Prediabetic and Vegan? 7 Easy Breakfasts You Can Buy in UK Supermarkets

1. Porridge with berries, seeds and nuts

Plain porridge oats are one of the simplest supermarket breakfasts.

Oats provide wholegrain carbohydrate and fibre. Instead of heavily sweetened instant porridge sachets, look for plain rolled or jumbo oats and add your own toppings.

You could try:

• porridge oats
• unsweetened soya milk
• a handful of berries
• chia or ground flaxseed
• a small portion of walnuts or almonds

Fresh or frozen berries can both work well and frozen fruit is often cheaper.

If you like your porridge sweeter, cinnamon or a small amount of fruit can add flavour without turning breakfast into a very sugary meal.

2. Overnight oats

If mornings are rushed, overnight oats can save a surprising amount of hassle.

Combine plain oats with an unsweetened plant milk and leave them in the fridge overnight.

You could add:

• chia seeds
• berries
• chopped nuts
• unsweetened vegan yoghurt
• cinnamon

The useful part is that you control what goes into them.

Many ready-made overnight-oat pots, granolas and breakfast pots can contain considerably more added sugar than you might expect, so comparing labels is worthwhile.

3. Wholemeal toast with peanut butter

Toast doesn't automatically need to disappear because you've been told you're prediabetic.

The type of bread and what goes on it matter.

Look for a wholemeal or higher-fibre loaf and compare the fibre information on the label — our bread guide goes through this in more detail.

Try it with:

• 100% peanut or almond butter
• a few berries
• chia seeds
• sliced apple
• a small amount of banana if that's what you enjoy

Nut butter adds fat and protein, which can make the breakfast more satisfying than toast with jam or another sweet spread alone.

When buying peanut butter, check the ingredients. Some products contain added sugar, palm oil or other extras, while others are almost entirely peanuts.

4. Unsweetened soya yoghurt with berries and seeds

Vegan yoghurt varies enormously.

Some flavoured dairy-free yoghurts are effectively sweet desserts, while plain unsweetened versions can contain much less sugar.

Unsweetened soya yoghurt can be a particularly useful option because it generally provides more protein than many coconut-based alternatives.

Try adding:

• raspberries, strawberries or blueberries
• pumpkin or sunflower seeds
• walnuts
• chia seeds
• a spoonful of oats

When comparing vegan yoghurt in the supermarket, look at both sugar and protein rather than relying on the front of the packet — there's more in our yoghurt guide.

5. Avocado or chickpeas on wholemeal toast

For people who prefer a savoury breakfast, avocado or chickpeas can be an easy alternative to cereal.

Try mashed avocado on wholemeal toast with tomatoes, pepper or seeds.

Another option is mashed chickpeas with lemon juice, black pepper and a little olive oil.

Chickpeas provide fibre and plant protein and are inexpensive when bought canned.

Choose versions in water where possible and rinse them before using.

6. Tofu scramble

Tofu scramble sounds more complicated than it actually is.

Crumble firm tofu into a frying pan and cook it with vegetables and whichever herbs or spices you enjoy.

You could add:

• mushrooms
• spinach
• tomatoes
• peppers
• turmeric
• black pepper

Serve it by itself or with a slice of wholemeal toast.

Tofu provides plant protein and makes a useful change if you don't want a sweet breakfast every morning.

7. Beans on wholemeal toast

Beans on toast can still be a perfectly practical breakfast.

The thing worth checking is the label.

Different brands of baked beans contain different amounts of sugar and salt, so compare a few tins rather than assuming they're all identical.

Reduced-sugar and reduced-salt versions are widely available, although you don't necessarily need a special product if an ordinary version works for you and the overall meal is balanced.

Serve with wholemeal toast, and adding mushrooms, tomatoes or spinach can make it a more substantial breakfast.

What about breakfast cereal?

Cereal is one of the areas where supermarket labels are particularly useful.

Two boxes that look almost identical on the front can contain very different amounts of sugar and fibre.

As a general shopping approach, compare:

• sugar per 100g
• fibre per 100g
• whether wholegrains are prominent in the ingredients
• suggested portion size

Plain oats, shredded wholegrain cereals and some higher-fibre cereals can be very different nutritionally from chocolate cereals, frosted cereals and many granolas. Our breakfast cereal guide walks through the comparison.

Granola deserves particular attention because the packaging can look extremely healthy while the product itself may contain quite a lot of added sugar.

What about smoothies?

Whole fruit and smoothies aren't quite the same thing.

Blending fruit breaks down its physical structure and makes it much easier to consume a large amount quickly.

A supermarket smoothie may contain several portions of fruit in a single bottle.

If you enjoy smoothies, check the portion size and total sugar rather than assuming that something labelled with fruit or vegetables automatically makes the best everyday breakfast choice.

Choosing plant milk

Plant milks also vary considerably.

When you're standing in the supermarket, compare:

• sweetened versus unsweetened versions
• added sugar
• protein
• calcium fortification
• vitamin B12 fortification

Unsweetened soya milk is often useful because it generally has more protein than many almond, oat or coconut drinks.

That doesn't mean other plant milks are “bad”. It simply means they're nutritionally different, so the label helps you understand what you're buying.

A simple vegan breakfast shopping list

You don't need all of these, but useful basics include:

• porridge oats
• wholemeal or higher-fibre bread
• unsweetened soya milk
• unsweetened soya yoghurt
• berries, fresh or frozen
• apples
• nuts
• peanut butter
• chia or flaxseed
• chickpeas
• tofu
• baked beans
• avocado
• tomatoes
• mushrooms
• spinach

With a few of those foods in the cupboard, fridge or freezer, breakfast becomes much easier.

You can also rotate between sweet and savoury breakfasts instead of feeling that you need to find one “perfect” option and eat it every day.

Look at the whole breakfast

One of the easiest mistakes to make after being told you're prediabetic is to start judging every food in isolation.

Breakfast is a combination of foods.

A slice of bread with peanut butter is different from the same bread covered in a sugary spread. Oats with nuts and berries are different from oats mixed with large amounts of syrup or sugar.

That's why looking at the whole meal — and your overall pattern of eating — is generally more useful than becoming frightened of individual foods.

And you should still be able to enjoy your breakfast and your first cup of coffee.