Chef notes

Love fast food tacos but wish they were vegan? You’ve come to the right spot! This recipe recreates the drive thru experience at home in a totally vegan (and totally delicious) way. These vegetable-packed tacos are an ode to the fully loaded crispy, crunchy tacos that your favorite fast food taco restaurant is known for. The awesome part is that this version still packs in a ton of protein, thanks to the magic of chickpea flour.

The “meat” for these vegan tacos may resemble ground beef but it's anything but. Instead, it’s chickpea flour that’s rehydrated with water in a hot skillet so that it forms crumbles. This protein-rich base is seasoned heavily with taco seasoning, onion, garlic, chipotle peppers in adobo and lime juice to ensure it’s as spiced and flavorful as you could hope for.

We serve these tacos with crispy, spicy potatoes that are tossed with Mexican seasoning, red chili powder and cumin powder, then cooked quickly in an air fryer until they’re ultra crunchy on the outside but tender on the inside.

To assemble the tacos, pile the warm chickpea filling into hard taco shells, then finish them with your favorite toppings like vegan sour cream, shredded lettuce, vegan cheddar shreds, diced tomatoes and cilantro. Garnish the crispy potatoes with vegan sour cream and cilantro, too, and you have a completely satisfying vegan meal without having to head to the drive thru.

Special Kitchen Equipment: Air fryer.

Get Ingredients: If you don’t have everything you need on hand, you can easily purchase all of the ingredients (just click the orange button below that says ‘Get Ingredients’). You can pick and choose exactly what ingredients you need based on what’s in your pantry and they’ll be on your doorstep before you know it.

Ingredients

For the Vegan Taco "Meat"

1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1/2 teaspoon cumin seeds
1 medium yellow onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 chipotle peppers in adobo, minced
1/2 cup chickpea flour

1/4 cup water, plus more as needed
2 teaspoons low-sodium or no salt added Mexican taco seasoning
1 pinch kosher salt
1 pinch freshly ground black pepper
1 wedge lime or lemon

To Assemble Tacos

6 hard taco shells
Vegan sour cream
1/4 head iceberg lettuce, shredded

1/2 cup vegan cheddar shreds
1/2 cup fresh tomatoes, diced
cilantro leaves, to garnish

For the Crispy Potatoes

1 large russet potato, cut into small 1/4-inch cubes (skin on)
1/2 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 tablespoon Mexican seasoning mix
1/2 teaspoon red chili powder
1/2 teaspoon cumin powder

1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
freshly ground black pepper
1 pinch black salt (optional)
1/2 fresh lime

Fulfilled by

Preparation

For the vegan taco "meat" filling:

Add olive oil to a nonstick skillet and place on medium heat. Once hot, add cumin seeds, allowing them to become fragrant and pop for 30 seconds. Add the onions and garlic. Sauté for 4 to 5 minutes until translucent and the edges start browning. Add in the chipotle peppers and sauté.

Add the chickpea flour, mixing it into the onions and peppers, breaking down any lumps. Cook for 2 minutes, then slowly mix in the water, a tablespoon or so at a time, and taco seasoning. The chickpea flour will begin to clump so break it down into crumbles to resemble ground meat. Do not add too much water or the mixture will become gummy.

Keep toasting flour mixture in the skillet, 7 to 8 minutes until it is cooked through and the color of the mixture is a dark reddish-brown. Reduce heat and add salt, black pepper and a squeeze of lime (or lemon) juice. Taste and adjust seasoning . Remove from the heat and set aside.

For the crispy potatoes:

In a large bowl, toss the diced potatoes with all seasonings and olive oil until well coated.

Add potatoes to an air fryer basket and spread in an even layer. Cook at 350 F for 10 to 15 minutes, until the outside is crispy and the inside is fork tender. Remove and allow to cool for a few minutes before serving.

Garnish with a dollop of vegan sour cream, scallions and cilantro, if desired.

To assemble tacos:

Assemble the hard-shell tacos by layering in the chickpea filling, vegan sour cream, lettuce, cheddar shreds, diced tomato and cilantro. Serve immediately.