Top 10 high calorie vegan foods to put on weight

People often think that meat, dairy and eggs are necessary to put on weight or muscle mass due to their high calorie, low-fiber content. However, strong evidence links animal products to numerous chronic diseases. Thankfully, vegan foods can help you gain weight in a healthful way. If you’re looking for high calorie vegan foods to add to your diet to gain or maintain your weight, look no further.

Below is an extensive reference guide to high calorie vegan foods categorized by food group. Recipe ideas are listed for each ingredient. While some sources compare equivalent amounts of foods (such as 100 grams of everything), the following is meant to be a practical guide, providing comparisons of typical serving sizes of each food. Data is sourced from the USDA Food Data Central.

1. Grains (cooked)

Food	Serving	Calories (kcal)	Recipe Ideas
Vital wheat gluten	100g (about ½ cup)	370	Seitan “Wheat Meat” made almost entirely from wheat gluten
Wheat flour	100g (about ½ cup)	332	Best Applesauce Waffles
Amaranth	1 cup	251	Lentil and Amaranth Patties
Quinoa	1 cup	222	Quinoa Chile Verde
Protein Pasta (ie Barilla spaghetti)	1 cup	220	One pot spaghetti (sub high protein spaghetti)
Brown rice	1 cup	218	Vegan Poke Bowl
White rice	1 cup	205	Enchilada Rice
Oats	1 cup	166	Homemade granola Savory Oatmeal Use instead of flour Add to shakes
Buckwheat groats	1 cup	155	Muesli
Farro	1 cup	133	Roasted Broccoli Farro Bowls
Wheat germ, toasted	2 Tbsp (1 oz)	108	Add to baked goods, oatmeal and smoothies. Wheat Germ Blueberry Muffins

2. Nuts

Although calorie-dense nuts are perfect atop salads and in trail mix, they’re far more versatile than that. Nuts can create creamy sauces, plant-based “cheeses,” hearty stews, sweet and savory spreads, and vegan “meats,” to name a few. Pair nuts with greens to increase nutrient absorption.

Food	Serving	Calories (kcal)	Recipe Ideas
Macadamia nuts	½ cup	481	Vegan cream cheese Lime coconut macadamia granola
Pine nuts	½ cup	454	Vegan parmesan (to top soups, pastas and salads)
Brazil nuts	½ cup	438	Brazil nut cheese Vegan Spanakopita
Hazelnuts	½ cup	424	Vegan Nutella
Peanuts	½ cup	414	African peanut stew
Cashews	½ cup	393	Vegan nacho cheese Vegan parmesan Butternut squash mac ‘n cheese
Walnuts	½ cup	383	Lentil walnut taco crumbles
Pistachios	½ cup	344	Pistachio pesto (great for pasta, sandwich spreads)
Pecans	½ cup	342	Kale sweet potato salad with maple mustard dressing
Almonds	½ cup	313	Almond ricotta on toast
Chestnuts	½ cup	175	Pumpkin-cinnamon chestnut rolls Chestnut Lentil Loaf Chestnut Mushroom Stuffing Chestnut and Roasted Cauliflower Soup

3. Nut Butters

Food	Serving	Calories (kcal)	Recipe Ideas
Almond butter	¼ cup	392	Mix into smoothies, spread on toast, or add to oatmeal.
Peanut butter	¼ cup	378	Mix into smoothies, spread on toast, or add to oatmeal. Reese’s Breakfast Smoothie Thai Peanut Noodle Bowl
Cashew butter	¼ cup	376	Cashew Cherry Granola Bars Creamy one pot pasta with broccolini

4. Seeds

Food	Serving	Calories (kcal)	Recipe Ideas
Pumpkin seeds, shelled	1/4 cup	204	Gingerbread Granola Creamy Pumpkin Seed Alfredo
Sesame seeds, toasted	1 oz (about 2 Tbsp)	160	Kimchi Fried Rice Vegan Poke Bowls Sticky Sesame Cauliflower
Hemp seeds, shelled	1 oz (about 2 Tbsp)	179	Acai bowls
Flax seeds	1 oz (about 2 Tbsp)	152	Add to smoothies and oatmeal Use “flax egg” as egg substitute in baking Veggie Cutlets with Flax and Oats *Consuming them ground helps your body to absorb the omega-3s.
Chia seeds	1 oz (about 2 Tbsp)	138	Add to smoothies and oatmeal Chai Chia Pudding *Consuming them ground helps your body to absorb the omega-3s.
Sunflower seeds, salted, shelled	¼ cup	204	Nut-free sunflower cheese

5. Seed Butters

Food	Serving	Calories (kcal)	Recipe Ideas
Tahini	2 Tbsp	210	Maple tahini salad dressing Creamy tahini salad dressing Creamy one pot pasta with broccolini
Sunflower butter	2 Tbsp	200	Sunbutter Energy Bites

6. Oils

In small doses and when replacing animal-based fats, olive oil can be health-promoting and help promote weight gain. Unsaturated plant-based fats like olive oil are more healthful than saturated plant-based fats like coconut oil, which are solid at room temperature. However, both can help you meet your calorie goals. This is because they are calorie dense, but don’t cause us to feel as full as the same amount of calories from other sources.

