Vegan Taco Salad Recipe

When it comes to salads, we need to make ours very flavorful or they just don't hit the spot. If they aren't filling or tasty, we'll just head to the fast food drive-thru. But this vegan taco salad surely delivers in terms of flavor. With vegan taco meat made from chipotle-seasoned walnuts and lentils, as well as a slew of salad toppings including olives, onion, tomato, avocado, black beans, and corn, this salad is one of our favorites. Don't forget the delicious dressing made from vegan-friendly sour cream, salsa, and taco seasoning. You'll want to lick the bowl, this salad recipe is so good.

Thanks to Miriam Hahn, recipe developer and health coach, we can eat healthy food that actually tastes good. With only 10 minutes of prep time and 21 minutes of cook time, you can assemble this meal in about 30 minutes. Follow this step-by-step guide to make Hahn's vegan taco salad. Let's get started.

To make this colorful vegan taco salad, let's gather our ingredients. We'll need avocado oil, garlic, cooked green or brown lentils, walnuts, chipotle peppers, the chipotle sauce they're packed in, fire-roasted tomatoes, cumin, oregano, salt, romaine hearts, black beans, corn, tomato, red onion, black olives, cilantro, avocado, dairy-free sour cream, salsa, taco seasoning and fresh lime for an optional garnish. There's a lot of freedom when it comes to adding your salad toppings. Feel free to add any other ingredient you desire.

First up, let's get the garlic sautéing. Place a frying pan over medium-high heat. Add the avocado oil, and once hot, add the garlic. Sauté the garlic for 3 minutes. At this point, your home will smell amazing. Add in the cooked lentils and walnuts. Stir this mixture well and continue to cook for about 3 more minutes. This mixture of lentils and walnuts makes up the vegan meat alternative featured in this taco salad.

After sautéing the lentils, garlic, and walnuts, go ahead and add in 2 chipotle peppers and 2 teaspoons of the chipotle sauce they're packed in. Then, add in the fire-roasted tomatoes, ground cumin, dried oregano, and salt. Stir this mixture well. Be sure to cook this mixture on low heat for about 15 minutes. This will allow the flavors to meld and get absorbed into the vegan meat. 

Once this vegan meat alternative has been cooked and seasoned, remove the pan from the heat. It's now time to assemble the salad. Place the chopped romaine in a large bowl. Add the cooked vegan taco meat, black beans, corn, diced tomato, diced red onion, black olives, and cilantro to the bowl. Hahn notes that you can also use up leftover vegan taco meat in many other Mexican-inspired dishes, whether on Taco Tuesday, wrapped in a burrito, or served with green salsa and chips. Essentially, anywhere you might find taco meat, you can use this meat-free alternative. 

Finally, it's time to whip up the dressing. In a small bowl, add the vegan-friendly sour cream, salsa, and taco seasoning. Stir these ingredients well to ensure they're well-mixed. Then, pour it over the salad ingredients. Using tongs, toss the salad to coat all of the ingredients with the dressing. Garnish with a bit of lime juice, if desired. Hahn recommends to make this for dinner, "I love to make this salad for a great weeknight dinner. I have made it for guests, as well, and it is always a hit."