Without fish being an option, it can be difficult to get omega 3 fatty acids on a vegan diet.
While there’s technically no RDA for omega 3 fats, the standard recommended amount is between 1.1 and 1.6 grams of ALA a day, which is the main type of omega 3s found in plant foods.
That takes into account the fact that ALA converts to more usable forms like EPA and DHA with a low conversion rate.
Note that if you’d prefer to get EPA or DHA, your only option as a vegan is to get them from algae, which is what most good supplements are made from.
There is some evidence of benefits from taking omega 3 supplements for vegans. Here’s a review of the best vegan omega 3 supplements if you’re curious.
Good Vegan Sources of Omega 3 Fats
Moving on, let’s look at how you can easily get that 1.1 grams or more of omega 3s from food sources.
Looking at the best vegan sources of omega 3s, here are the foods at the top of the list:
| Food | Serving Size | Grams of Omega 3 |
|---|---|---|
| Flaxseeds | 3 tbsp | 6.39 |
| Walnuts | 0.5 cup | 5.31 |
| Butternuts | 0.5 cup | 5.23 |
| Chia Seeds | 28 grams | 4.92 |
| Hemp seeds | 3 tbsp | 2.5 |
| Canola Oil | 1 tbsp | 1.28 |
| Soybean Oil | 1 tbsp | 0.92 |
Cooking with soybean or canola oil is one simple way to get your omega 3s.
Alternatively, I’ve compiled a list of 15 awesome vegan recipes that all have a high amount of omega 3s, mostly in the ALA form. Many of these have the recommended daily amount in just a serving or two.
Flaxseed Wraps Keto + Vegan
These wraps are versatile and can be eaten with dips, vegan “taco meat”, vegetables, potato salad, or many other foods.
They have 1 cup of flaxseeds in them, plus a few spices. In terms of grams of omega 3 to total calories, these are impossible to beat.
The downside of this recipe is that the wraps don’t taste as good as store-bought wraps made just from flour, so I typically add extra fillings to minimize the taste of the wrap.
Fiber Starter Breakfast Bowl
One of my favorite ways to get omega 3s is to just add hemp, chia, and flaxseeds to cereal that I eat.
This simple breakfast recipe is extremely healthy, partly due to the high amount of omega 3s, and also a solid amount of fiber.
Peanut Butter Flaxseed Pancakes
This is one of many somewhat healthy vegan pancake recipes I’ve tried.
It uses a flax “egg” instead of an egg to replicate the texture, but also adds some much needed omega 3 fats to the pancakes.
It’s not a recipe I make all the time because I’m not a huge fan of peanut butter in my pancakes, but it’s a good recipe to have on hand to mix things up.
Vegan Lentil + Quinoa Meatloaf
This loaf combines 2 of the top vegan sources of ALA.
It has 1/2 cup of walnuts and a tablespoon of flaxseed meal. I’ve added more myself when I’ve made this, and it always turns out great.
Unlike most meat substitutes for vegans, I regularly eat this without any other side dishes. If you do want to eat something alongside it, I’d recommend potatoes or some nice roasted vegetables.
Flax Almond Meal Banana Muffins with Dark Chocolate
This muffin recipe is one of many that uses flax, but it uses more than most others do.
These banana muffins have 1/4 cup of flaxseed meal, which isn’t too shabby.
The taste overall is good, but not great. I typically eat two per day and one batch lasts until the end of the week (compared to other muffins that are gone in a day or two).
Flax & Chia Seed High Omega Fat Crackers
Seeds can be combined to make delicious crackers that are healthy.
These crackers in particular combine a cup of flaxseed with 3 tablespoons of chia seeds, making them great sources of omega 3 fatty acids, and relatively low calorie as well.
Healthy Vegan Flax Seed Banana Bread
This banana bread features 5 tablespoons of flax.
That’s decent enough, but it also calls for added nuts of your choice. I’d recommend walnuts to shoot up the omega 3 content.
Raw Vegan Walnut Taco Meat
This recipe can be combined with regular vegan taco wraps, or even the flaxseed wraps at the start of this post.
It features some vegetables, but more importantly, 3 cups of walnuts to give it plenty of ALA fats.
Gingerbread Granola With Omega Fats
This gingerbread granola mainly consists of 2 ingredients: oats and walnuts.
With 1.5 cups of walnuts, this granola will easily help you reach the recommended amount of omega 3s for the day.
Sweet and Spicy Walnuts
This simple recipe goes great on any assortment of greens, and makes for a healthy meal with a good dose of omega 3s.
You’ll need 1 cup of walnuts for it, which has over 10 grams of omega 3s.
Arugula Walnut Pesto
If you’re a big fan of pesto, you’ll love this recipe that’s based on 1 cup of walnuts, packing in over 5 grams of omega 3 fats.
Hemp & Pumpkin Seed Flapjack Bars
These flapjack bars are a tasty snack that have a decent amount of omega 3s.
They include both flaxseed and hemp seeds. I often make them when I know I’ll be out for a long time and need a small filling snack.
Raw hemp heart brownie bites
These brownie bites are easy to make and convenient to have around for when you need a snack.
Since they’re based on walnuts and hemp hearts (hemp seeds), they have quite a bit of omega 3s in them.
Peppermint Hemp Fat Fudge
Fudge may not be the healthiest in general, but this recipe is relatively healthy.
It features a third of a cup of hemp hearts, giving it a decent portion of omega 3s.
Hemp Cauliflower Burger
Last but not least, these plant-based burgers have a ton of omega 3s.
It requires 4 flax eggs (0.25 cups of flaxseed), plus 2 full cups of hemp seeds. This is one of best vegan recipe that is super high in omega 3s.
