The Complete Vegetarian Cookbook: A Fresh Guide to Eating Well With 700 Foolproof Recipes

Product Description

Best-Selling vegetarian cookbook destined to become a classic.

Everyone knows they should eat more vegetables and grains, but that prospect can be intimidating with recipes that are often too complicated for everyday meals or lacking in fresh appeal or flavor. For the first time ever, the test kitchen has devoted its considerable resources to creating a vegetarian cookbook for the way we want to eat today. The Complete Vegetarian Cookbook is a wide-ranging collection of boldly flavorful vegetarian recipes covering hearty vegetable mains, rice and grains, beans and soy as well as soups, appetizers, snacks, and salads.

More than 300 recipes are fast (start to finish in 45 minutes or less), 500 are gluten-free, and 250 are vegan and are all highlighted with icons on the pages. The book contains stunning color photography throughout that shows the appeal of these veggie-packed dishes. In addition, almost 500 color photos illustrate vegetable prep and tricky techniques as well as key steps within recipes.

Top Reviews

Worth the effort
by Shannon Pyne (4 out of 5 stars)
November 5, 2015

I had read the reviews regarding the cheap binding on this cookbook, so I wasn't surprised to find the cover had separated from the book before I had even a removed it from the shipping package. But it was a simple task to run to the copy center to remove the spine and have the book spiral bound for $4.00. Cookbooks should be spiral-bound anyway to allow them to lay flat when you're using them. I love the recipes and all the hints in this cookbook, definitely worth the effort.
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This cookbook vs. others by ATK
by Reviews by Rachel (4 out of 5 stars)
March 9, 2015

I love to shop on Amazon, but it can be a risk to order a brand new cookbook without having a physical copy to browse first. I am an America's Test Kitchen fan and have many of their cookbooks, so I am basically comparing this new cookbook to others by them that I have.
****The book itself: quite heavy for one of their paperback cookbooks. It's got to be at least as heavy as the many of the hardcovers. The binding isn't that great. Although I am super gentle with my cookbooks, I anticipate that this one will have a crack down the spine. It's about 450 pages and I don't see any full-page pictures, most are a quarter page or so. Its layout is standard America's Test Kitchen style, with sidebars and boxes that highlight certain techniques and ingredients.

This book is divided into eleven chapters:

Chapter 1--Hearty Vegetable Mains

Chapter 2--Soups, Stews, and Chilis

Chapter 3--Pasta, Noodles, and Dumplings

Chapter 4--Rice and Grains

Chapter 5--Beans and Soy

Chapter 6--Salads Big and Small

Chapter 7--Vegetable Sides

Chapter 8--Savory Flatbreads, Pizzas, Tarts, and More

Chapter 9--Sandwiches, Wraps, Burgers, and More

Chapter 10--Eggs for Breakfast and Dinner

Chapter 11--Small Bites and Savory Snacks

Note: The cover states that of the 700 recipes, 250 are vegan and 500 are gluten-free. At the beginning of each chapter, the recipes are listed and identified as vegan, gluten-free or fast (less than 45 minutes from start to finish.) Just scanning through the recipe lists, I see some repeats from other cookbooks in each chapter as well as ones that I don't recognize.
****What I don't like about this cookbook:
--Each recipe begins with a small "Why this recipe works" paragraph. I will confess that I love the long articles written by the recipe developers that are included in the annual ATK editions. The little blurbs at the beginning are disappointing to me. I am not a super chef, so I enjoy reading how the recipe was tested. Then I read through the whole recipe. For me, it is kind of like mental imagery that an athlete might do. So by the time I have gone through all that, I feel as if I'm prepared to cook the recipe. I don't enjoy this mini description as much.
--Many of the recipes sound too adventurous for me (Homemade Tofu, Israeli Couscous with Carmelized Fennel and Spinach, Black-Eyed Pea Salad with Peaches and Pecans). Some people may enjoy these kind of recipes, but I will probably never attempt them. NOTE: this is why I gave the cookbook only four stars.
****What I like about this book:
--I feel like I can count on ATK to deliver a consistent, reliable finished recipe. They have taste-tested and honed the recipe to what they believe is the best it can be. I may not always think a recipe sounds great, but the ones that do sound great to me, usually turn out tasting great to me, too.
--This cookbook includes plenty of helpful sidebars, which I always enjoy going through. The beginning includes a section about prepping vegetables--very handy for people who haven't learned all that yet. (i.e., I had never bought or prepared bok choy until I made a recipe from this cookbook, and the vegetable guide was quite useful to me.)
--I have read complaints about other ATK indices, so to briefly test the index in the back, I looked for "Garlic Mashed Potatoes" under Garlic, Mashed and Potatoes and was able to see an entry for the recipe under each of them.

