My Roasted Broccoli and Chickpea Tacos are so incredible, I could eat them three times a day – and some days I totally do! The textures and flavors in this insanely healthy comfort food are out of this world. Imagine it…smoky and sweet roasted peppers and onions with broccoli and chewy chickpeas, together with creamy, tangy vegan sour cream and spicy, fresh pico de gallo…all cuddled up together in a warm, toasted corn tortilla.
These healthy tacos are mildly spiced to suit even a timid pallet, though you can kick up the heat with more spicy pico de gallo or salsa if that’s your jam. I use a little tahini to roast the vegetables, which not only makes this meal oil free, but it also gives the veggies a wonderful nutty, slight umami flavor that’s so drool worthy you won’t believe there’s no oil.
Where many vegan tacos rely on some form of imitation meat filling, these babies let the amazing natural flavors of whole plants shine their beautiful, tasty light. You will be amazed when you realize the meat alternatives just aren’t necessary.
The filling can be easily refrigerated or frozen and reheated for later use if you have leftovers, or if you want to prepare in advance.
I have made these for many family dinners, and they are great for entertaining, as well, since they are totally gorgeous and impressive when all assembled together (check out the later pictures in this post – swoon!). I have also made them for many, many lunches for my husband and me – the perks of working from home! The whole dish comes together surprisingly quickly and is always more than worth the minimal effort. Every time we eat them, my husband and I ooh and aah and marvel at how crazy good they are. We can frequently be heard uttering “it makes no sense how good these are!” Seriously, if you’d have told me in the first 2/3 of my life that healthy vegetable tacos would be one of my top ten favorite meals, I’d have laughed in your face.
Special Dietary Needs
These vegetable tacos are suitable for many diets, such as:
Clean eating
Dairy free
Gluten free
Oil free
Kosher
Low calorie
Low fat
Natural
Nut free
Plant based
Refined sugar free
Soy free
Unprocessed
Vegan
Vegetarian
WFPB (whole foods plant based)
WFPBNO (whole foods plant based no oil)
WFPBNOSOS (whole foods plant based no salt oil sugar)
Ingredients
(available for purchase* and delivery via links below)
Broccoli
Bell pepper
Red onion
Chickpeas
Corn tortillas
Tahini
Garlic powder
Onion powder
Black pepper
Chili powder
Smoked paprika
Salt
3-Ingredient Vegan Sunflower Seed Sour Cream (link to recipe here), or other plant-based sour cream or unsweetened plant-based yogurt
Pico de Gallo [Fresh Raw Salsa] (link to recipe here) or store-bought salsa
Equipment
(available for purchase* and delivery via links below)
Knife
Cutting board
Measuring spoons
Baking sheets
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Instructions
To make these veggie tacos, first start by making sure you have two baking racks evenly spaced in your oven, and then preheat your oven to 450 degrees Fahrenheit so that it can be warming up while you’re prepping the filling for your plant-based tacos. Then, line three baking sheets with parchment paper and put them aside.
Once you’ve done that, begin chopping up your broccoli. Use only the florets – remove all of the stalky portion and reserve for other purposes (I love to shred it and use it to make this delicious 5-Minute Sweet Tropical Broccoli Slaw). Chop the broccoli florets into very small pieces roughly 1/2 inch diameter – they should look like the pieces in the middle section of the cutting board in the photo below.
Next, chop your peppers and onions to roughly match the size of the broccoli. Then do your best to separate the layers of the onion. This does not have to be perfect, but the better separated they are, the better the pieces will roast, and the more you will be able to disperse them throughout the dish. (In the photo below, only a few of the onion pieces have been separated; they will be further separated before mixing with the other ingredients.)
Now it’s time to transfer your chopped veggies to a large bowl or pot. Drizzle your tahini over the top, and give it all a good toss until the tahini is evenly coating all your veggies. Then add your garlic powder, onion powder, black pepper, chili powder, smoked paprika, and salt, sprinkling them evenly over the top of the ingredients into the pot so that when you mix it all up, there are no spice clumps. Mix it all again until the spices are evenly distributed throughout the filling for your vegan tacos.
Put half of your filling onto each of your prepared baking sheets, making sure the veggies are not too crowded and are spaced evenly on the parchment paper. This helps to ensure even roasting and allows the veggies to get a nice chewy texture instead of getting soft and mushy. Put both pans into the oven and bake for 20-25 minutes, rotating the pans halfway through to ensure even baking if your oven tends to bake things unevenly.
While the filling is baking, prepare your 3-Ingredient Vegan Sunflower Seed Sour Cream and Pico de Gallo [Fresh Raw Salsa] if you don’t already have them or a suitable alternative on hand.
Then arrange 8 corn tortillas evenly on your third prepared baking sheet, overlapping them as little as possible, and put aside for now.
When the filling for your vegetarian tacos is ready, the pieces should be nicely browned, or blackened in some areas, and the chickpeas in particular should be dry and chewy.
