Vegan Lentil Tacos

Earlier this winter, I took a beautiful trip to San Diego. While I was there, I had so many fun and lovely experiences, sunshine, and load and loads of TACOS! These Vegan Lentil Tacos are inspired by some breakfast tacos I had at an adorable tiny cafe just down the block from the beachfront apartment we were renting.

Things I look for in a good taco:

• Fun and interesting textures, like a slight crunch in my cauliflower rice that pairs so nicely with the crumble of vegan chorizo and the soft, chewy lentils
• Depth of flavor like the smokey cumin and chili powder in my lentils and a little spicy sweetness from chorizo, all cooled off with fresh and creamy avocado
• The perfect bite in EVERY bite. Don’t you hate it when you bite into a taco and get nothing but rice in one bite and nothing but lettuce in the next? Oof. That’s why I love using small corn tortillas and building my tacos for every bite by mixing all of my toppings together! It’s one extra step, but it makes a world of a difference in your taco-eating experience.

Let’s get into the recipe…

 

Here’s what you’ll need:

12 corn tortillas

16 oz riced cauliflower

8 oz vegan chorizo of choice (mine is from Trader Joe’s)

1 cup red split lentils

1 1/2 cup vegetable broth

2 tsp cumin seeds

1 Tbsp chili powder

1 Tbsp olive oil + enough to coat your pan

salt to taste

 

Directions:

For Lentils

1. In a large saucepan, add half of oil and cumin seeds over medium heat and cook for 1-2 minutes, or until aromatic
2. Add lentils, half of chili powder, salt, and broth and bring to boil
3. Reduce heat to low, cover, and cook for 10-12 minutes, or until lentils are tender

For Cauliflower

1. Pan-fry cauliflower in a large skillet by heating oil a cumin seeds to medium heat for 1-2 minutes, or until cumin is aromatic
2. Add cauliflower, chili powder, and salt and cook for 4-5 minutes, or until cauliflower reaches desired tenderness (I like mine a little crunchy, so I cook it lightly to avoid soggy cauliflower)

For Chorizo

1. Cook chorizo according to package instructions. I simply pan-fried mine until hot and slightly crispy!

For Tortillas (optional)

1. Add olive oil to a frying pan until it’s about 1 centimeter deep (you don’t need to submerge your tortillas)
2. Bring oil to frying temp over medium-high heat
3. Drop in tortilla and allow to fry for 15 seconds per side
4. Transfer to a plate lined with paper towels and lightly salt tortilla

Assembly

1. Like I mentioned early, a good taco gives you the perfect bite in every single bite, so combine your cauliflower, chorizo, and lentils in a large bowl and stir
2. Top each tortilla with 1/2 to 3/4 cup of filling
3. Top your Vegan Lentil Tacos with hot sauce, avocado, cilantro, or pico, and enjoy!