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Need Daniel Fast recipes? Here’s a Daniel Fast food list, meal plan download, and all you need to know about this Bible-based 21 day fast.

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Looking for Daniel Fast recipes, but not sure where to start? The Daniel Fast is a short-term partial fast with the goal of improving spiritual health. It’s followed by people all over the world, meant as a sort of cleanse, not a long-term diet practice.

As a cookbook author with an expertise in special diets like Mediterranean diet, vegan, vegetarian, and gluten-free, I’ve researched the best ways to implement this short-term fast and tried it myself multiple times! Here’s what you need to know about the Daniel Fast: what it is, Daniel Fast foods, and all the recipes you need—including a meal plan spreadsheet.

What is The Daniel Fast?

The Daniel Fast is a Biblical-based partial fast that’s often performed for 21 days (though 10 day and 40 day fasts are also common). The goal of the fast is not to be healthier or to lose weight, but draw closer to God. It’s meant as a cleansing to enhance spiritual health through simplifying your diet.

Think of Daniel Fast recipes as a whole food plant based diet with no refined flour, bread, sweeteners. There are two passages (Daniel 1:12 and Daniel 10:12-13) that define the diet as:

  • Eating only fruits, vegetables, legumes, whole grains, nuts and seeds
  • Avoiding “choice foods” such as meat, dairy and sugars
  • Drinking only water

There don’t have to be strict parameters for the Daniel Fast, since there are some gray areas. Set your own rules for your own fast, then try to stick to them.

Daniel Fast Foods List

What can you eat on the Daniel Fast? Great question. The short definition above leaves a fair amount of questions. Here’s a few more specifics (or, reference this exhaustive list.)

What you can eat on the Daniel Fast

  • Vegetables (fresh, frozen, canned, or dried): All vegetables (including potatoes and squashes, as long as they are not fried)
  • Fruits (fresh, frozen, canned or dried): All fruits
  • Whole grains and legumes: All whole grains including brown rice, quinoa, corn, wild rice, bulgur wheat, farro, millet, oats, quinoa, popcorn, and all legumes including beans, lentils, peas, chickpeas. Also includes whole grain pasta and whole grain tortillas.
  • Healthy liquid oils: including olive, canola, corn, grapeseed, peanut, sunflower, safflower
  • Nuts & seeds: including nut butters with no added sugars

What to avoid on the Daniel Fast

  • Animal & dairy products including any meat, seafood, eggs, milk, and cheese
  • Processed foods of any kind, including crackers, chips, fries, fast food, anything with additives or preservatives, all-purpose flour, and white rice
  • Leavened bread meaning anything including yeast, like sandwich bread and artisan bread
  • Sweeteners including sugar, stevia, maple syrup and honey
  • Drinks including coffee, tea, sweetened beverages, soda, and alcohol

Other Questions to Consider

There is some gray area in the Daniel Fast. Whole grain pasta or tortillas could be considered “processed” so you may opt to avoid from eating them. However, they’re minimally processed and many people opt to allow whole grain versions of them while observing this fast. Here are a few questions to consider:

  • Do you want to include whole grain pasta and tortillas? These are plant based foods that are minimally “processed.”
  • Do you want to include coffee and juices? These are plant based, but the typical definition of the Daniel Fast only includes water for drinking.
  • Do you want to refrain from eating at restaurants to simplify your diet? Making only homemade food for the 21 day fast could be a practice you may want to consider (and might be easier in the long run!).

Reader Testimonial

“I love how you not only listed things to eat but included the recipes for snacks, breakfast and dinner. I have used your Daniel Fast Recipe spreadsheet since January and feel more energetic, clearer thinking, my tummy isn’t bloated, and I lost 11 pounds!” -Pam

Daniel Fast Recipes

What does all this look like? It certainly doesn’t need to be a big plate of carrots and celery. Daniel Fast recipes can be both delicious and nourishing. Below are my favorite Daniel Fast recipes and a meal plan download for incorporating them into your life.

