Name: Cauliflower Walnut Vegetarian Taco Meat
Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: 30 min
Total time: 35 min
Cuisine: Mexican
Ingredients: 3 cups cauliflower florets; 2 cups whole walnuts; 2 individual chipotles in adobo sauce; 1 tablespoon chili powder; 1 teaspoon cumin; 1 teaspoon salt; 2 tablespoons lime juice; 1/2 teaspoon garlic or onion powder; a pinch of cayenne for more heat

Description

This vegetarian taco meat is made with cauliflower, walnuts, and chipotle peppers. It’s so easy: just mix and bake. Meatless miracle!

Ingredients

Units Scale

The Vegetarian Taco Meat Basics:

3 cups cauliflower florets
2 cups whole walnuts
2 individual chipotles in adobo sauce
1 tablespoon chili powder
1 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon salt

Optional Add-Ins:

2 tablespoons lime juice
1/2 teaspoon garlic or onion powder
a pinch of cayenne for more heat

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Instructions

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Pulse all ingredients in a food processor until the mixture is evenly ground (see picture).
Transfer to a greased baking sheet. Bake for 30 minutes, stirring halfway through to prevent over-browning.
Serve in tacos, burritos, quesadillas, bowls, and the like!

Equipment

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Notes

My salsa-making game is pretty loose. I like to just eyeball it and taste and adjust as I go.

Corn Salsa: toss some corn kernels in a pan and saute until roasty-looking. Mix with black beans, jalapeño, salt, lime juice, cilantro.
Pico de Gallo: toss chopped tomatoes with chopped onion, salt, lime juice, and cilantro.
Guacamole: toss mashed avocados with chopped onion, salt, lime juice, and cilantro.

Freezer Meal Version

Pulse in a food processor to make the “meat”:
3 cups cauliflower florets
2 cups whole walnuts
2 individual chipotles in adobo sauce
1 tablespoon chili powder
1 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon salt
optional: lime juice, onion and garlic powder, cayenne to taste
Bake and then freeze: 375 degrees for 30 minutes (stir halfway through), freeze in plastic bag or glass container.
Final Step: Add Cauliflower Walnut Taco Meat to a skillet to reheat, or in the microwave. Serve in tacos, enchiladas, rice bowls, burritos, quesadillas, nachos, the usual.
Check out our full freezer meal posts with all recipes and instructions here!

Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes
Category: Dinner
Method: Bake
Cuisine: Mexican

Keywords: vegetarian taco meat, cauliflower walnut meat, vegetarian Mexican recipe, vegetarian recipe, taco bowl