Vegan birria tacos made with jackfruit are the perfect comfort food! This healthy meal is easy to make and prep ahead for a fast and amazing dinner.
I love birria tacos, so I created a quick vegan version, using easy to find ingredients, so I could have them anytime the craving hit!
This post was originally published on April 15, 2021.
While I love spicy things, my family does not so I created these vegan birria tacos with a low spice profile. The key to a great texture and flavor is to cook the jackfruit well, in a similar way that I do when making jackfruit tacos.
Ingredients
This is not your grandma's authentic quesabirria taco recipe. Just being honest. But what this is, is a recipe that was carefully researched and tested to give an amazing flavor with easy to find ingredients!
- Dried ancho peppers (or sub with paprika!)
- Onion
- Garlic
- Salt
- Veggie broth
- Tomato sauce
- Maple syrup
- Apple cider vinegar
- Spices
- Jackfruit (or see the notes in the recipe to sub with mushrooms)
How To Make Vegan Birria Tacos
- Soak ancho peppers in water then cut off the tops and scrape the seeds out.
- Sauté onion, garlic, and salt.
- Blend the onion mixture, peppers, tomato sauce, maple syrup, apple cider vinegar, broth, and seasonings.
- Sauté the remaining onion, garlic, then add the jackfruit.
- Add some birra sauce and cook until thickened.
- Dip tortillas in birria sauce, fill with jackfruit mixture and fold over.
- Brown stuffed tacos in the pan.
- Enjoy!
Substitution Suggestions
Instead of the chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, I decided to create my own adobo like sauce with a variety of common ingredients.
The caramelized like flavor of the onions mixed with the tomato, dried peppers, and other ingredients gives this amazing sweet, touch of smokey, hint of tang like sauce that's to die for!
Because dried guajillo peppers aren't as easy to find, I subbed them with dried ancho peppers (which is actually just the dried version of a poblano pepper) because they are more common and readily available in many grocery stores. Plus they are not spicy like the guajillo.
- If you can’t find ancho peppers, you can use 1 tablespoon of paprika instead.
- Mushrooms can be used in place of jackfruit. Use about 2 pounds portobello or king oyster mushrooms and shred them with a fork.
- Adjust the amount of salt to taste, it may need to be adjusted due to the salt in the broth and jackfruit.
What to Serve with Birria Tacos
Once you have these vegan tacos made, serve them with a variety of topping options so everyone can make their own custom creations! Our favorites are:
- A bowl of the birria consommé for dipping of course!
- Chopped onion - white onions are best
- Cilantro
- Cotija or feta cheese, dairy-free to keep vegan
- Limes - to squeeze over the top
- Salsa
- Guacamole
- Vegan Sour Cream
To make this a complete meal, serve with any of these tasty side dishes:
- Simple Vegan Mexican Rice
- Pinto Beans
- Black Beans
- Mexican Coleslaw with Cilantro Lime Dressing
- Mexican Street Corn Salad
- Gluten Free Baked Churros
- And don't forget the margaritas! Try a Spicy Jalapeño Margarita or a Passion Fruit Margarita
Preparation Tips
Check out these helpful suggestions to make the best vegan birria tacos:
- Keep the consommé warm after blending in a pot on low on the stove.
- Make sure to brown the jackfruit to a crisp before adding the sauce, otherwise it will be mushy.
- To prevent your tortillas from tearing when folding, make sure they're soft and pliable. You can do this by covering them with a damp paper towel and heating in the microwave.
- Coating the tortillas with the sauce can get messy. Use a pastry brush to keep things a bit cleaner.
Prep Ahead and Storage Tips
- Prepare the tacos ahead of time by making the jackfruit filling and sauce.
- Store the filling and sauce in separate airtight containers in the refrigerator for up to 3-5 days.
- You can also freeze both the vegan birria filling and the sauce. Seal them in freezer safe containers and freeze for up to 3 months.
- When ready to serve, defrost of frozen, then coat the tortillas, fill, and brown the tacos.
Common Questions
Birria tacos are traditionally made with braised lamb or goat meat. Beef or pork are also frequently used. One the tacos are filled they are fried in the fat left in the pan.
These vegan birria tacos use jackfruit instead of the traditional meat. Some versions use shredded mushrooms or store bought meat alternatives.
Pretty much any Mexican dish can be made vegan with some alterations. Rice and beans are vegan when made without lard or chicken broth. Tacos, burritos, and fajitas can be made with a variety of vegan fillings like veggies, lentils, or potatoes. Also, popular Mexican soups like pozole or tortilla soup are easily made vegan.
Barbacoa traditionally refers to a cooking method where meat (generally lamb) is wrapped in leaves and cooked by steaming slowly in a pit in the ground. Nowadays this is usually done in a pot on the stove. Birria is a dish that consists of braised meat (traditionally goat) along with a consommé to create a flavorful dish.
More Vegan Taco Recipes
Whether it's Taco Tuesday, or Taco Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, etc., you need an arsenal of plant based taco recipes on hand! These tasty creations will have you eating tacos all the time, and that is perfectly acceptable.
