ON THE CHEAP: Vegan Crab & Corn Dumplings

One of the biggest misconceptions about eating vegan is that it is expensive. But that depends on what you eat and how you shop. First, realize that you are eliminating the cost of meat and seafood from your budget, so you will have a lot of extra money from the beginning.

Now there are those who say substitute meats at grocery stores… like Impossible and Beyond are expensive and yes, they are pricy. But you don’t those products should not be part of your day to day meals. Incorporate them more like a treat once or twice a week. Even though they are a better choice that animal meat… because those imitation meats are processed, they are not the healthiest choice when comes to eating plant based.

But, you can eat delicious and satisfying plant based recipes on a budget. I decided to start posting some of the yummy ones that I come across. First up is the Imitation Crab Meat and Corn Dumpling (The photo here is from their recipe booklet). It is a recipe that I discovered in one of my Purple Carrot deliveries… so it is not my recipe, but it has become a favorite.

I actually never made dumplings before trying this dish. And I was shocked at how easy it was. I immediately thought of other things I could stuff inside a dumpling. The star of this Imitation Crab and Corn dumpling is the hearts of palm. Just one can, with the rest of the ingredients, will make about 20-25 dumplings… because you don’t need a lot of filling. And that can of hearts of palm will cost you about $2.50-$4.00, depending on the brand you get and where you get it.

You mix that hearts of palm with vegan cream cheese, a can of corn (or fresh corn when it is in season) and Ole Bay seasoning. That’s it. That is the filling. Add the cost of the dumpling wrappers and the total cost is close to $10. You can add your favorite rice and a green vegetable for sides.

Here is the Purple Carrot recipe. This recipe also includes a Ginger Fried Rice and a Sweet Chile Sauce, which was a delicious addition. But you can easily separate out those ingredients if you want to make your own sides.

Let me know if you give it a try!

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

For security, use of Google's reCAPTCHA service is required which is subject to the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.