Hello!
I have received a lot of requests for vegan recipes and although I do not eat a vegan diet, I consider myself “plant-based”. Eating plant-based in simple terms means the majority of your diet consists of plants with some animal products.
When I decided to come up with some sort of vegan recipe, I knew I wanted to use whole foods. The fake meat and highly processed meat-like products really gross me out. While I may not 100% agree with some of the arguments that support a vegan diet, other people’s “diet” is none of my concern. So here we are with a vegan recipe!
I love a good taco salad. You can get creative with all the toppings and fixings! Most of the components of a taco salad are already vegan (beans, corn, guacamole, etc.), now I just needed to come up with a meat substitute.
This blend of lentils and riced cauliflower truly delivered as the perfect meat substitute. The taco seasoning gives it great flavor and the lentils provide some protein and great texture. Lentils are high in rich in iron, folate and other health promoting vitamins and minerals.
To top off the salad once I added all of the components, I drizzled some of my favorite dressing which happens to be vegan: Primal Kitchen Vegan Ranch. The dressing is optional since a squirt of lime is plenty! You can get creative with all of the toppings as long as you have the tasty lentil/riced cauliflower blend in there. I hope you enjoy this recipe if you have a vegan diet or simply want to add more plant-based meals.
Enjoy!
Vegan Taco Salad
Ingredients
- 2 1/2 cups Cooked Lentils Cook lentils according to instructions. Most packages will be 1 pound but you will only need about 1/2 of it. I boiled 6 cups of water and added the entire 1 pound of lentils for 20 minutes.
- 1 tbsp Olive oil
- 1/2 Onion, chopped
- 4 Cloves of garlic, minced
- 2 cups Cooked Lentils
- 10 oz Package of frozen riced cauliflower, steamed
- Taco Seasoning Recipe below
- 1-3 Heads of romaine lettuce You can make an individual salad, or enough for 4 servings.
- 14 oz Black beans, drained and rinsed Add salt if needed.
- 14 oz Corn, drained and rinsed Add salt if needed
Taco Seasoning
- 2 tsp Salt Seems like a lot but I did not season lentils or riced cauliflower.
- 1 tbs Garlic Powder
- 1 tbs Onion Powder
- 1 tbs Paprika
- 1 tbs Chili Powder
- 1/4 tsp Cumin
Garnishes
- Guacamole or Avocado See "Recipes" for guacamole
- Grape Tomatoes
- Cilantro
- Lime wedges
- Vegan creamy dressing "Primal Kitchen" Vegan Dressing
Instructions
- In a large pot, bring 6-8 cups of water to a boil. Add the packet of lentils (after you have rinse them) and lower the heat so they cook at a simmer for 15-20 minutes.
- While lentils are cooking, prepare taco seasoning. In a small dish, add all of the spices and mix well. Set aside. During this time you can also prepare guacamole and chop other toppings.
- Steam one 10oz package of frozen riced cauliflower. Set aside.
- Chop half an onion and mice garlic. Set aside until lentils are cooked.
- Once lentils are cooked, drain.
- Heat a medium sized pan, add olive oil.
- Once the oil is hot, add onions and garlic. Cook for about 1 minute.
- Add the package of riced cauliflower and 2 1/2 cups of the cooked lentils.
- To the lentil/cauliflower, add all of the taco seasoning you prepared. Mix well and cook for 3-5 minutes. Set aside once done.
- Drain and rinse the canned beans and corn, add salt if needed.
- Now it is time to assemble your taco salad.
- Rinse and chop romaine lettuce and place into a large bowl.
- To the lettuce, add desired amount of taco mixture, black beans and corn.
- Top with guacamole (or avocado), grape tomatoes, cilantro, and lime. Optional, a creamy vegan dressing (Primal Kitchen Vegan Ranch).
