These loaded quinoa tacos are a delicious vegetarian taco recipe, featuring quinoa taco filling, bell pepper slaw, spicy sour cream, and feta!
This post was created in partnership with ALDI. All opinions are our own.
Ready for another delicious and easy dinner idea? Meet our new favorite: loaded quinoa tacos! It’s a delicious plant based and vegetarian taco recipe that takes only 30 minutes to make! The quinoa taco “meat” is topped with a quick bell pepper slaw, spicy sour cream, and pickled onions. One word: magic. You can get every single ingredient in this recipe at ALDI, making it super accessible and affordable. Let’s get started!
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Watch how it’s done!
Want a peek into Alex and my kitchen? Here’s how to make quinoa tacos! We’ll also show you how to cook quinoa perfectly, with a few tips for adding big flavor!
How to make the quinoa tacos filling
Now for the quinoa tacos! Alex and I created this vegetarian taco recipe as a quick and easy dinner idea. To make the quinoa taco filling, you’ll do he following:
- Make the quinoa! (See the video.)
- Sauté it in coconut oil with taco spices for a few minutes. Our secret blend: cumin, paprika, garlic powder, onion powder and oregano.
- Add fresh lime juice and green onions. It transforms everyday quinoa into a delicious taco filling!
The organic quinoa and all the ingredients in this recipe are available at ALDI. ALDI has a huge selection of organic, gluten-free, low carb, high protein and clean label products and produce that you can pick up at incredibly affordable prices.
Topping your tacos!
After you’ve made the filling, get creative with your taco toppings! There’s an art to topping a taco to make sure there are contrasts in texture, flavor, and color. Here are a few tips for topping these quinoa tacos:
- Make sure to use a creamy sauce. This is a must with these quinoa tacos, since the filling is too dry without it. Here we used a quick and easy spicy sour cream. You could also use Mexican Crema.
- Add a crunchy, fresh slaw. The quick bell pepper slaw below is tangy and crunchy, a good fresh contrast.
- Salsa is a must. Use purchased or homemade salsa fresca.
- Add some flair. Salty feta crumbles add a pop. The icing on the cake? Pickled onions. Make them in advance or the night before. They’re optional, but they add extra tangy flavor and pizzazz.
Want to try it? Are you an ALDI fan? Let us know if you head to ALDI and make this recipe! Tell us in the comments below or tag us on Instagram: @acouplecooks and @aldiusa.
Love ALDI? This recipe is part of our ALDI Meal Plan.
Two ways to make quinoa taste better
In the video above, we share two ways to make quinoa taste better. Alex and I have found a few ways to step up our Perfect Quinoa method to make it taste even better. Here’s what we do:
- Toast the quinoa. Toasting the quinoa in a dry pan before cooking it brings in a unique nutty flavor to the quinoa!
- Use veggie broth. Instead of using water to cook your quinoa, use vegetable broth instead! It brings a bold, savory note with no extra time or effort.
Do you have an Instant Pot or pressure cooker? Try Instant Pot quinoa.
This quinoa tacos recipe is…
Vegetarian, gluten-free, plant-based, dairy-free and vegan (see vegan toppings below).
Loaded Quinoa Tacos
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 25 minutes
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 10 to 12 tacos 1x
Description
These loaded quinoa tacos are a delicious vegetarian taco recipe, featuring quinoa taco filling, bell pepper slaw, spicy sour cream, and feta!
Ingredients
- 1 cup Simply Nature Organic Quinoa
- 2 cups Simply Nature Organic Vegetable Broth
- 3 tablespoons Simply Nature Organic Coconut Oil
- 1 tablespoon each: cumin and paprika
- 1 teaspoon each: garlic powder, onion powder, and oregano
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt, divided
- 2 green onions
- 1 lime
- 1 bell peppers (we used 1/2 red and 1/2 orange)
- 4 cups Simply Nature Organic Spring Mix
- Salsa, store bought or Salsa Fresca
- Sour cream, spicy mayo, or cashew cream
- Feta cheese crumbles (omit for vegan)
- Pickled red onions, pickled radishes or pickled jalapenos (optional, made in advance)
- 10 to 12 corn tortillas
Instructions
- Cook the quinoa: In a dry pan over medium heat, add the dry quinoa and toast it over medium heat, stirring frequently. After a few minutes you’ll start to hear a popping sound; continue stirring until the quinoa just starts to brown and smell toasty, about 3 to 4 minutes total.
- Immediately transfer the quinoa to a fine mesh strainer and rinse it in the sink. Return it to the pot and add the vegetable broth and ¼ teaspoon kosher salt. Bring it to a boil, then reduce the heat to low. Cover the pot and simmer where the broth is just bubbling for about 15 to 20 minutes, until the broth has been completely absorbed. (Check by pulling back the quinoa with a fork to see if broth remains.) Turn off the heat and let sit with the lid on to steam for 5 minutes, then fluff the quinoa with a fork.
