Mexican food is surely a staple in almost every household’s weeknight meal schedule. Not only are most Mexican dishes simple to make, but it is also super easy to turn them vegan by swapping out meat, eggs and cheese for lentils, chickpeas, mushrooms, and vegan cheese substitutes, and then topping it all off with plenty of vibrantly colored veggies.
All you need is a crispy dough base (e.g. taco or tortilla) as a filling vehicle, and you won’t believe how insanely delicious some of these completely vegan ingredient combinations can get. Here is our pick of top five Mexican dishes that are vegan and that you can make at home.
Chickpea Breakfast Tostadas
Crispy tostadas are a vegan foodie favorite, especially for breakfast. You just need to bake corn tortillas for a few minutes before adding your toppings. For the perfect healthy breakfast that is fully vegan, our recommendation would be a chickpea-veggie mix, salad greens, avocado, and homemade pico de gallo.
Chickpeas are a cholesterol-free egg alternative that will keep you full as you begin your day; that, coupled with a blend of fresh vegetables, creamy avocado, and a tablespoon of pico de gallo salsa, you will be dreaming about Mexico travel all day long after this nutritious and delicious Mexican breakfast dish.
Mushroom and Chickpea Tacos
If you think that tacos have to come served with ground meat or cheese, think again. There are lots of ways to make plant-based versions of taco fillings that would impress meat lovers, too.
Sautée mushrooms, black beans, walnuts, potatoes and chickpeas with red onions before topping your vegan tacos off with a Mexican spice mix. Potato, red onion, and a well-seasoned blend of sautéed mushrooms, beans, and walnuts combine for a sweet, almost chorizo-like filling whirling with delightful flavors in these heavenly rustic tacos.
Meatless Huaraches
Huaraches derive their name from a type of sandal, so you would need to be very specific when googling something like “Mexican huarache food recipe” to get the results you want!
For a crispy and highly delectable antojito (“little craving”), try making your own vegan Mexican huaraches by topping oval masa (dough) bases with traditionally Mexican ingredients such as refried beans, red or green salsa, potatoes, vegan crema, and fresh veggies.
The sandal-shaped base can easily be made from scratch at home by rolling dough into a cigar form and then flattening it until it resembles an oval using a tortilla roll or a dish.
Cauliflower Quesadillas
The possibilities are endless for vegan quesadillas. For a flavor-packed meatless version of this Mexican food staple, coat some cauliflower with cumin, paprika, onion and garlic powder, as well as some red chili powder for an extra spicy effect, and then roast it in your oven.
While the cauliflower is roasting, prepare a cabbage slaw side dish by chopping up some red cabbage, carrots, and fresh cilantro, and then tossing everything together in a generous amount of olive oil and lime juice. Add some avocado to the mixture and a few sprinkles of salt.
Stack everything onto your tortillas, fold them up and you’re good to go!
Mushroom or Spinach Enchiladas
Baked enchiladas are probably the most satiating comfort food around, and there’s plenty of creative ways you can turn them fully vegan.
One option would be to sauté mushrooms, black beans, chopped onions, sweet corn, and red bell peppers together, and then simmer them in tomato sauce for about 10 minutes before transferring everything to your tortilla-lined pan.
Another great idea is to use spinach and black beans as the main drivers of flavor by sautéing them together with some green onions, sweet corn, and cilantro, and then drizzling them with vegan sour cream.
Include rice in both of these recommended mixtures for an intensely hearty meal!
