20 Vegetarian Memorial Day Recipes You'll Want to Make All Summer (2024)

Whether you're looking for a vegetable-driven main or a fresh and fulfilling side, we have a slew of great vegetarian recipes to serve this Memorial Day weekend and repeat all summer long. Here's inspiration for fresh plant-based summer menus.

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Ultimate Veggie Burgers

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These veggie burgers hit every satisfying, savory note with a hearty mix of pearl barley, chickpeas, mushrooms, and crispy panko. For the sturdiest patties, evenly distribute the panko by stirring the patty mixture until very well-combined.

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Charred Avocado Salad with Cilantro Mayo

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This smoky salad from chefs Christopher Kostow and David Guilloty at The Charter Oak in St. Helena is pure California magic. Searing transforms the firm-ripe avocado into a creamy treat with a hint of char.

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Nina's Potato Salad

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"One of our first — and favorite — Horn side dishes is our potato salad," says chef Matt Horn, of his wife Nina's popular recipe. "This is our take on the classic recipe that goes perfectly with barbecue!" The crowd-pleasing side is neither too rich nor too light, hitting the perfect balance of tart and creamy.

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Grilled Vegetable Flatbread with Smoked Almond Muhammara

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This show-stopping vegetarian main combines grilled zucchini, peppers, and squash on sangak, a gigantic Persian flatbread (if unavailable, lavash is a worthy substitute). In an unsual twist, the vegetables are marinated after grilling, which gives you time to whip up the smoky, tangy muhammara and grill the sangak until golden.

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Charred Cabbage Salad with Pecan Dukkah and Chile-Lime Butter

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Nick Cobarruvias draws on his Mexican heritage for the menu at San Francisco's Otra, layering complex flavor combinations into dishes like this crisp-tender cabbage salad. At the restaurant, he seasons the charred cabbage with chile-lime butter, which is mildly spicy from árbol chiles and bright from lime zest. The pecan dukkah adds earthiness from cumin and pops of citrus from coriander, plus a lovely nutty flavor and texture from the toasted pecans and sesame seeds.

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Grilled Corn Salad with Coconut-Peanut Chaat

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This salad combines sweet, lightly charred fresh corn with a topping that stars ingredients including flaked coconut, curry leaves, and peanuts. It's a side dish or main that's bursting with flavor and texture — salty, nutty, crunchy, juicy, sweet, savory, and crisp. The chaat can be made in advance and stored at room temperature for up to one week, so it makes day-of prep easy. Just prep the scallions, grill the corn, and toss everything together.

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Kashke Bademjan (Iranian Kashk and Eggplant Dip)

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A little thicker and saltier than yogurt, kashk is an Iranian dairy product that gives this aromatic eggplant dip its luscious texture and tart flavor. Floral saffron, fried dried mint, and more kashk dot the top, adding beautiful color. Serve this Kashke Bademjan, inspired by Naz Riahi's love of California-based Mission Ranch Market with fresh vegetables and toasted flatbread for dipping.

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Carnitas Jackfruit Tacos

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For her jackfruit tacos recipe, Jocelyn Ramirez, cookbook author and chef at Todo Verde in Los Angeles, uses cumin, chile flakes, and salt to capitalize on the pulled-pork texture of jackfruit, transforming it into a plant-based taco filling that tastes like carnitas.Served with tart, creamy avocado salsa and lemon wedges, the spicy, crispy seared jackfruit tacos are a satisfying vegetarian meal.

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Grilled Corn on the Cob with Calamansi Mayo

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Chef Sheldon Simeon's recipe for a Hawaiian twist onMexican elotefeatures grilled corn slathered in a creamy, cheesy calamansi mayonnaise, which gets its acidic twang from a sour citrus fruit native to the South Pacific (you can substitute Key Limes in a pinch). Japanese chile flakes (ichimi togarashi) add heat; aonori (dried seaweed) flakes add umami oomph and island style.