Meal Plan Download

To create a meal plan, click this Daniel Fast Recipes Spreadsheet. A key to making a meal plan work is leveraging leftovers and planning ahead. See the “10 Day Fast” tab in the spreadsheet for examples!

Daniel Fast Side Dish Recipes

Want to accessorize some of the Daniel Fast recipes to make filling meals? Here are a few more side dish ideas:

More Daniel Fast Breakfast Recipes

Need a few more ideas for breakfast? Here are some more Daniel Fast approved breakfast recipes:

Whole Food Plant Based Resources

The Daniel Fast is very similar to a whole foods plant based diet. This way of eating can be a sustainable and healthy way of eating (including getting plenty of protein). Here are a few of our resources if you’re interested in eating this way in the long-term:

What kind of recipes are allowed on the Daniel Fast?

Daniel Fast recipes typically include fruits, vegetables, whole grains, legumes, nuts, and seeds. These ingredients can be used to create a variety of delicious and satisfying dishes, such as soups, stews, salads, stir-fries, and baked goods.

Are there any specific spices or seasonings allowed on the Daniel Fast?

Yes, most spices and seasonings are allowed on the Daniel Fast, including salt, pepper, herbs, and spices like cumin, coriander, and turmeric. However, seasonings that contain added sugar or artificial ingredients should be avoided

Can I use oil during the Daniel Fast?

Yes, oils such as olive oil, avocado oil, and coconut oil are generally allowed on the Daniel Fast.

About the authors

A Couple Cooks

Recipes by Alex & Sonja

We’re Alex & Sonja Overhiser: cookbook authors, busy parents, & a real life couple who cooks together! We started the A Couple Cooks food blog in 2010 to share simple, seasonal recipes, healthy meal planning tips, and the joy of cooking. All recipes are written & photographed by us (and tested on our two kids!).

Leave a Comment

17 Comments

  1. Pam says:

    On January 5th of this year I started the Daniel fast. Prior to starting I researched recipes and came across your excel spreadsheet for the Daniel fast, it’s well thought out, I love how you not only listed things to eat but included the recipes for snacks, breakfast and dinner. What a blessing your spreadsheet was. I have used it since January 5 and feel more energetic, clearer thinking, my tummy isn’t bloated, and I lost 11 pounds!

    1. That’s amazing! So glad you’ve found it so useful.

  2. Daniel Templeton says:

    You Excellent Spirit.
    O Most Excellent.
    Sensational

  3. Eileen says:

    Your Daniel Fast recipes are fabulous.
    thank you

  4. T Brown says:

    The recipes look delicious and can’t wait to experiment with some of them. Thanks Sonja and Alex

  5. Mary Burkhalter says:

    My mom and I are doing the Daniel Fast this year for our church and can’t wait to try so many of these recipes! You guys are so amazing for putting this out there for people to use for this fast!

  6. Ellen Zierk says:

    Do you have just the Daniel Fast recipes in a downloaded version? Perhaps a booklet to purchase?

    1. Alex Overhiser says:

      We don’t, sorry!

  7. Lisa says:

    I have previously used some of the delicious recipes from this list simply because we follow a mostly whole foods, plant based diet. We do supplement with seafood and very occasional dairy. The wild rice and white bean soup is the bomb! Anyway, I just want to give you kudos for this post given how today’s culture is trying it’s best to remove faith from every facet of society. As a Christian, this post left me most appreciative and with a big smile on my face. God Bless You!

  8. Kay says:

    These recipes look great! I am unable to get the meal plan spreadsheet to download, though.

  9. zidane says:

    thank you for the information

  10. Steven Validum says:

    40 day fasting

  11. Brit O says:

    I’ve been surfing the net for Daniel Fast recipes and this is one of the BEST blogs with the greatest recipes that aren’t boring. THANK YOU FOR THIS!!!

  12. Charles Williams says:

    Great recipes to try, thank you so much for your your huge help, much appreciated, God bless keep us in your prayers to complete the 21 days fast

  13. Maliyah Brooks says:

    Thank you so much for your recipes! They are a huge help!!!

  14. Junita says:

    Great recipe to try.

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