In honor of Cinco de Mayo, I’m posting an overview of ideas
for a great vegan taco night.
It is not overly difficult to veganize a meal that is
already full of beans and vegetables. Indeed, its simplicity is largely why I
haven’t bothered to post about it before now, despite the fact that I’ve eaten
it as often as once a week at times. Still, despite the fact that a decent taco
night at its most basic requires nothing more than a can of beans and a
tortilla (and the tortilla is negotiable), there is definitely some room for
embellishment. Over the years I’ve figured out a number of tricks to jazz it up
into an appealing and even fairly fancy meal.
Here are some of the components that can be improved or
varied for a more exciting taco night:
- Beans
In my house, beans are the really
the primary ingredient, providing most of the nutrition and a lot of the
texture and flavor as well. My favorite trick is to use a combination of both
refried or pureed beans as well as whole beans stirred in for texture. I also
often combine two or more different types of beans: pinto beans would be
classic, but black beans are also very good. Even black-eyed peas or kidney
beans combine pretty seamlessly with the typical seasonings.
There are a few things to remember
about beans. First, that they will absorb any flavoring or spices you add to
them, as long as they are warm and fully cooked at the time. Second, that they
do benefit greatly from said added flavors, particularly acidity or heat. Low
sodium beans that have a couple splashes of lime juice and a generous pinch of
cayenne and cumin can outshine their salty brethren any day.
Vegan-wise, store bought refried
beans need to be checked for lard, a traditional pork based Latin ingredient.
It’s also a good idea to seek out low-sodium beans, considering that a main
dish sized serving that provides enough protein for a vegetarian meal may be
double the suggested (side-dish) serving on the back of the can. If the sodium
level is moderately high to begin with, it’ll be astronomically high after
doubling. I find that generic brands of beans are often considerably lower in
sodium than name brands without even announcing themselves as such, so be sure
to check them out.
If you can’t find any good refried
beans at the store, it’s not super hard to make homemade. Just sauté some
onions and garlic with some olive oil and the seasonings of your choice. Add
cooked or canned whole beans with some liquid such as water or veggie broth and
mash in the pan (or puree in a blender if you’d rather). Heat through and adjust flavorings such as
salt, pepper and lime juice, and adjust texture too by adding more liquid as
necessary. The cool thing about this is you can use any bean you want and add
any flavors you want. You can make it super spicy or tangy or garlicky.
- Veggies
& fruits
 |
| Onions and peppers in a grill pan |
Fresh, sautéed or grilled veggies
can add a tremendous amount of flavor, texture and nutrition to a taco. Grilled
or sautéed onions, peppers, and mushrooms top the list for me in terms of
flavor. I like to cut onions and bell peppers into long strips and toss them
with a little oil and spices and throw them in a grill pan until they are
softened and browned to my liking. Mushrooms for tacos are good sautéed with
minced garlic until they release their juices and get lightly browned. Other
grilled veggies that are good in tacos: zucchini, eggplant, and corn. If you’re
feeling experimental, you could try things like asparagus, broccoli,
cauliflower, root vegetables such as potatoes or sweet potatoes, or squash.
Raw tomatoes and sweet onions can
add a lot to a taco too. Cilantro is a somewhat divisive ingredient—you either
love or hate it. I like it, but I usually use a light hand with it, or serve it
on the side so people can make up their own minds about it. Fresh chives or
green onions are another fresh herb that’s a good choice.
As far as the greens are concerned,
switching out the iceberg for some shredded cabbage would be authentic and
nutritious. Kale and broccoli slaw are options too. You can also try tossing
your greens with a compatibly flavored dressing before adding them instead of
putting them on plain; that can be a major flavor boost.
Sometimes pickled, brined or
marinated vegetables are used in tacos as well, particularly spicy ones. This
can make a very zesty addition.
Tangy fresh fruits such and mango
and pineapple make killer taco ingredients. Some fruits (pineapple, peaches)
can be grilled as well.
- Salsa,
Guacamole and other toppings
 |
| Fresh Pico do Gallo with mangoes |
A big fresh bowl of
Pico de Gallo
or other fresh cut salsa/ salsa cruda can seriously make my day. And my taco.
It’s a good, tasty way to up your quota of fresh vegetables without having to
be dutiful about it.