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Halloumi-and-Vegetable Skewers with Pomegranate-Tahini Sauce

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Pomegranate molasses is the secret ingredient in this simple marinade. Its punchy, sweet, earthy notes add long-cooked depth of flavor to cheese and vegetable skewers in just 30 minutes of marination, with pleasantly bitter tahini rounding things out. The pomegranate-tahini marinade goes the extra mile as a final drizzle for the skewers; thinned with fresh orange juice, it supplies the perfect, sweet-savory finish to the dish.

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Farro Salad with Radishes, Snap Peas, Olives, and Pecorino

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Farro has a sweet, earthy flavor and delightful chewy texture; it adds a wonderful hardiness to the fresh, crunchy vegetables and salty olives and cheese in this salad. If Meyer lemons aren't available in your area, use regular fresh lemon juice and increase the honey to balance the dressing.

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Esquites-Style Poblano Pasta Salad

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Esquites is the creamy corn salad version of elote, the beloved Mexican street food where corn on the cob is slathered with mayo and sprinkled with chili powder and Cotija cheese. Here, we've taken esquites and turned it into a pasta salad, loaded with charred corn, zucchini, scallions, and poblano chile. A crema-mayo mixture flavored with lime and cilantro adds a bright finish, and Cotija and ancho chile powder seal the deal.

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Grilled Halloumi Burgers with Citrus Tapenade

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When grilled or sautéed, halloumi develops a charred crust that yields to soft cheese inside. Here, we cut the halloumi across the equator for the centerpiece of the burger, and season it with cumin, salt, and pepper. It's then topped with a citrusy olive tapenade with just enough crushed red pepper flakes to lend it a touch of heat. A lemony aïoli complements the citrus in the tapenade and natural tang of the halloumi; roasted red peppers add a vibrant, vegetal flavor and meaty texture.

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Virtue Cornbread

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Slightly sweet and buttery, this classic Southern cornbread is a must-order at Virtue, Erick Williams' flagship restaurant in Chicago, where he celebrates the food of the Great Migration.

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Sugar Snap Peas with Soffrito, Hot Pepper, and Mint

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"It's hard to improve upon a perfect sugar snap pea," says chef Travis Lett. "The question for the chef is, how do you not screw it up?" Lett's answer is to keep things simple, by cooking the sweet peas with fresh mint, crushed red pepper and soffrito (an aromatic Italian mix of sautèed minced vegetables, usually used to flavor soups and sauces).

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Anu's Noodle Salad with Crunchy Fruit

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A joyful romp of textures, Anu Mahendro's refreshing salad combines crisp bell pepper, juicy grapes, pineapple, chewy egg noodles, carrots, and fresh apples dressed with a homemade vinaigrette. To maintain the textures, serve it chilled.

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Summer Tomato Salad with Jicama and Avocado

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Though Memorial Day might be a little too soon to start reveling in peak tomato abundance, we guarantee no one will complain if you whip up this salad with cherry or grape tomatoes. Traci des Jardins' take on a classic, produce-forward summer salad features juicy tomatoes, crunchy cucumbers, and lightly sweet slices of jicama. The simple lime dressing gets a hit of fresh, herbal brightness from plenty of cilantro leaves.

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Grilled Flatbreads with Mushrooms, Ricotta, and Herbs

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This easy grilled flatbread — topped with sautéed mushrooms, fresh herbs, and ricotta cheese — is perfect for outdoor entertaining.

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Celery, Grilled Grape, and Mushroom Salad

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"Celery is a vegetable people either love or hate, and we try to get people to love all their vegetables," says chef Amanda Cohen. She sets off celery's bitterness and crunch with meaty oyster mushrooms and grapes that have been grilled until almost bursting.

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Grilled Fruit with Honeyed Lemon Thyme Vinegar

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For this super-simple summer dessert, chef Dan Barber infuses honey with lemon thyme vinegar, then drizzles it over grilled summer fruit.

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