Gluten Free
High-Protein Vegan Birria Tacos
Prep
30 minutes
Cook
45 minutes
Yield
6 servings
These vegan birria tacos are the perfect summer Mexican-inspired meals. Birria is a Mexican dish that is traditionally a soup or stew made with chili pepper-based meat adobo, garlic, cumin, bay leaves, and thyme and cooked to perfection on low heat. These tacos are inspired by the flavors and spices, but of course in taco-form with tofu to make them plant-based.
This post is sponsored by my friends at Seed. I love their daily symbiotic to help keep my gut health (and overall health) in check. On top of eating nutritious, healthy food like these tacos, I always make sure to incorporate Seed into my daily routine.
Why you’ll love these vegan birria tacos:
- Quick Prep: These vegan birria tacos can be prepper in only 30-minutes
- Flavorful: The spices in this sauce and tacos are so good and flavorful. It’s a party in your mouth
- Delicious: Actually though, this may be your new favorite summer meal
Ingredients:
Tofu: Tofu actually has several anti-inflammatories, antioxidant properties. It’s a good source of protein in a plant-based diet and is so versatile.
Spices: What really makes this so flavorful and good is all the spices. It may look like a lot from the ingredient list, but I promise they are mostly things you’ll already have in your spice drawer! Of course, you can substitute anything or remove anything but this recipe is how I recommend making these vegan birria tacos.
How to make vegan birria tacos:
- To make the sauce, add the olive oil, garlic, and onion to a pot over medium-high heat. Stir and sauté until tender and golden.
- Next, add all of the spices and cook for 3 – 5 minutes to allow the flavors to come alive.
- In the meantime, lightly toast the dried chilies in a separate pan until softened, and fragrant, and the oils begin to release.
- Add the tomatoes, water, and chilies to the pot and reduce the heat to medium-low.
- Let this mixture cook for 30 – 45 minutes, stirring often and allowing the water to reduce. The longer you let it cook, the stronger the flavors will be!
- Remove the bay leaves from the pot once reduced.
- Transfer the sauce to a blender once completed, blend until smooth, and transfer back into the pot on low until ready to use.
- While the sauce simmers, make the crispy-crumbled tofu,
- Preheat the oven to 400F and prepare a baking tray with parchment paper.
- Drain the excess water from the tofu package and crumble it into a medium-sized bowl.
- Add the cornstarch, olive oil, tomato paste, and ALL of the spices.
- Mix the ingredients together until well combined.
- Set onto the prepared tray and bake for 25 – 30 minutes until golden brown. Make sure to flip halfway through.
- Remove the bay leaves and transfer them to a bowl
- Add a couple of tbsp’s of the sauce and mix until combined. Set aside.
- To make the Birria Tacos, place a large pan over medium-high heat and lightly spray with oil.
- Take one of the corn tortillas and dip it in the sauce- make sure you cover both sides.
- Place the corn tortilla into the pan and cook for 1 – 2 minutes.
- Flip the tortilla once it is slightly brown on that side and add a handful of cheddar cheese, followed by ¼ cup of crispy-crumbled tofu.
- After 1 – 2 minutes, fold one side of the corn tortilla shell over to create a taco.
- Cook for another couple of minutes, and flip again in this new shape if necessary.
- Remove the taco from the pan and set it onto a serving tray.
- Repeat these steps for ALL of the tacos.
- Once completed, garnish with the white onion, crumbled feta, dollops of crema, and cilantro leaves.
- Sprinkle some flaky salt and serve with lime wedges! ENJOY!
Expert Tips & FAQ:
How can I make this dairy-free? Swap the vegan cheddar, feta, and sour cream for your favorite dairy options!
Toppings: Serve the extra toppings of your choice; salsa Verde, avocado, it’s up to you!
What is your microbiome? The human microbiome is a community of 38,000,000,000,000 (that’s 38 trillion) microorganisms, mostly bacteria, living in and on your body. The genes harboured in these trillions of microbial cells are essential for human development, immunity, and nutrition. There is a close relationship between what we eat and our gut microbiome, which means that we can improve our health by modifying our diet. No surprise there, right?
