Everything You Need For A Vegan Taco Bar
Every party needs an open bar, but that doesn’t have to mean booze! Switch things up and have a vegan taco bar at your next event, guests are sure to love it-I mean, who doesn’t love tacos?-and plant based eaters will be in heaven. A traditional taco with have certain items, but with a taco bar you can put out some more interesting options. So, here is everything that you need for a vegan taco bar.
Avocado
Let me start by saying that this is a huge staple for a plant based diet, so this is a must for a vegan taco bar! Not every traditional meat taco will have avocado, but for a vegan taco bar, you need to make this a priority. A vegan diet is lower in fats than a traditional diet, so we have to make sure that we are getting enough of healthy fats, like avocado. So, have a bowl out that guests can cut up themselves, or have slices already laid out on a plate if you want a classier presentation.
Shredded Cabbage
This is an easy option for any vegan taco bar because you don’t have to buy it and shred it yourself. Most grocery stores sell large bags of pre-shredded cabbage that is inexpensive and it is a great addition to bulk up the greens of your vegan taco. Most plant based eaters like to get lots of green veggies in their meals, so have a large bowl of shredded cabbage set out on your vegan taco bar and you will see people piling it on their tacos!
Beans
If you want to have a great vegan taco bar, you like need to add some protein to the mix that is plant based. The easiest way to do that is to add beans. This is a staple of a vegan diet that allows the person to get their protein amount for the day. Black beans are the best to use, and are delicious, and can be cooked, baked, or re-fried. These are a great thing to have readily available at your vegan taco bar, and it can also be used as a substitute for the meat!
Assorted Vegan Meat Alternatives
When thinking about making a vegan taco bar, you have to figure out what you will have as the “meat” of the meal. With meat eaters, the main thing that is used is typically beef, or chicken. You can use beans as the main part of the taco, but there are so much variety with vegan meat alternatives that you can choose to mix things up.
Chorizo:
If you want a nice spicy kick, then this is a tasty. It comes pre-spiced and is relatively cheap compared to some of the other alternatives. But, it is also a very simple options because it just needs to be heated up.
*You can brown it like ground beef in a skillet, if you want, and it gives it a crispier texture.
Ground Beef:
If you want your vegan taco bar to be as close to a traditional taco stand as possible, then vegan ground beef if your go-to. This can be found in most grocery stores and is cooked vegan beef crumbles that you just need to heat up. The favorite brand, by far, is Beyond Meat Beef Crumbles. A bag of these will do around 7 tacos and cost around $4. This is a great option that tastes and looks deceptively like real meat.
Vegan Shrimp or Fish:
Fish tacos are an amazing alternative to the classic beef or chicken tacos that guests will love. You can have vegan fish fillets as part of your vegan taco bar, or you can find vegan shrimp to make delicious shrimp tacos! Fish-less fillets are pretty easy to find at most grocery stores and come with a breaded covering, but the vegan shrimp may be more difficult to find. There are a few brands that you can find, but depending where we live, there may be less availability. So, you may have to look up where you can buy them online!
Vegan Sour Cream
This is something to add to your vegan taco bar that will not be so much of a necessity, but if it is there, the vegans will eat it! It is not usual that you can go somewhere and be able to find vegan alternatives for dairy products, unless you go to a plant based restaurant or cook at home. So, give them a little something extra to top of their vegan taco with, and your guests will likely be thanking you for the thought.
*Most people just add avocado, and don’t spring for the non-dairy alternative, so be prepared for multiple thank-you’s for the extra thought!
