Vegan tacos?

fitnhealthy21

I've been trying to cut back on animal products lately. I'm having the hardest time giving up tacos. Any suggestions?

tig_ol_bitties

My boyfriend likes my vegan....tacos.


Hahaha...but seriously! If you have a Trader Joe's near you, stock up on their Soyrizo...that stuff is delicious! I have fed it to MANY meat-eaters and they seriously can't tell the difference! Load up your taco with that, homemade salsa, lettuce, olives, beans, whatever tops your fancy, and enjoy!

misticache

We actually discussed this at work yesterday. Someone said they make soft tacos just using diced tomatoes, black, beans, cilantro, and rice with a splash of lime juice.

flyingwrite

Black beans! Beans, beans! I like to add avocado, mango, anything you can think of really. Find stuff you love and fill up that taco shell.

sundancer1966

Check out Gimme Lean beef substitute, works great in tacos and a great meatball substitute. I use that along with onions, mushrooms, chili powder for the taco meat.

Daiya makes a nice cheese sub, they have cheddar and jack. You can either buy a soy sub for sour cream or make your own using tofu.

Kimbie500

From Appetite for Reduction (low fat vegan cookbook)

Black Bean, Zucchini, & Olive Tacos
Serving - 1 TACO; ⅛ RECIPE (Nutritional info in the database)
Calories: 160

1 teaspoon olive oil
2 zucchini, diced small (about 1 pound)
2 jalapeños, seeded, sliced thinly
¼ teaspoon salt
2 cloves garlic, minced
⅓ cup pitted kalamata olives, chopped
½ teaspoon ground cumin
½ teaspoon ground coriander
1 (6-ounce) can salsa verde
1 (16-ounce) can black beans, drained and rinsed
½ cup finely chopped scallions
8 (6-inch) corn tortillas

Preheat a heavy-bottomed skillet over medium-high heat. Add the zucchini
and jalapeño to the oil and sprinkle with the salt (salt will help draw the
moisture out of the zukes). Sauté for about 7 minutes, until the zucchini is
lightly browned. Add the garlic, olives, cumin, and coriander, and sauté for
2 minutes more.
Add the salsa verde and black beans. Cook for 5 more minutes; the
salsa should reduce a bit so that it’s juicy but not soupy.
Place the tortillas in a moist paper towel and heat in the microwave for 1
minute on high. Serve with Garlic-Lemon Yogurt and chopped scallions.

Garlic-Lemon Yogurt (included in nutrition info for tacos)
1 cup unsweetened plain yogurt (Wildwood is great)
2 to 3 cloves garlic
Zest from ½ lemon
Juice from 1 lemon (about 3 tablespoons)
½ teaspoon light agave nectar
Scoop the yogurt into a small bowl. Use a Microplane to grate in the garlic
and then the lemon zest. Squeeze in the lemon juice and add the agave.
Use a fork to mix well. Taste and adjust the garlic and lemon to your liking.


Yummo!

Trechechus

They make fake meat products. Soy ground beef, soy chicken, etc. The ground beef is actually pretty good and most grocery stores have some kind of small vegetarian section. Check it out.

freeasharold

I do tofu tacos. I just put the crumbled firm tofu in the pan and sautee up with taco spices. Yum.

felice03

personally I do not think I could do without meat in my taco, but I understand what you are wanting. In that case, I would go for veggies...cucumber, zucchini, squashes...these are good fillers and can be tastey!

ejohndrow

I don't remember the brand, but there is a vegan soy boxed mixed that you add water and taco seasoning to that gets the job done quite well, also as someone said earlier in the thread there is soyrizo as well, which I've seen at stores like safeway, smiths etc. it's absolutely delicious.

PapaverSomniferum

cooked lentils and fresh mushrooms run through a food processer with taco seasoning make an EXCELLENT vegan soy-free whole-foods ground meat substitute for tacos/burritos/enchiladas.

Makes a great base for "meat" balls and "meat" loaf too. Just switch up the spices and add different veggies such as shredded carrot or diced onions.