UPDATE: So far I have tried: smashed potatoes, quinoa and vegetable stew, avocado toast with fried egg, curry-yogurt sauce with cilantro for steamed or roasted veggies, cranberry-orange overnight steel-cut oatmeal, and coconut-rice with bok choy and lime. They all turned out well, with the exception of the curry-yogurt sauce. However, I did use a brand of yogurt that I hate--I think it ruined the whole thing. Lesson learned. My family's favorite so far was the Coconut Rice with Bok Choy and Lime, which I served with chicken breast in Trader Joe's Thai Green Curry Simmer Sauce.

I will update as I cook through the recipes further!
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Real recipes for real people! My new GO-TO cookbook.
by A. Alexander (5 out of 5 stars)
October 22, 2017

I cook for a family of vegans every day, though I am an omnivore LOL. This is now in my Top 5 of all vegetarian cookbooks I own. Most of the recipes can be adapted for vegans (eggs are the toughest) and we have had so many great meals from this cookbook. I love the little blurbs throughout the cookbook explaining their logic and why they chose the techniques they did. I also find their cooking tips extremely helpful. Some recipes are ambitious and others not, but unlike most vegetarian cookbooks, it appears the authors have actually USED THEIR OWN RECIPES! This cookbook does not focus on photoshopped meals but rather focuses on the essential: making a delicious vegetarian meal. I cannot overstate how much I love this cookbook -- I will by relying on ATK for years to come. Kudos on the excellent job and keep 'em coming!
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A cookbook even a carnivore can enjoy!
by apeacefulworld (5 out of 5 stars)
March 2, 2015

I'm in a mixed marriage ... my husband eats meat, and I'm a vegetarian. We both love America's Test Kitchen and subscribe to Cook's Illustrated, but I've always had to cherry pick the vegetarian recipes among all the (delicious sounding!) carnivorous recipes. We have yet to find a dud among any of the recipes we've tried. I am THRILLED that they have finally created a cookbook that we can both enjoy in its entirety! The recipes are flavorful and reliable enough that he doesn't mind the missing meat (that much...).

Some of the recipes are from the magazine or other cookbooks, but there seems to be many, many new ones. Some of my favorite recipes we've made in the past included in the cookbook are the Chickpea Cakes (SO tasty), Lentils, Rice, and Crispy Onions (Mujaddara), Wild Rice and Mushroom Soup, and Farmhouse Vegetable and Barley Soup. The concentrated Vegetable Broth Base has changed the way we cook ... we can make a batch ahead of time and freeze it. We scoop it out by the tablespoon (it doesn't freeze solid) and add it to soup instead of buying canned vegetable broth.

Some of the recipes I'm really excited to try are the Lavash with Spinach, Tomatoes, and Olives, Sizzling Saigon Crepes (Bahn Xeo), Pupusas with Tangy Cabbage Slaw, and every single one of the soups and stews. I'm also looking forward to trying their recipe for a vegetarian version of fish sauce (and for using it to make their Pad Thai recipe!).

The index is color coded to indicate gluten free, vegan, and "fast" recipes (45 minutes or less). I wish that the recipes had nutritional information, but that's never been a huge emphasis in any the Test Kitchen's products! I love that there isn't any "filler." A lot of vegetarian cookbooks will include recipes for breads, desserts, and other things that will almost always be vegetarian. This cookbook focuses primarily on main dishes, with a few sides, salads, and snacks. I can't wait to find new favorites!
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Awesome Collection of Recipes
by Amazon Customer (5 out of 5 stars)
August 23, 2018

