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Vegan taco bowls are a quick, vibrant, family-friendly dinner. Made with black beans, they’re ready in five minutes. Or use our fabulous sofritas. You can’t go wrong.
Why we love this recipe
Vegan taco bowls have been one of my go-to fast family dinners for a decade. It’s the kind of meal that has long made modern life feel possible and delicious on evenings when it otherwise might not.
The base recipe is super-easy, lightning-fast, and a total crowd-pleaser. But I’ve also given you lots of ways to enhance it with our favorite recipes if you’re so inclined. These bowls are:
- Great served buffet-style or assembled
- Super-flexible
- Vegan, grain-free, dairy-free, and gluten-free
- Suitable for meal prep
- Packed with both nutrients and flavor
I first published this recipe here back in 2016. I’ve since updated the post for clarity and added options to the recipe, but in essence it remains the same.
What you’ll need
Here’s a glance at the ingredients you’ll need to make this recipe. “Need” is strong — these bowls can easily adapt to what you have on hand. These are the basics. Peep the section below for more ideas to add if you like.
- A crunchy lettuce like romaine makes a good base. I buy romaine hearts and shred them by running my chef’s knife crosswise, then wash and dry in a salad spinner. You can use any kind of greens that you like, but I think the crunch plays well with the other elements of this bowl.
- Canned black beans, simply drained, rinsed, and patted dry, are a fiber- and protein-packed workhorse. They taste great and couldn’t be easier.
- Frozen corn is another favorite for quick, nutritious meals. Place it straight from the freezer into a lidded bowl with a few tablespoons of water and pop it into the microwave to cook according to the timing on the package.
- A couple of nice, ripe Hass avocados add creamy, buttery richness and helps tie all the flavors together.
- Tomatoes of any kind (I’ve pictured rainbow-colored grape tomatoes) and/or bell peppers add gorgeous color and some crunch.
- For little pops of briny umami, I like to include pimento-stuffed green olives. Just open the jar and drain them.
- Our favorite salsa for a few years now has been Xochitl chipotle in medium. You probably have one of your own. Salsa makes a great “dressing” for these bowls.
- If you like, you can also include some hot sauce. For taco bowls, we always use Cholula.
- Sliced scallions and lime wedges for squeezing add a couple more super-easy layers of flavor.
Suggested additions
If you have a little bit more time on your hands and would like to take things to the next level, I have so many great options for you.
Protein
In place of or in addition to black beans, don’t miss our sofritas (tofu taco meat). You can make this element well in advance if you like — it even freezes really well.
Carbs
If you’d like to bulk up your vegan taco bowls with some additional starch, try:
Condiments & sauces
This is my favorite place to really go nuts. Here are some favorites, all of which are make-ahead friendly. You can pick and choose from this embarrassment of riches.
How to make them
Here’s an overview of what you’ll do to make fabulous vegan taco bowls. You can see the steps in action in the video that accompanies this post, and get all the details in the recipe card below.
- Create a base with plenty of lettuce.
- Layer in the most substantial ingredients — beans and corn.
- Top with tomatoes or peppers, avocado, and olives.
- Layer on the flavors with salsa, hot sauce, scallions, and a big squeeze of lime. That’s it!
Three tips for fast family dinners that work
These vegan taco bowls easily meet all of my top-three criteria for fast family dinners that work:
- Even though these bowls are nutrient-dense and full of fresh flavors, they don’t require a special shopping trip of any kind. They draw heavily from pantry and freezer ingredients, and everything else can be kept in the fridge for at least a week.
- I’ve found over the years that kids really appreciate the feeling of control over their food. These taco bowls are a great way to give them the chance to put together their own dinner from healthy options. You’ll feel you’ve done your best to give them healthy choices, and they’ll feel they get to eat whatever they want. Win-win.
- Speed and efficiency are of the essence on weeknights. I’ve literally never met a faster dinner.
Expert tips and FAQs
Truth be told, this meal is so quick to put together that I hardly ever make it in advance — but you can.
If you plan to serve dinner buffet-style, you can get all the ingredients ready in advance, place them into separate bowls, cover, and refrigerate. You can assemble the bowls in advance if you like. Or you can arrange individual portions in meal prep containers to use throughout the week.
If you’re including avocado, either slice it at the last minute or toss it with plenty of lime juice. All the other ingredients will hold up well without any special treatment.
More quick & easy vegan bowls
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Vegan Taco Bowls
Ingredients
- 1 large Romaine heart or 6 cups other crunchy lettuce
- 16 ounces (454 grams) frozen corn
- 2 15.5- ounce 439-gram cans black beans
- 12 ounces (340 grams) grape tomatoes
- 2 ripe Hass avocados, sliced
- 1 cup pimento-stuffed green olives
- 1 cup jarred salsa
- Cholula or other hot sauce
- 4 scallions, sliced
- 1 lime, cut into wedges
Instructions
- Shred the lettuce by slicing it crosswise into thin ribbons with a chef's knife. Wash and dry in a salad spinner. Place some lettuce into each individual serving bowl (or, for all ingredients, set out buffet-style).
- Lightly cook the corn in the microwave according to package directions. I place it in a lidded container with a couple of tablespoons of water and microwave for about four minutes, then drain.
- Drain, rinse, and pat dry the beans.
- To assemble the bowls, spoon some corn and beans on top of the lettuce, layer on some tomatoes, avocado, and olives, and then top generously with salsa, hot sauce, scallions, and lime.
Notes
- The two cans called for in this recipe equal about 3 ½ cups of cooked beans, from one heaping cup dried. You can of course use beans cooked from scratch if you prefer.
- This meal is so quick to put together that I hardly ever make it in advance — but you can. If you plan to serve dinner buffet-style, you can get all the ingredients ready in advance, place them into separate bowls, cover, and refrigerate. You can assemble the bowls in advance if you like. Or you can arrange individual portions in meal prep containers to use throughout the week. If you're including avocado, either slice it at the last minute or toss it with plenty of lime juice. All the other ingredients will hold up well without any special treatment.
Suggested additions
In place of or in addition to black beans, don't miss our sofritas (tofu taco meat). You can make this element well in advance if you like — it even freezes really well. If you'd like to bulk up your vegan taco bowls with some additional starch, try: Here are some favorite condiments and sauces, all of which are make-ahead friendly. You can pick and choose from this embarrassment of riches.Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Hungry for more?
Subscribe to Umami Girl’s email updates, and follow along on Instagram.