KLo924

I do a vegan taco salad fairly often:
- vegan meat crumbles (I'm not normally for really processed fake meats, but for tacos it tastes way better - try chopping up Morningstar Farms' vegan grillers... you could also sautee tempeh or leftover bean burgers or something) warmed up and mixed with
- taco seasoning (e.g. this one http://allrecipes.com/recipe/taco-seasoning-i/ ), put over
- chopped lettuce with
- pico de gallo or salsa (pico = chopped tomatoes, chopped white onion, chopped serrano or jalapeno peppers),
- sliced avocado, and
- baked corn tortillas (cut them into strips and bake them at 375 until they're dry), crumbled.

You could add vegan cheese to this if you want, vegan sour cream, etc. but I like the flavor of just the above together. And, I don't see why you couldn't put these things in a regular taco shell!

Good luck and have fun

Veganlover

Yes, I can definitely vouch for soyrizo! It tastes just the same and it's soo good. For a cheaper alternative, I'd go with a small amount of (fat free) refried beans, cilantro, lime juice, spinach, salsa or diced tomatoes, maybe sauteed bell peppers w onions a mushrooms, avocado, or maybe some daiya cheese shreds on top if it so suits ya ^_^ If you want to make a sauce, a friend of mine made some with soy yogurt before and it sounded pretty good. So many options. tacos are awesome like that.

Bronx_Montgomery

My boyfriend likes my vegan....tacos.

With the Name Tig ol Bitties I can see why :laugh: :laugh: :laugh:

sundancer1966

I don't remember the brand, but there is a vegan soy boxed mixed that you add water and taco seasoning to that gets the job done quite well, also as someone said earlier in the thread there is soyrizo as well, which I've seen at stores like safeway, smiths etc. it's absolutely delicious.

Fantastic Foods makes a wonderful taco filling, I believe this is what you are referring too.

curvyvegan

It's processed, but you can buy veggie crumbles that have the exact texture of ground beef. Use them with a taco seasoning packet (or your own seasoning) exactly like you would meat. It is remarkably similar. Yves and Lightlife make this product and you can find it in the refrigerated section. Fantastic Foods makes a dry taco mix that you mix with boiling water that is also very good.

If you want to go less processed, you can use a cheese grater to grate tempeh into a pan, and mix it with taco seasoning and proceed as usual. It is really good and high in protein, and much healthier than the processed fake meat stuff. But, depending on your taste preferences, you may or may not like this.

I like burritos with beans, brown rice, and all the vegan fixins, but for hard shell tacos I am a sucker for the fake meat!

hiker282

Why cut back on meat? You could just have chicken tacos. Fewer calories, less fat, and soooooo good!

Fairysoul

I love this and do it for every taco night, black beans with taco seasoning, I make my own seasoning top however you like, but we love it even better that fake meat!

deadstarsunburn

Vegan tacos are probably one of the easier recipes =]

Crumble tofu in a pan sprinkle some taco seasoning than add lettuce and diced tomatoes or whatever veggie you normally eat.

OR even simpler just use refried beans (the kind not cooked with lard you'll have to check the ingredients) than whatever veggies.

jcpmoore

I like to make all my mexican with black beans instead of meat. If I got to a mexican restaurant that's what I ask for, too. They don't mind doing it.

sofitheteacup

I'm not vegan, but when I make tacos I add in chopped up zucchini and yellow squash to my meat and seasonings- I see no reason why you can't do the same, sans the meat or with a soy-based meat product, as others have suggested. Cumin and cayenne are my go-to seasonings for this type of meal.

Mehagon

My husband and I bake a taco filling in the oven. Throw into a casserole dish black beans, corn, diced pepper and onions, and portabello mushrooms. Spice it up with some chili powder, ground chipotle chili, whatever your spice of choice. Quite tasty!

coopersmom2006

Black beans, brown rice and spicy sweet potatoes are one of our favorite taco fillings (or burritos). We also like lentils and brown rice. Add some avocado and salsa for a delish healthy meal!