This is the
ingredient that I use to jazz up my tacos more often then any other, and it
never disappoints. The mango version is particularly good. Regular jarred
salsas are good too.
 |
| Homemade Guacamole |
Authentic, 100% avocado guacamoles
are almost always vegan. Mediocre, mayonnaise with green food coloring versions
generally are not. Guacamole is something that is worth making from scratch
anyway, since it’s so fast and easy.
Here’s my recipe. Mock-guacs based on
other pureed green vegetables are an option if you need to keep a very tight
reign on your fat intake, although they’ll never fool you completely. Edamame
based mock-guacs have the best flavor of those I have tried. Other people swear
by peas, asparagus or lima beans. Most mock-guacs benefit greatly from a
generous amount of onions, garlic and spices.
If you can spare the fat, do splurge on the real stuff once in while.
It’s heart healthy unsaturated fat after all.
 |
| Faux cheese, melted directly on a tortilla |
Faux dairy such as soy sour creams
and vegan cheeses are a nice option if you can get them. A bit of a splurge
nutritionally, and sometimes financially, but I don’t mind that in moderation.
Meltable vegan cheeses will have a better chance of actually melting if spread
in a thin layer on top of the tortilla as you soften it than merely mixed into
the filling. If you decide to make your own tofu sour cream, you could try
making it tangier than usual with extra lemon/lime juice to better approximate
crema, if you wish, or puree in other compatible ingredients such as cilantro.
Nutritional yeast sauces may be
more common in vegan mac and cheese recipes, but they’re good in tacos as well,
both in the filling and spooned over the top enchilada style.
- Seasonings
Commercial spice mixes as well as
many restaurant house seasonings typically contain three primary ingredients
other than salt and MSG: onion powder, garlic powder, and paprika. This is
partly because they are cheap, since they are made from vegetables and not
imported spices. But it’s also because they really work when it comes to
building a good flavor base. So these three are a good start when it comes to
creating a any homemade spice mix that approximates the flavor of other options
without the sodium and additives.
Another key Latin spice is cumin.
Despite its presence numerous curries and other spicy food, cumin itself does
not provides any heat itself, just flavor, so don’t shy away from it in mild
mixes. Dried oregano and thyme are typical herb choices.
I also like to add cinnamon to my
taco seasoning. I think it makes it taste more complex and balanced.
For heat cayenne pepper or re
pepper flakes would be an option. So
would chile or chili powder mixes, or even just black pepper if you’re generous
enough with it. FYI, chile powder = ground dried chile peppers, chili powder =
spice mix that includes peppers but also cumin and other spices typical in
chili soup.
A certain amount of salt is necessary
for restaurant style results. This can be decreased some with salt-free
seasoning mixes such as lemon pepper, but not completely. It’s up to you how
far you want to go.
If you taste your seasoned taco
filling and can’t quite put your finger on what’s missing, try adding a pinch
of sugar. It can balance out acidity and bring the other flavors together.
Incorporating Seasonings into your
taco: Many of the spices involved taste much better if lightly toasted,
especially in oil, than they do added raw. A handy way to do this is to take
any ingredient you’re planning on sautéing anyway such as onions or other
vegetables or a faux meat filling and adding the spices for the last couple
minutes in the frying pan. This will not only make the spices taste better but
also thoroughly infuse the other ingredients with more flavor.
- Taco
“meat”
If you were raised on meaty tacos,
you may find your tacos missing something even if they’re full of beans and
veggies. I generally find omnivore guests seem to prefer having the fake meat
there as an option as well. Don’t worry, the texture and flavor of ground meat
is very easy to fake, especially with plenty of spices.
- Rice
or other grains
Plain rice, whether brown or white,
can always be added to bulk up a taco. However, I think the best form of rice
for tacos is pilaf style. This is a method that involves toasting and flavoring
the rice, so that you end up with a highly flavored, generally firm textured,
rice that really contributes to the taco instead of just lying there.
 |
| Brown rice, toasted and flavored with tomato paste |
To make pilaf style rice: Saute
some onions and garlic, and possibly other veggies such as peppers or
mushrooms. When they are mostly done, add raw rice and toast it for a few
minutes in the sautéing oil, until the grains smell nutty. Then add the proper
amount of liquid needed to cook the rice, more typically veggie broth than
water, salt and pepper, and any additional flavorings that apply. For Latin
style pilafs, a tablespoon or two of tomato paste and some cumin works nicely.
