18 Vegan Appetizers Anyone Will Enjoy

Get appy! Try these crowd-pleasing recipes, taken from a few of our favorite blogs.

vegetable tempura
vegan yum yum

Vegan Vegetable Tempura

Vegan appetizers from Vegan Yum Yum will make you wonder why other tempuras were irresistible. Snow peas, carrots, and broccoli work especially well here, but try what you like. Wondering about the benefits of getting more veggies into your body? Check out the amazing things that happen when you decide to eat a vegan diet.

quinoa bites
sunday morning banana pancakes

Vegan Quinoa Spinach Bites with Gingered Orange Dipping Sauce

Bean there, dunked that? Blog Sunday Morning Banana Pancakes takes trendy quinoa and rolls it into a finger-friendly treat. If you want to skip the honey in this recipe, substitute agave nectar.

classic hummus
via taste of home

Hummus

You say hummus, we say yummusย to these vegan appetizers. Taste of Home creates a perfect, classic hummus sure to please even the most finicky of guests. Once you’ve got the chickpea kind down pat, experiment with these other easy-to-make hummus recipes.

thai fresh spring rolls with peanut dipping sauce
via the curvy carrot

Thai Fresh Spring Rolls with Peanut Dipping Sauce

Slim dunk: Blog The Curvy Carrot rolls up veggie-packed vegan appetizers made for a bowl of tangy peanut sauce. Rice noodles (very thin, practically thread-like strands) can be found often in the Asian food aisle at most supermarkets.

spring-pea-guacamole
Tori Avey

Spring Pea Guacamole

Dip, dip, hooray! A classic hit at casual parties, blogger Tori Avey slips frozen or fresh green peas into a simple guac recipe. You get more protein along with the good-for-your-heart fat in this Tex-Mex favorite. As you dip away, you can read up on theย 7 health benefits of avocados.

polenta fries
via oh my veggies

Polenta Fries

For a fry without the fryer, try baked polenta fries from the blog Oh My Veggies. Light and crispy, you can dunk them in a homemade garlic-y tomato sauce, or just pop open a jar of marinara. You’ll never go back to those deep-fried, high-calorie mozzarella sticks again!

vegan-risotto-balls
@kathy patalski

Fried Risotto Balls

Call these tasty poppers by their classic Italian name, arancini, if you’re feelin’ fancy. Here, blog Healthy Happy Life coats leftover risotto in bread crumbs and nutritional yeast. The yeast will give you some much-needed vitamin Bs, which are great for your skin, hair, and nails.

cucumber zucchini summer salsa
via Sunday morning banana pancakes

Cucumber and Zucchini Summer Salsa

Skinny dip your way through this vegan salsa from blog Sunday Morning Banana Pancakes with a big bowl of whole-grain pita chips. Great for summer when the cukes and zukes arrive. And don’t miss these best vegan protein sources to try.

 cauliflower-bites-nacho-cheese
via fat free vegan

Roasted Cauliflower Bites with Nacho Cheese

These morsels from Fat Free Vegan Kitchen hit the same appetizer notes as buffalo chicken wings, but with a vegan tune. Even better, you’ll be eating more cauliflowerโ€”a powerhouse cruciferous veggie that gives you the same nutrients as broccoli, kale, and cabbage.

Chickpea-Fritters-with-Sweet-Spicy-Sauce
via taste of home

Chickpea Fritters

Chickpea fritters with a sweet-spicy sauce from Taste of Home make for a filling vegan appetizer. Plus, garbanzos have some wonderful health benefitsโ€”from providing fiber that’s good for your GI tract to the surprising boost chickpeas give to your sex life.

vegan-artichoke spinach dip
via the full helping

Vegan Artichoke and Spinach Dip

Blog The Full Helping‘s macho nacho dip layers smooth artichoke and spinach with mozzarella-style shreds and a rich cashew cream sauce, then tops the dish with nutty breadcrumbs.

vegan mozzarella cherry tomato and basil skewers
via olives for dinner

Vegan Mozzarella, Tomato, Basil Skewers

You’ll be a non-dairy queen with this vegan appetizer recipe from blog Olives for Dinner: Homemade cheese gets skewered caprese-style with basil and cherry tomatoes. Now that you’ve gotten a taste for plant-based dishes, here areย 12 more vegan recipes to try.

Garlicky-Pepper Tofu Bites with Chili Dipping Sauce
via that was vegan

Vegan Garlicky-Pepper Tofu Bites with Chili Dipping Sauce

Spicy vegan appetizers from That Was Vegan uses on-hand pantry items like soy sauce, black pepper, garlic powder, chili powder, and lemon juice. Check out theseย tofu recipes even meat eaters will love.

onion rings thai dipping sauce
via olives for dinner

Onion Rings with Thai Dipping Sauce

Golden brown onions from the blog Olives for Dinner get tongue Thai’d with an Asian-inspired, five-ingredient dipping sauce: water, rice vinegar, sugar, salt, and red chili pepper flakes.

cinco-de-mayo-breakfast-quesadilla8
via lunchbox brunch

Triple-Stacked Vegan Quesadilla

Vegan quesadillas from Healthy Happy Life ooze with vegan sausage and cheese, plus mushrooms and cabbage slaw. It’s not only delicious, but eating cabbage is good for you. So is switching to more plant-based foodsโ€”so check out the reasons why going vegan isn’t crazy.

vegan Mushroom Crostini
via 86 lemons

Vegan Mushroom Crostini with Rosemary Lemon Cashew Cream

Vegan appetizer of champions: Blog 86 Lemons calls for dried porcini mushrooms, but use whatever shrooms are at the market to top the velvety lemon-cashew spread.

Crispy-Tofu-with-Black-Pepper-Sauce
via taste of home

Crispy Tofu with Black Pepper Sauce

Taste of Home transforms a block of tofu and some Asian pantry staples into an impressive vegan appetizer (or main dish!). One bite, and you’ll become a tofu convert for life!

cranberry tofu lettuce cups
via taste of home

Vegan Cranberry Tofu Lettuce Cups

Like Thanksgiving side dishes in a bite, That Was Vegan scoops colorful tofu, mushrooms, carrots, and cranberries into lettuce leaves. Next, don’t miss these 23 vegan comfort dishes everyone will love.

Sources

Perri O. Blumberg
A former food editor at Reader's Digest, Perri Blumberg is a writer and editor based in New York City. After attending Columbia University, where she received a BA in psychology, she went on to study food at a health-supportive culinary school. Her work has appeared in O Magazine, Men's Journal, Country Living, and on Mind, Body, Green, among others.