Magic Vegan Birria Tacos
Posted: 01/14/25
Updated: 04/16/25
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These vegan birria tacos are so good, it’s magic – especially since they’re based on a beef & cheese dish! Tender jackfruit, plenty of spices and aromatics, crisp corn tortillas, and an optional spicy jalapeño salsa make this an incredible vegan recipe you simply won’t believe.
What We Love About This Recipe
- The flavors in this vegan birria are incredible! Tangy, spicy, a little smoky, with amazing fried tortillas and unbelievably convincing jackfruit standing in for the traditional beef.
- Making these birria tacos may seem a little involved at first, but it’s honestly pretty easy! Don’t let the recipe card scare you off.
Chef’s Tips
- Make sure to pick up a vegan cheese that melts really, really well. That’s a huge component of vegan birria tacos! You’re not required to use mozzarella, either. Feel free to use a vegan Mexican cheese blend or vegan pepper jack if you’d rather.
Meatless Meals to Make Mondays Better
- Vegan Latkes
- Pickled Beet Tacos
- Crispy Baked Buffalo Tofu
- Vegetarian Stuffed Mushrooms
- Tofu Pasta
- Mushroom Stroganoff
- Vegan Ground Beef
- Crispy Vegan Chicken Sandwich
- Salt and Pepper Tofu
- Lemon Pepper Pasta
- Vegan Empanadas
- Crispy Cheesy Refried Bean Tacos
- Creamy Chickpea Soup
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For more delicious recipes, visit our sister sites, 40 Aprons and Easy Cheap Recipes.
Magic Vegan Birria Tacos
You'd never know these birria tacos were vegan if we hadn't told you – that's how delicious they are!
tacos
Ingredients
Spicy Jalapeño Salsa (Optional)
- 8 cups water more or less as needed
- 4 large whole jalapeño peppers approximately 75 grams or 1 ½ ounces each
- 2 large cloves garlic approximately 6-8 grams each
- ½ cup neutral-flavored oil avocado oil, vegetable oil, etc.
- 1 teaspoon salt more or less to taste
- ¼ of one medium white onion optional, approximately 2 ounces
- 2 tablespoons fresh cilantro optional
For the Vegan Birria
- 3 14-ounce cans young jackfruit in brine
- ½ of one medium yellow onion approximately 3 ounces
- 1 bay leaf
- ½ of one medium yellow onion approximately 3 ounces
- ½ tablespoon salt more or less to taste
- ½ tablespoon freshly ground black pepper more or less to taste
- 12 guajillo chile peppers rinsed, stems and seeds removed
- 6 ancho chile peppers rinsed, stems and seeds removed
- 2 large Roma tomatoes approximately 3 ounces each
- 1 4-inch stick Mexican cinnamon a.k.a. canela, or ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 2 whole bay leaves
- ½ teaspoon whole black peppercorns
- 4 cups no-beef broth or 4 cups water with no-beef bouillon added, or 4 cups vegetable broth
- 2 tablespoons distilled white vinegar
- 5 large cloves garlic approximately 6-8 grams each
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon dried Mexican oregano or 1 teaspoon dried marjoram
- ¼ teaspoon ground cloves
To Serve
- 1 ½ tablespoons olive oil divided
- 12 corn tortillas divided
- vegan shredded mozzarella or pourable vegan mozzarella
- chopped white onion
- chopped fresh cilantro
Equipment
- medium pot with lid
- large wooden spoon
- Cutting board optional
- sharp chef's knife optional
- Blender
- serving bowl
- Colander
- Large bowl
- slotted spoon
- fine mesh sieve
- medium skillet
- Spatula
Instructions
For the Jalapeño Salsa (Optional)
- Fill medium pot with approximately 8 cups water, adjusting water as needed based on size of pot and size of jalapeños.
- Place pot on stovetop over high heat and bring water to rolling boil. Once boiling, carefully add 4 large whole jalapeño peppers to pot and reduce heat under pot to low. Simmer jalapeños approximately 10 to 15 minutes or until peppers are very tender.
- Once tender, carefully drain water from pot. Transfer jalapeños to cutting board and carefully remove stems. Use caution as peppers will be very hot. Discard stems and place jalapeños in blender.
- Add 2 large cloves garlic, ½ cup neutral-flavored oil, 1 teaspoon salt, ¼ of one medium white onion, and 2 tablespoons fresh cilantro to blender with jalapeños.