Food	Serving	Calories (kcal)	Recipe Ideas
Coconut oil	1 Tbsp	121	Vegan chocolate fudge
Extra virgin olive oil	1 Tbsp	119	Sea Salt Olive Oil Brownies
Plant-based butters	1 Tbsp	100	Use as you would dairy-based versions

7. Legumes (beans, peas & lentils, cooked)

Legumes help regulate blood sugar, insulin and cholesterol and have cancer-fighting capabilities. They are so nutritious that the American Institute for Cancer Research recommends eating them daily. However, if you’re unaccustomed to it, eating large quantities of beans can be difficult at first due to the large amount of fiber. Fiber pushes against the stretch receptors in our stomachs, causing us to feel more full more quickly. Adding a plant-based protein powder made from beans, peas and seeds to smoothies can be an easy way to bump up your calorie intake without as much fiber.

Food	Serving	Calories (kcal)	Recipe Ideas
Tofu (firm)	1 cup	363	Hummus Tofu Lasagna
Tempeh	1 cup	319	Marinated Baked Tempeh
Adzuki beans	1 cup	294	Adzuki Bean Coconut Curry
Chickpeas	1 cup	269	Hummus (156 calories per ¼ cup) Moroccan-Style Veggie Couscous
Navy beans`	1 cup	255	Smoky Navy Bean Soup
Soybeans	1 cup	254	Vegan Ramen Stir Fry
Lentils	1 cup	230	Lentil Bolognese
Black beans	1 cup	227	Black Bean Burgers
Kidney beans	1 cup	225	Tender Teriyaki “meatballs”
Cannellini beans	1 cup	220	Roasted Garlic and White Bean Dip with Rosemary  Mushroom Bourguignon
Mung beans	1 cup	212	Mung Bean Cauliflower Curry
Lima beans (butter beans)	1 cup	209	Butter Beans with Hot “Honey”
Edamame (soybeans)	1 cup	188	Crunchy Edamame Salad
Fava beans	1 cup	187	Fava Bean Spread
Black-eyed peas	1 cup	160	Smoky Black Eyed Peas and Greens
Soymilk (Silk)	1 cup	100	Golden Milk Use in smoothies, oatmeal

8. Dried Fruits

Food	Serving	Calories (kcal)	Recipe Ideas
Dates, dried, pitted, chopped	½ cup	251	Tahini Date Caramel
Coconut meat (fresh)	½ cup	233	Vegan Ceviche
Raisins, packed	½ cup	246	Curried Chickpea Salad Oatmeal Raisin Cookie Lara bars
Plantain	1 medium (179 g)	218	Vegan Caribbean Curry
Dried pineapple	½ cup	200	Almost-Everything Trailmix
Dried coconut flakes, unsweet	1 oz (about 2 Tbsp)	187	Braised Coconut and Spinach Chickpeas with Lemon
Dried figs	½ cup	185	Fig Newton Cookie Bites Dried Fig Red Wine Jam
Dried apricots	½ cup	156	Moroccan Couscous
Banana	1 large	121	Banana bread And much more
Mango (fresh)	1 cup, chopped (165 g)	100	Cuban Black Bean and Mango Bowl Fresh mango salsa

9. Fatty Fruits

Coconut flesh	½ cup	233	Vegan Ceviche
Coconut cream	¼ cup	120	oatmeal, soups, entrees, smoothies, and even desserts  Chocolate Coconut Smoothie
Avocado	1 fruit	227	Cowboy Caviar  Salads Sandwiches Avocado Ranch Dressing  Creamy Cilantro Lime Dressing

10. Starchy Vegetables

Food	Serving	Calories (kcal)	Recipe Ideas
Cassava (nutty, starchy root vegetable)	0.5 root	326	Cassava fries
White potato	1 large	275	Potato Tikka Masala
Sweet potato	1 cup, cubed	144	Endless versatile options – even sweet potato brownies
Green peas (cooked)	1 cup	134	Vegan mac ‘n cheese with green peas
Corn	1 ear	123	Corn chowder

4 tips for weight gain to supplement this high calorie vegan food guide

1. Break up your meals into 5-6 smaller meals. Be sure to eat breakfast to keep up your appetite and have a bedtime snack.
2. Don’t go too heavy on the beans, as legumes have high amounts of fiber. Although fiber is essential for health, to up calorie intake, consume only your recommended daily fiber intake.
3. Drink water after your meals, not before. You may feel fuller faster if you drink water before meals.
4. Meal prep. Have easy-to-grab, high-calorie meals and snacks ready to make eating caloric, nutritious foods easy.
5. Post this vegan calorie density chart on your refrigerator. Add these foods to your grocery list and meal planning.

3 tips to increase appetite and volume of food intake

1. Read or watch TV while eating to take your focus off the food to make it easier to eat.
2. Set phone alarm or Google calendar reminders to eat.
3. Exercise to increase your appetite.

High calorie vegan foods “in a nutshell”

Calorie dense vegan foods include nuts and nut butters, seeds and seed butters, legumes, hearty grains, dried or fatty fruits, starchy vegetables and some oils to your diet. Additionally, break up your meals, drink water after meals, and have high-calorie foods readily available. If your appetite is poor, have pleasant distractions during mealtimes, set reminders and be sure to exercise.

With this reference guide for high calorie vegan foods, gaining and maintaining healthy weight on a plant-based diet can be a piece of (vegan) cake!