I'm a lifelong vegetarian and primarily get my veggies in with South Asian type dishes, but I wanted to expand my arsenal of go-to recipes. This is perrrrfect. The blurbs are great. I'm a huge nerd and their systematic approach to cooking speaks to me. I make it a point to follow new recipes EXACTLY and I'm always happy with the outcome. I was also pleasantly surprised by how good the Indian-style curry recipes are. So far I have made (and repeated):

Roasted Poblano and Black Bean Enchiladas

Millet Cakes with Spinach and Carrots

Indian-style Saag Paneer

Mee Goreng

Cabbage Mushroom Potstickers

Creamy Cheesy Millet

Lentils, Rice and Crispy Onions (Mujaddara)

Broccoli Salad with Cranberries and Almonds

Roasted Broccoli

Roasted Carrots

Tofu Banh Mi

Ultimate Veggie Burgers

Black Bean Burgers

Shakshuka

All of them came out so well. Just leafing through again, there's so much more left to try. I've been craving Banh Xeo (Vietnamese Crepe) for weeks now and there's a recipe in there for that! If you are looking to expand your horizons, I highly recommend this. There's a good mix of basic, standard veggie preperations as well as more impressive, well-thoughout dishes. I also like the quick guide for locating FAST recipes.

I will say that they recommend some fancy cookware at the beginning and it's a little intimidating but even with our basic, starter kitchen, we did just fine. I recommend this to anyone looking for a good cookbook, vegetarian or not.
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I was very disappointed.
by Jeri Osborne (1 out of 5 stars)
November 4, 2017

This book was geared toward experienced chefs and should have said so. Most ingredients are difficult for the average cook to find.

I was very disappointed.
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Recipes full of cheese and cream
by Hazel Philbrook (3 out of 5 stars)
February 5, 2018

Recipes may work for some but too many were packed with heavy cream and cheese. As this is not the way my family eats I returned.
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Get this cookbook
by Amazon Customer (5 out of 5 stars)
April 4, 2016

I chose to eat vegetarian a long time ago. And I hadn't purchased a cookbook for a long time, gathering recipes and tips randomly. This cookbook changed everything. In one place I found reliably excellent dishes that everyone will enjoy, non-vegetarians too. The authors' testing and research is sound. The resulting dishes are delicious. Nice pictures too. Prep instructions and equipment recommendations are thorough. What a joy! Get this cookbook.
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Just ok, mostly side dishes
by Laura (2 out of 5 stars)
July 13, 2019

A few months ago, our daughter asked, do we ALWAYS have to eat meat? She will be the first to tell anyone that she is not a big meat eater. My husband and I had already been talking about eating less meat and going vegetarian one or two days a week. I ordered a couple vegetarian cookbooks. I usually have really good luck with Test Kitchen cookbooks. However, this one did not really hit the mark. Most of the dishes were side dishes, not substantial enough to serve as main dishes. Vegetarian side dishes are very easy to find in any cookbook. I wanted main dishes. It seems like this cookbook is just a compilation of other Test Kitchen side dishes, with no real thought to a vegetarian meal that needs a main dish. To be honest, after a few look throughs, I haven't opened it again. There just isn't anything to make a meal around.

Of those I bought, I exclusively use, Meatless, from Martha Stewart. Most of the recipes are nice and substantial main dishes, and every one we have tried has turned out excellent.
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So far so good
by elizabeth furtauer (5 out of 5 stars)
December 18, 2018

I bought this book so I could incorporate more veggies into the meals I cook. I generally make dinner four nights a week, and I make lunch for myself and my husband every day. I love having some side dishes that incorporate more than just steamed vegetables. I have made several recipes from this book and they have turned out great. America's Test Kitchen does a great job of explaining the different types of vegetables, how to clean them, cut them and most importantly how to cook them. I find the articles before the recipe to be very helpful, I like that they explain why they chose to include or exclude certain ingredients in their dishes it helps to illustrate the importance of each and every ingredient. I had considered buying their Mediterranean cook book, but I chose this instead because I don't really care for the taste of olive oil or feta cheese and the recipes in the Mediterranean cook book seemed very involved and time consuming. Most of what I have cooked in the vegetarian cook book have been pretty quick and easy. Also, since I'm not vegetarian I have thrown some chicken or beef into some of these meals, and the family really liked them.

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