Bring to a boil, cover and simmer low until done, resisting the urge to stir
excessively. Stir in any addition ingredients that don’t benefit from long
simmering at the end, such as fresh cilantro or other herbs, and stuff into
your taco.
This method works just as well for
brown rice as white, as long as you use the appropriate cooking time and amount
of liquid. It also works for other grains and even grain shaped pastas.
- Miscellaneous
Add-ins
Basically whatever sounds good to
you. Green or Black olives, capers, sun-dried tomatoes, artichoke hearts as
well as more unusual things such as some forms of edible cactus.
- Form/Assembly
The truth is, once you have the
methods and ingredients for a killer taco night down, it’s not going to take
much to turn it into a killer fajita or enchilada night. Just a few tweaks here
and there. Here are some different options:
 |
| Enchiladas with nutritional yeast sauce |
Merely roll up or fold your
favorite taco fillings in tortillas and drench with a nice chile sauce, heat,
and you basically have enchiladas. You can experiment with different sauces—the
other day I mixed some salsa into some leftover nutritional yeast sauce and
used it as an enchilada sauce. It was pretty good. Verde (green) sauce is a
common variation, and there are classic versions that even have their own
names: enchiladas with mole sauce are called enmoladas, and ones drenched in a
thinned refried beans sauce are called enfrijoladas.
I’ve also had burritos/tacos
served with so much juicy sautéed veggies, salsa and guacamole spooned on top
to the point that the tortilla softens and the dish becomes enchilada-esque
without quite crossing over. It’s quite good.
Burritos are basically overgrown
tacos folded a bit differently, so there’s no big adjustment required. If
you’re aiming one of those really big restaurant style burritos, keep in mind
that they start out with very large tortillas—ten to twelve inches in diameter.
Little six-inch tortillas have no chance of maintaining structural integrity
with similar amounts of filling.
Folding burritos that stay
together is much easier if you start with softened (briefly heated) tortillas.
Just place them in the microwave or a dry skillet for about 30 seconds, until
warm and floppy. It’ll fold without tearing that way.
Another tip is to lightly smearing
the edges where the seams will be with something that can act as glue, such as
refried beans or guacamole.
Finally, if you are having trouble
with sogginess and falling apart, reconsider your dry-to-wet ingredient ratio,
decreasing the amount of runny salsas or sauces and increasing absorbent
ingredients like rice.
Some restaurants also like to take
the assembled burrito and cook it briefly seam side down on a dry frying pan or
griddle to help it seal. It’s worth a try.
A tortilla could of course be
deep-fried into a bowl shape and then filled, restaurant-style, but who
deep-fries regularly these days?
A better option is to bake or
grill the tortilla until crispy instead. It can be left flat and then have the
fillings merely piled on top, or some effort could be made to shape it into a
bowl by pressing it into a small baking dish.
The simplest way to the simulate
crispy chip-like tostada shell is to just use a layer of tortilla chips with
filling piled on top. It doesn’t look quite as pretty, but it tastes quite
similar.
- Nachos
 |
Vegan Nachos
|
Speaking of chips, the classic
application would be nachos. These can include basically anything that goes in
a taco, including salsa, beans, faux meat, guacamole and more. Cheese is traditionally prominent; you can
omit it entirely or try and substitute it with fake cheese or a nutritional
yeast sauce
Sometimes I like to serve the
chips separately from the toppings instead of piling them on top in order to
prevent sogginess and make scooping easier.
Here’s my favorite
quesadilla recipe. The truth is, any taco filling can be used in a quesadilla as long as
they’re spread out thin enough to work.
 |
| Fajita w/ grilled strips of onion and pepper |
The term fajita to me basically
means a taco with grilled strips of something or other as a prominent feature.
Traditionally it would be strips of meat of course, but grilled strips of
onion, bell pepper and Portobello mushroom would work as well in a vegan
version. So would grilled strips of seitan or another meat substitute, or a
combination of all of the above.
So there you go. All the tips I can think of for a great,
healthy Latin Feast. Enjoy, and happy Cinco!
