Vegan Seder Plate
Firstly, several of the traditional Seder plate foods are already vegan:
the maror and chazeret bitter herbs as well as the karpas spring vegetable.
The charoset (fruit and nut paste) can also be easily made vegan. Many recipes use honey as a sweetener, but you can substitute sugar or date honey.
In fact, the Israeli-made date charoset in our store is a vegan-friendly option, as is our conveniently squeezable and jarred silan date honey. (Either one makes a great gift for the vegan in your life who loves the taste of Israel!)
That leaves us with the two Passover Seder plate items that often stump vegans: the shank bone and the egg.
However, as these don’t actually get eaten or used during the Seder, substituting is easier than you might think!
>For the shank bone:
The most common and most traditional vegetarian/vegan substitute for the shank bone is a roasted beet – whose “bloody” appearance is used to remind us of the Passover lamb sacrifice – and which is even referenced as a Passover Seder option in the Talmud.
It’s not meant to be eaten, so broil it on a high temperature and don’t worry about burning!
>For the egg:
This one doesn’t have the same kind of long-established traditional substitute, so there are a few different options used by the Jewish vegan community in place of an egg:
-Something non-edible that looks like an egg, like an avocado pit or plastic egg, or even a smooth rock
-Seeds or flowers, because they’re symbolic of spring and hold the potential for new life like an egg does
-If your tradition allows rice on Passover (which is not eaten by many Ashkenazi and Morrocan Jews), this was another vegetarian Seder option given by the Sages of the Talmud
So pick the one that works best for you!
Now that you’ve got your Seder plate vegan substitutions, check out our full guide to the Passover Seder plate here, along with the meanings behind all the special foods, as well as our overview of the Seder itself here.
And don’t forget a beautiful Israeli-made Seder plate right from our store, as well as all the other Passover gifts and essentials you’ll need!
Whatever your style or budget, we have the perfect Seder plate for you from one of Israel’s finest artists. Check out our guide with our top 10 amazing plates and find your favorite!