When your filling is finished and has been removed from the oven, quickly switch your oven to broil and put your baking sheet with the tortillas into the oven closest to the heating element to toast for 1-2 minutes. You can also toast your tortillas elsewhere while your filling is finishing baking in the oven if you want everything ready at exactly the same moment. The tortillas will have some nice browned spots but should still be pliable when ready.
Now all that’s left is to assemble your tacos. You can assemble them all at once, or you can put the filling in a bowl and bring it along with the tortillas, 3-Ingredient Vegan Sunflower Sour Cream, and Pico de Gallo [Fresh Raw Salsa] or other salsa to the table for people to assemble themselves individually: In each tortilla, put about 1/3-1/2 cup of filling, then top with fresh pico de gallo (or store-bought salsa) and vegan sunflower seed sour cream (or other vegan sour cream or unsweetened vegan yogurt). You can garnish with fresh cilantro or finely chopped leafy greens as a nice optional (though unnecessary) touch.
My mouth is watering already.
Trust me, these beauts taste even better than they look.
Love Mexican-inspired dishes? Try these:
5-Ingredient Vegan Mex-Style Mac ‘n’ “Cheese”
3-Ingredient Vegan Sunflower Seed Sour Cream
Pico de Gallo [Fresh Raw Salsa]
Roasted Broccoli and Chickpea Tacos
Ingredients
- 2 heads of broccoli
- 1 bell pepper
- 1 small red onion
- 1 can chickpeas drained and rinsed
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/8 teaspoon black pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon chili powder
- 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
- 1/4 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1-2 tablespoons tahini just 100% ground sesame seeds, not the prepared dip/dressing with other ingredients
- 8-10 corn tortillas
- 3- Ingredient Vegan Sunflower Seed Sour Cream or other vegan sour cream/unsweetened yogurt
- Pico de Gallo [Fresh Raw Salsa] or other salsa
- Fresh cilantro or other dark leafy greens for garnish optional
Instructions
- Space two baking racks evenly in your oven, then preheat to 450 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Line three baking sheets with parchment paper and put aside.
- Dice broccoli, pepper, and onion into 1/2-inch pieces, using only the florets of the broccoli and reserving the stalky portion for other purposes (like my 5-Minute Sweet Tropical Broccoli Slaw).
- Do your best to separate the layers of the onion. The better separated they are, the better the pieces will roast.
- Transfer chopped veggies to a large bowl. Drizzle tahini over top and toss until the tahini coats the veggies evenly.
- Add garlic powder, onion powder, black pepper, chili powder, smoked paprika, and salt, sprinkling evenly over the ingredients to avoid spice clumps. Mix again until evenly distributed.
- Divide filling between two prepared baking sheets, making sure the veggies are spaced evenly to ensure even roasting and chewy texture instead of getting soft and mushy.
- Put both pans into the oven and bake for 20-25 minutes, rotating the pans halfway through the baking.
- While the filling is baking, prepare your 3-Ingredient Vegan Sunflower Seed Sour Cream and Pico de Gallo [Fresh Raw Salsa] if you don't already have them or a suitable alternative on hand.
- Arrange 8 corn tortillas evenly on your third prepared baking sheet, overlapping them as little as possible, and put aside.
- Remove the taco filling from the oven when the pieces are nicely browned, or blackened in some areas, and the chickpeas are dry and chewy - but leave the oven on.
- Quickly switch oven to broil and toast tortillas on the rack closest to the heating element for 1-2 minutes. You can also toast your tortillas elsewhere while your filling is finishing baking in the oven. The tortillas will have some nice browned spots but should still be pliable when ready.
- Assemble your tacos, either all at once, or put the filling in a bowl and bring it along with the tortillas, vegan sour cream, and pico de gallo or salsa to the table for people to assemble themselves individually: In each tortilla, put about 1/3-1/2 cup of filling, then top with fresh pico de gallo (or store-bought salsa) and vegan sunflower seed sour cream (or other vegan sour cream or unsweetened vegan yogurt). You can garnish with fresh cilantro or finely chopped leafy greens as a nice optional (though unnecessary) touch.
- Enjoy!
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Hi Shana ☺️Excited to make these!! I have frozen broccoli which I avoid due to how soggy it gets when being cooked. Any tips to avoid that?
I’m excited for you, too! Here are some tips to keep your broccoli (or any veg) from getting soggy:
1. Fully preheat your oven first before putting in the veggies
2. Try to keep pieces from touching each other on the pan (doesn’t have to be perfect)
3. Roast at high heat for a short time
4. Coat the pieces in the tahini really well first so the coating is even
Hope this helps!
Delicious and easy recipe that we, as beginners, completed in the hour stated! Thank you!
That’s great to hear! Thank you!
I wasn’t so sure about these tacos but I am SO GLAD I tried them! The small texture of the veggies almost makes you think you are getting that “tooth feel” of ground beef and the intense savory roasted flavor is delicious! I used unsweetened faugurt, but will definitely try your sour cream recipe next! Thanks for this amazing recipe!
I am so glad you enjoyed it! Thank you so much.