with free shipping on orders over $200, or find us at a retailer near you.

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The Better Butchers makes pea protein and oyster mushroom ground meat in Natural, Chorizo, and Italian varieties. Clean ingredients, butcher-shop quality, proudly made in BC, Canada.