- Secure lid on blender and blend ingredients together until fully combined into smooth, creamy sauce. If needed, blend in additional oil to achieve desired consistency.
- When satisfied with thickness of salsa, transfer mixture to serving bowl. Set aside until ready to serve. If preparing salsa more than 1 hour in advance, transfer mixture to airtight container and refrigerate until ready to serve.
For the Vegan Birria
- Drain 3 14-ounce cans young jackfruit in brine, then rinse jackfruit well under running water to remove any excess brine.
- Cut away tough or hard core at tips of triangular pieces of jackfruit and discard. Use hands or forks to tear and shred remaining chunks of jackfruit.
- Place shredded jackfruit in medium pot. Add water to pot until jackfruit is completely covered, with waterline sitting approximately 1 inch above top of jackfruit.
- Place pot on stovetop over medium-low heat. Add, ½ tablespoon salt, ½ tablespoon freshly ground black pepper, ½ of one medium yellow onion and 1 bay leaf. Stir to incorporate, then bring liquid to simmer. Simmer gently 10 minutes.
- After 10 minutes, carefully drain water from pot. Transfer jackfruit to bowl and set aside. Remove onion and bay leaf and discard.
- Quarter remaining ½ of one medium yellow onion and place in pot. Add 12 guajillo chile peppers, 6 ancho chile peppers, 2 large Roma tomatoes, 1 4-inch stick Mexican cinnamon, 2 whole bay leaves, and ½ teaspoon whole black peppercorns to pot.
- Fill pot with water until waterline sits approximately 2 inches above tops of ingredients. Increase heat under pot to high and bring water to rolling boil.
- Once water begins to boil rapidly, immediately reduce heat under pot to low. Cover pot with lid and simmer ingredients 10 minutes.
- After 10 minutes, remove bay leaves and cinnamon stick from pot and discard. Use slotted spoon to transfer softened chiles and tomatoes to blender.
- Add 1 cup of liquid from pot to blender. Transfer any remaining liquid to large bowl.
- Add 4 cups no-beef broth, 2 tablespoons distilled white vinegar, 5 large cloves garlic, 1 teaspoon ground cumin, 1 teaspoon dried Mexican oregano, and ¼ teaspoon ground cloves to blender.
- Blend mixture on high speed until completely smooth, working in batches if necessary depending on size of blender.
- Once mixture is smooth, pour blended sauce through fine mesh sieve and into pot. Discard any solids strained out by sieve.
- Return jackfruit to pot. Stir to incorporate, then increase heat under pot to high and bring mixture to boil.
- Once mixture begins to boil rapidly, reduce heat under pot to low. Cover pot with lid and simmer mixture 15 minutes.
To Serve
- Place medium skillet on stovetop over medium-high heat. Add 1 teaspoon olive oil to skillet and continue heating pan until oil is hot and shimmery.
- When oil is hot, dip 1 corn tortilla in reserved chile liquid. Immediately place tortilla in skillet.
- Top one half of corn tortilla with vegan shredded mozzarella and desired amount of jackfruit. Top jackfruit with chopped white onion and chopped fresh cilantro as desired.
- Use spatula to fold other side of tortilla over to cover mozzarella and jackfruit. Sauté taco 2 minutes, then flip taco over and sauté on other side until cheese is melted and tortilla is crisp.
- Transfer taco to large plate and repeat until all 12 corn tortillas have been used, adding 1 ½ tablespoons olive oil in small increments after each taco.
- Serve tacos warm with jalapeño salsa (optional) and plenty of chile sauce for dipping.
Nutrition Information
Serving: 1 taco (without salsa) | Calories: 381kcal | Protein: 5g | Fat: 16g | Saturated Fat: 3g | Total Carbs: 59g | Fiber: 10g | Sugar: 11g | Net Carbs: 49g | Vitamin C: 16mg | Sodium: 984mg | Potassium: 628mg | Calcium: 106mg | Iron: 3mg
Number of total servings shown is approximate. Actual number of servings will depend on your preferred portion sizes.
Nutritional values shown are general guidelines and reflect information for 1 serving using the ingredients listed, not including any optional ingredients. Actual macros may vary slightly depending on specific brands and types of ingredients used.
To determine the weight of one serving, prepare the recipe as instructed. Weigh the finished recipe, then divide the weight of the finished recipe (not including the weight of the container the food is in) by the desired number of servings. Result will be the weight of one serving.
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