How to support your microbiome: To further support a healthy microbiome, I recommend incorporating Seed’s DS-01™ Daily Synbiotic into your routine. DS-01™ is a pre-and-probiotic containing 24 clinically and scientifically studied probiotic strains (and 53.6 billion AFU) for benefits in and beyond the gut. Think healthy regularity, ease of bloating, smooth skin, heart health, and so much more.
Use code FOODBYMARIA for 15% off your first month’s supply of Seed’s DS-01™. And be sure to follow Seed for more information throughout the month of May on the importance of nutrition and digestion.
Other healthy recipes to enjoy:
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Vegan Birria Tacos
Ingredients
For the Sauce,
- 2 tbsp. olive oil
- 1 large white onion diced
- 6 garlic cloves minced
- 3 bay leaves
- 1 tbsp. onion powder
- 1 tbsp. coriander
- 1 ½ tsp. cumin
- 1 ½ tsp. chili powder
- 1 tsp. salt
- 1 tsp. apple cider vinegar
- 1 ½ cinnamon stick or 1 tsp cinnamon
- 1/3 cup water
- 14 oz can fire-roasted diced tomatoes with juice
- 4 – 6 dried chilies guajillo or pasilla chilies
For the Crispy Crumbled Tofu,
- 350 g package firm tofu crumbled
- 1 ½ tbsp. corn starch
- 1 tbsp. olive oil
- 2 tbsp. tomato paste
- 1 ½ tbsp. garlic powder
- 1 ½ tbsp. oregano
- 1 ½ tsp. salt
- 1 tsp. cumin
- 1 tsp. chili powder
- 1 ½ tsp. salt
- ½ tsp. black pepper
- ½ tsp. red chili flakes
- 3 bay leaves
For the Tacos,
- 6 small soft corn tortilla shells
- 1 cup vegan cheddar cheese
- 1/3 cup white onion diced
- 1/3 cup vegan sour cream
- ¼ cup vegan feta crumbled
- ¼ cup cilantro
- 2 tbsp. flaky salt
- wedges from 1 lime
Instructions
- To make the sauce, add the olive oil, garlic and onion to a pot over medium-high heat. Stir and sauté until tender and golden.
- Next, add all of the spices and cook for 3 – 5 minutes to allow the flavours to come alive.
- In the meantime, lightly toast the dried chilies in a separate pan until softened, fragrant, and the oils begin to release.
- Add the tomatoes, water, and chilies to the pot and reduce the heat to medium-low.
- Let this mixture cook for 30 – 45 minutes, stirring often and allowing the water to reduce. The longer you let it cook, the stronger the flavours will be!
- Remove the bay leaves from the pot once reduced.
- Transfer the sauce to a blender once completed, blend until smooth, and transfer back into the pot on low until ready to use.
While the sauce simmers, make the crispy-crumbled tofu,
- Preheat the oven to 400F and prepare a baking tray with parchment paper.
- Drain the excess water from the tofu package and crumble into a medium-sized bowl.
- Add the cornstarch, olive oil, tomato paste, and ALL of the spices.
- Mix the ingredients together until well combined.
- Set onto the prepared tray and bake for 25 - 30 minutes until golden brown. Make sure to flip halfway through.
- Remove the bay leaves and transfer to a bowl
- Add a couple tbsp’s of the sauce and mix until combined. Set aside.
- To make the Birria Tacos, place a large pan over medium-high heat and lightly spray with oil.
- Take one of the corn tortillas and dip it in the sauce- make sure you cover both sides.
- Place the corn tortilla into the pan and cook for 1 – 2 minutes.
- Flip the tortilla once it is slightly brown on that side and add a handful of cheddar cheese, followed by ¼ cup of crispy-crumbled tofu.
- After 1 – 2 minutes, fold one side of the corn tortilla shell over to create a taco.
- Cook for another couple minutes, and flip again in this new shape if necessary.
- Remove the taco from the pan and set onto a serving tray.
- Repeat these steps for ALL of the tacos.
- Once completed, garnish with the white onion, crumbled feta, dollops of crema, and cilantro leaves.
- Sprinkle some flaky salt and serve with lime wedges! ENJOY!!
