Vegan Arayes On The Table in 15 Minutes Flat: Get the Best Vegan Recipe! (2024)

Are you tired of scrambling for a quick and easy vegan meal on busy weeknights? Look no further than this ultimate 15-minute vegan arayes recipe. Bursting with Middle Eastern flavors, this dish is for sure will satisfy your taste buds.

Whether you’re a dedicated vegan or just looking to incorporate more plant-based meals into your diet, this recipe is a must-try. In this blog post, we’ll provide you with a step-by-step guide to creating this sensational dish, along with tips for success and serving suggestions. So, let’s dive in and discover the mouthwatering world of vegan arayes! But first, let’s find out what Arayes is.

What is Arayes?

Arayes is a popular Middle Eastern dish from the Levant region, specifically from Lebanon. It is typically made with pita bread or Arabic bread, meat, and a variety of Middle Eastern seasonings. However, this vegan version of arayes replaces the meat with a delicious combination of vegan mince, onion, tomato, and spices. The result is a flavorful and hearty dish that’s perfect for busy weeknights.

Ingredients for making the ultimate Vegan Arayes:

To create the ultimate 15-minute vegan arayes, you’ll need just a handful of simple ingredients. Here’s what you’ll need:

• Pita or Arabic bread
• Vegan mince
• White or yellow onion
• Tomato
• Garlic
• Fresh parsley
• Olive oil
• Lemon zest
• Pomegranate molasses
• Spices: Lebanese 7-spice blends, cinnamon, smoked paprika, and cloves.

Notes & tips for success:

To ensure your vegan arayes are a hit every time, here are some tips for success:

• Choose the right bread: For this recipe, pita or Arabic bread works well. Opt for fresh, soft bread that will be easy to stuff and won’t tear apart when you grill it. For making Authentic Lebanese thin & crispy Arayes, I prefer to use Arabic bread, but both are great options for making arayes.

• Vegan mince: to make vegan arayes I have used Future Farm vegan mince. It resembles meat mince in texture and even in look! I like to test different vegan mince brands each time in different recipes, and this one works well in making Arayes, unlike the Plant Pioneers brand, which I have used in making Vegan eggplant fatteh, which tends to come in crumbles and that makes it perfect for fatteh. You can use any brand you prefer or have access to, honestly, store-bought vegan mince is convenient in making quick dishes, and for those who are just transitioning into a vegan diet, as I have mentioned the texture and look do resemble beef mince. However, it is not the “healthiest” option to go for, if you can make your vegan mince that will be a healthier option, I have a new recipe coming for Vegan mince that is quite versatile, and you can incorporate it into any dish you like to Veganize.
• Filling the pitas with the Vegan mince mixture, you can either fill the Arabic bread with a thin layer of the mixture and have an authentic thin and crispy Lebanese arayes or fill the pita bread with a thick and chunky layer of mince, that’s how my husband prefers it, as for him it is like having Arabic burger.
• Don’t skip the spice mix! It is what makes these Arayes so special and delicious.
• To cook the arayes, you have 2 options either on the grill or in the oven. Traditionally Arayes is prepared on the grill and that’s what I went for, there is something about grilling that just makes food tastes better!

Instructions:

Follow these steps to make the perfect vegan arayes:

• Begin by roughly chopping the onion, garlic, tomatoes, and parsley.
• Add the chopped veggies to a food processor and pulse till all are finely minced, or you can finely chop them using a knife.
• Transfer the vegan mince to a big bowl, and add the finely minced veggies, olive oil, salt and pepper, spice mix, lemon zest, and pomegranate molasses. Using your hand mix everything till all is combined.
• Cut the pita/Arabic bread into halves or quarters and brush the inside with olive oil.
• Fill in the pita bread with the vegan mince mixture.
• Heat a grill on the stovetop and brush it with olive oil. Brush each filled pita with olive oil on both sides before you place it on the grill to prevent it from sticking.
• Grill the arayes for 5 minutes on each side till crispy.

Serving suggestions and storing leftovers:

Serve up your vegan arayes hot off the grill with a side of your favorite dipping sauce, such as hummus or ketchup. You can even prepare a simple tahini – yogurt sauce by mixing any plant-based yogurt with tahini plus lemon juice, garlic, and water until it reaches a creamy consistency.

Arayes can be served as a hot appetizer before your main meal or as a main dish alongside any of the dipping sauces above or with a simple salad like Arabic salad, or Quinoa tabbouleh, and you will have a perfect easy to make plant-based meal.

If you have leftovers, store them in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to three days. Simply reheat them in the oven or on a skillet for a quick and easy meal later in the week.

If you made a big batch of the vegan mince, you can store the leftover in an air-tight container in the fridge for up to 4 days. This recipe is great for meal prep as well. When you need to make the Arayes all you need is to fill the pita bread and grill them and serve them immediately.

If you are looking to stay ahead of your weekly meal prep, make sure to check our easy to use & printable weekly meal planner!

Recommended Vegan recipes to try next:

• Vegan Kubbat Halab recipe
• Baba ganoush
• Vegan eggplant recipe.

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