Foil Packet Dinner: vegan, gluten-free, easy

We always make two of these, one packet for each of us. Double/triple/quadruple as you see fit. If using an oven instead of a grill, preheat to 400°F.

A plate of food  containing a foil packet dinner next to peas and carrots and a slice of canned cranberry sauce

Ingredients (per foil packet)

  • 1 potato, sliced in 1/4”-1/2” slices and rinsed: any kind of potato will do
  • 1/4 cup vegan meat crumbles, lentils, or beans
  • 1/2 of a 6-ounce can of sliced mushrooms, or 8-oz fresh mushrooms, sautéed, or any other veggies you have on hand. Frozen vegetables work well, too.
  • Vegan cheese (optional)
  • Salt and pepper
  • Oil (we like avocado)

Instructions

On an 18” length of heavy aluminum foil (I love Reynolds Wrap’s nonstick foil, but use what you have), spray or brush with cooking oil, and lay down half the potato in a couple layers, seasoning with salt and pepper. If using vegan cheese, layer 1-2 tablespoons of shreds or half a slice on top of the potatoes.

Layer the meat crumbles on top of the cheese, and the mushrooms on top of the meat. Add one more layer of cheese, if using.

Layer the rest of the potato on top, spray or brush with oil, and season with salt and pepper.

A piece of foil with a pile of food on top
This pictures were from a different batch. We used frozen collard greens with a couple shakes of GF vegan Worcestershire sauce as one of the layers. Came out great!

Fold up the short edges of the foil, creasing 3 or 4 times. Do the same with the open ends, pushing any escaped ingredients back inside.

Foil closed on one direction over food, with two open ends

You may want to double-wrap your packets, especially if you’re not using heavy-duty foil.

A fully wrapped foil packet ready for the grill

Place on grill or in an oven at/around 400°F for 15-20 minutes, then flip and cook another 15-20 minutes. Let the packets rest for 5-10 minutes before opening, but be warned they’ll still be like lava inside!

Notes

We like to eat these with some kind of vegetable or salad on the side, and jellied cranberry sauce. (Cranberry sauce is a big condiment around here.)

For protein, we like Beyond Meat ground beef, rehydrated pea protein, veggie burgers, or well-drained lentils. We season it with garlic, thyme, sage, and marjoram, but we’ve used leftover taco meat many times and it’s delicious. (Taco meat plus vegan cheddar is especially good.)

We have used many different vegetables for this, and different potatoes. Rinsing white potatoes after slicing and before cooking will remove some of the starch, helping them to crisp up rather than getting a bit mushy on the outside. It’s not necessary for a delicious dinner.

Future idea: season potato layers with taco seasoning, layer with taco meat, spicy vegan cheddar, and taco sauce. once it’s cooked, top with lettuce, tomato, guacamole, vegan sour cream, and a side of retried beans.

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