- Black Bean Sweet Potato Tacos
- Crispy Potato Tacos
- Lentil Walnut Tacos
- Buffalo Cauliflower Tacos
- Mushroom Carnitas Tacos
- Vegan Jackfruit Tacos
Easy Vegan Birria Tacos (with Jackfruit)
Equipment
Ingredients
- 3 dried ancho peppers , see note for sub
- 2 ½ cups chopped sweet or yellow onion , divided (see instructions)
- 4 cloves garlic , chopped (divided)
- 1-1 ½ teaspoon sea salt , divided (see instructions, see note)
- Drizzle of oil or broth to sauté if oil-free
- ¾ cup tomato sauce
- 3 tablespoons maple syrup
- 1 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
- 1 tablespoon smoked paprika
- 2 cups veggie broth , low sodium if needed
- 1 tablespoon dried oregano
- 2 teaspoons cumin
- ⅛ teaspoon cinnamon , optional for more authentic flavor
- ⅛ teaspoon cloves , optional for more authentic flavor
- 2 cans jackfruit (rinsed and shredded) , 20 ounce cans, see note (use whatever size you find to equal close to 40 ounces)
- 16 corn tortillas
To serve (optional):
- Chopped onion
- Cilantro
- Cotija or feta , dairy-free to keep vegan
- Limes
Instructions
- Place the dried peppers in a bowl of warm water to soften.
- Sauté the 1 cup chopped onion, 2 cloves chopped garlic, 1 teaspoon salt and oil or broth until the onions are soft, sticky and browning. About 5 minutes.
- Remove the peppers from the water, cut off the tops and scrape the seeds out.
- Add the onion mixture, cleaned peppers, tomato sauce, maple syrup, apple cider vinegar, smoked paprika, broth, oregano, cumin and cinnamon/cloves (if using) into a blender and blend on high until smooth. Pour into a bowl, or if you want it warm pour it into a pot and put over low heat.
- Sauté the other 1 cup chopped onion, 2 cloves chopped garlic, ½ teaspoon salt and oil or broth until the onions are soft and browning. About 5 minutes.
- Add the jackfruit and sauté over medium high heat until browned and crisp on the edges. This takes between 10-15 minutes depending on your stove. You want it crisp to get the right texture. If you stop early it will be soft and mushy.
- Add 1 cup of the birria sauce and cook until it thickens gets a bit sticky. Put the mixture into a bowl. Keep the pan on low medium heat so you can brown the tacos.
- Make sure your corn tortillas are soft and pliable. You can do this by covering them with a damp paper towel and heating in the microwave for 1-2 minutes. Take each tortillas and dip into the birria sauce. Wipe off the excess. This can get messy, so you can also use a pastry brush to coat each side.
- Add a heaping ¼ cup of the jackfruit to one side of the tortilla. Then fold it over and place on the hot pan. Do this for however many tacos you can fit on your pan. Cook about 2-3 minutes on each side, until browned.
- Serve with whatever toppings you prefer!
Notes
- If you can’t find ancho peppers, you can sub 1 tablespoon paprika.
- Adjust your salt depending on the salt in the broth and jackfruit.
- You can also sub mushrooms for the jackfruit. Use about 2 pounds portobello or king oyster mushrooms and shred with a fork.
- This makes 16 corn tortilla sized tacos. Serving size is 2 tacos.
Recipe by Veggies Don’t Bite, visit our site for more great plant-based recipes.
Nutrition
Nutrition and metric information should be considered an estimate.
Denise
Tried the jackfruit version, and followed the recipe to the letter. What a soggy mess! I thought these were supposed to be crisp and ready for dipping, but what I ended up with was more of a mushy enchilada! Very disappointed. 😞
Sophia DeSantis
Hi Denise, if you followed the directions to the letter then there is no way you'd get a "soggy mess" because the directions clearly state to saute until the edges are brown anx crispy. I also state "If you stop early it will be soft and mushy." So it seems you stopped early. Then once the filling is done you add it to tortillas and brown on the pan. Sorry you had a hard time doing this correctly, but it seems to be an issue on your end with making sure to cook until crisp.
Madison Bliss
Will this make a sauce to dip in as well? Is there any way to adjust the recipe to make some ya think? This sounds so delicious.
veggiesdontbite
Hi Madison! This makes enough sauce to dip in as well, depending on how generous you are with your dips. But I got enough to use as both!
JD
I was shocked how good they were made without all the traditional ingredients!
Jim
I am looking to make this for my vegan wife.. I have ample guajillo peppers from my birra recipe. How will guajillo work in place of Ancho? Do you think it will alter the flavor profile too much?
Sophia DeSantis
Hi Jim! Guajillo and Ancho peppers are different and have slightly different flavor profiles but both will work as both are used in many birria recipes usually together. I liked the flavor of ancho so that's why I used those, but I would use both in the future too!
Sylvia
Sophia these look delicious. I have a can of jackfruit in the pantry ready to go! Do you have a brand of veggie broth that you recommend? Thank you as always for the healthy choices!
veggiesdontbite
Hi Sylvia! I love Cadia brand broth because it doesn't use tomatoes. While I love tomatoes in my broth for some things I don't like it for everything because of the stronger flavor it gives. But there are other brands without them too so you can look at the ingredients and see. So happy to have you here!
Sarah
Oh. My. Goodness! So incredibly perfect! It did get a little messy making them but that's to be expected. Will be making them again!
veggiesdontbite
Thanks so much!