These vegan buffalo chickpea tacos are easy to make, perfectly spiced and served alongside cilantro lime crema. They’re ready in 30 minutes, flavorful and perfect for meal prep!
After pasta, tacos are the food I could eat 5 times a day and never get bored. There’s so many possibilities, but these chickpea tacos and my baked fish tacos have been on repeat lately!
There are a few components in this recipe, but overall, they’re super easy to make.
They have a base of chopped romaine lettuce, then we’ll layer on some perfectly spiced pan fried buffalo chickpeas, pico de gallo and finish with a drizzle of vegan cilantro lime crema.
I use corn tortillas for mine so they’re gluten free, but any kind of tortilla like flour or a grain free option like Siete will also work here!
If you’re using corn tortillas, I usually like to double them up since they break pretty easily and I *always* put too much in the taco for the tortilla to handle. My b.
How to make chickpea tacos
First, cover the cashews with boiling water or add to a pot and boil for about 20 minutes to soften.
Meanwhile, drain and rinse the chickpeas and pat dry. remove any skins that come up. Set aside
Add the diced onion, garlic and oil to a large pan. Saute until the onion is golden brown. Add in the chickpeas and buffalo sauce.
Saute for about 10 minutes to allow the chickpeas to absorb the sauce and crisp up slightly.
If you want the chickpeas more crispy, add to the oven at 400 for about 20 minutes, or broil for 3-4 minutes. If you choose to broil, just keep an eye on them as they can burn quickly!
Add the drained and rinsed cashews to a blender with all remaining crema ingredients and blend until smooth, adding more water as needed to thin.
Taste and adjust flavors as desired. Set in the fridge to chill.
Assemble your tacos with a baes of chopped romaine lettuce, then add on the chickpeas, crema, vegan feta, cilantro and fresh lime juice. Serve alongside my cilantro lime rice and black beans. Enjoy!
Serving Suggestions
I like to serve these chickpea tacos with a side of either my Mexican green rice or cilantro lime rice plus my instant pot black beans.
You can also use refried beans, or cauliflower rice for a lighter option, or just serve exactly as is with no additional sides.
Do they keep?
Yes! All of the components of these tacos store well in the fridge. The chickpeas will keep for 3 days, whereas the crema will keep for 1 week.
I suggest storing everything separately, then re-heating the chickpeas on the stove so they can get back some crispiness and assemble your tacos as usual.
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Vegan Chickpea Tacos
by: claire cary
Ingredients
Chickpeas
- 2 cans chickpeas
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- ½ cup diced white or yellow onion
- 3 cloves garlic
- ½ cup buffalo sauce
Cilantro Lime Crema
- 1 cup raw cashews
- ¾ cup water
- 2 tbsp fresh lime juice
- 1 clove garlic
- ½ tsp salt
- ¼ cup cilantro
For Serving
- 1 batch Cilantro Lime Rice
- 12 small corn or flour tortillas
- Pico de gallo, avocado and/or guacamole
Instructions
- Cover the cashews with boiling water or add to a pot and boil for about 20 minutes to soften.
- Meanwhile, drain and rinse the chickpeas and pat dry. remove any skins that come up. Set aside
- Add the diced onion, garlic and oil to a large pan. Saute until the onion is golden brown. Add in the chickpeas and buffalo sauce. Saute for about 10 minutes to allow the chickpeas to absorb the sauce and crisp up slightly. If you want the chickpeas more crispy, add to the oven at 400 for about 20 minutes, or broil for 3-4 minutes.
- Add the drained and rinsed cashews to a blender with all remaining crema ingredients and blend until smooth. Taste and adjust flavors as desired. Set in the fridge to chill.
- Assemble your tacos with a baes of chopped romaine lettuce, then add on the chickpeas, crema, vegan feta, cilantro and fresh lime juice. Serve alongside my cilantro lime rice and black beans. Enjoy!
Gwen says
Favorite recipe ever!!! Huge hit at my family. They ask for it every week!
Claire Cary says
So happy to hear that! Thanks Gwen!
Michelle says
Did you change the recipe to this? I could’ve sworn it didn’t call for Buffalo sauce just spices and cook them on a skillet. Also a slaw
Claire Cary says
You may be thinking of my cauliflower tacos which have a bunch of spices and a slaw!