- Prepare the toppings*: While the quinoa cooks, make a quick bell pepper slaw: Thinly slice the peppers, then cut them in half. Place them in a bowl and mix with 1 tablespoon lime juice and a few pinches kosher salt, and allow to stand until serving. If serving with spicy sour cream, stir in few shakes hot sauce to taste (or do the same with hummus for a vegan option).
- Finish the quinoa taco filling: When quinoa is done, melt the coconut oil in large nonstick pan over medium heat. Add cooked quinoa and stir to combine. Add the cumin, paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, oregano, and ¼ teaspoon kosher salt and stir. Then cook without stirring for about 5 minutes or until the bottom starts to get crispy. Remove from the heat and stir in 1 tablespoon lime juice and green onions. (Add any remaining lime juice to the bell pepper slaw.)
- Serve the quinoa tacos: Warm the tortillas**, or char them by placing a tortilla on an open gas flame on medium for a few seconds per side, flipping with tongs, until slightly blackened and warm. Top the tortillas with the greens, quinoa filling, bell peppers, pickled onions, sour cream (mixed with a little hot sauce if desired) and feta crumbles. Serve immediately. If desired, serve with a side of Refried Black Beans.
Notes
*Options of other creamy vegan sauces are: Cilantro Drizzle & Chipotle Tahini Sauce. You could also add pinto or black beans to make it more filling.
**See How to Warm Tortillas.
- Category: Main Dish
- Method: Stovetop
- Cuisine: Mexican Inspired
Keywords: Quinoa tacos, Quinoa taco filling, Vegetarian taco recipe, Taco Recipe, Vegetarian Dinner Ideas, Healthy Dinner Ideas, Vegan Dinner Ideas
Looking for more easy dinner ideas?
This quinoa tacos recipe is one of our favorite new easy dinner ideas! Some of our other top easy dinner ideas on A Couple Cooks:
- Veggie Burrito Bowls
- Seared Salmon Poke Bowl
- Veggie Packed Quinoa Fried Rice
- Coconut Lentil Curry with Greens
- Cauliflower Tacos with Yum Yum Sauce
- Mushroom Pasta with Goat Cheese
- Vegetarian Tortilla Soup
- Easy Vegan Recipes for Beginners
- Best Healthy Dinner Recipe
- 28 Day Healthy Meal Plan
- 10 Best Vegetarian Tacos
I agree with you that quinoa is really packed with a lot of nutritious benefits but yet many people don’t know that. It\s also easy to think that quinoa is a boring food to eat especially when it’s not flavored up with other things like cucumber, zucchini and soy or tamari sauce.
I will definitely try this recipe.
Thanks again for a great recipe!
This is so good. I just got done making it all though I didn’t make as much since it was just me. While I was cooking the Quinoa I added alittle bit of dried red and green peppers and dried onion. Once it was done cooking I eyeballed the taco seasoning and added chili powder ( I have a big tub of taco seasoning) I put some black beans in the pan to heat them up then added the salsa and added the amount of Quinoa I wanted. Stirred it up and added it to my bed of lettuce with Cheddar cheese, Sour cream, and Tortilla strips. Perfect lunch and hit the spot.
All these substitutes sound creative and fantastic! So glad you loved it.
These were delicious and so simple!! What a great way to prepare quinoa!! The slaw on top was soooo yummy. I added some pinto beans and corn to the quinoa filling and served with a side of homemade guac. Yum!
Ahh we’re so glad to hear this was a hit in your family! Love the idea of adding beans and corn the filling: and guac is the perfect adder!
These guys recipes really spark an imaginative cooking experience. Such strong bases that have multipurpose uses.
We’ve been inspired by both the quinoa taco base and fried rice dish to tweak to our liking. For the loaded taco quinoa, smart tip – cook the seasonings with the broth to let the quinoa evenly and fully soak up the flavor. Adding it during the pan fry is like seasoning a burger after its cooked.
Love the recipes :)
I only recently started incorporating meatless meals into my life. I eat red meat sparingly; so I was also looking for ways to change up my favorite dishes (taco’s at our house have been Turkey Taco’s for a long while now).
I tried this tonight for the first time. This was also the first time I tried Quinoa. This was very simple to make, and so very good. This is going to be a game changer for me.
I’m so glad you enjoyed it! You’ll have to try our cauliflower tacos next (though they are a bit more work). https://www.acouplecooks.com/crispy-cauliflower-tacos/
This recipe looks amazing! Is there a way to pickle the red onion without sugar so it can still be used with the Daniel Fast?
You could just omit the sugar! The flavor will be a little more sour but still good.