This Black Bean Taco with Cabbage Slaw and Lime Crema is a favorite in my household – and I think you’ll love it too.
While all five of us (my husband and three daughters) enjoy plant-based foods, not everyone eats a totally vegan diet. Here’s the breakdown: two of us are totally vegan, one is almost totally vegan, one is pescatarian and one eats the standard western diet.
If you are cooking plant-based food for a variety of eaters you will understand this. My challenge is to make highly flavorful foods that are delicious and satisfying for all palates. There are two tricks that I use.
The first is choosing very filling ingredients such as beans, whole grains, potatoes and sweet potatoes. In the case of these tacos, black beans pack the satiating punch and then complimentary ingredients are built on top of them.
The second trick is flavor – lots of it. In the case of these tacos, I used a variety of Mexican spices and was sure to select ingredents to trigger all five flavor tastes.
Sour: Lime and apple cider vinegar.
Sweet: agave nectar and mango
Umami: tomato paste
Salty: salt (obvious, i know)
Bitter: lime zest and cabbage
You don’t need to know all of that – all you need to know is that they are amazing and use sustainable ingredients! Not only that they are totally whole foods plant based without any added oils. I love it when healthy meets great taste! I hope you enjoy them as much as we do!
Black Bean Tacos with Cabbage Slaw And Lime Crema
Ingredients
For the Cabbage Slaw
- 8 cups thinly sliced red or green cabbage
- 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
- 1 tsp lime zest
- 2 tbsp freshly squeezed lime juice
- 1 cup quartered and thinly sliced red onion
- 1 cup cilantro chopped
- 1 jalapeno pepper deribbed, deseeded and chopped
- 1 tsp agave nectar
- 1 1/4 tsp Salt or to taste
For the Black Beans
- 2 15 oz cans black beans rinsed and drained
- 1/4 cup tomato paste
- 1 1/3 cup water
- 2 tbsp hot sauce eg Franks, or Cholula
- 2 tbsp chili powder
- 1 tbsp ground cumin
- 1/2 tsp Garlic powder
- 1/2 tsp Onion powder
- 1 tsp Salt to taste
For lime crema
- 1 cup raw cashews soaked for two hours
- 3 tbsp water
- 3/4 cup freshly squeezed lime juice
- 2 tsp apple cider vinegar
- 1/4 tsp Salt
For serving
- 8-12 soft corn tacos
- 2 ripe avocados diced
- 1 cup cilantro chopped
- 2 mangos peeled and diced
- salsa
- hot sauce
Instructions
For the cabbage slaw
- Combine all of the ingredients in a large bowl. Mix and set aside to allow the flavors to meld.
For the black beans
- In a medium sauce pan, stir to combine the black bean ingredients. Continue stirring on high heat to bring to a boil and then turn the heat to down to simmer for about 10-15 minutes or until most of the liquid has evaporated and the mixture has thickened.
For the cashew crema
- In a blender, process all ingredients until smooth. If not using a high speed bender, this may take a few minutes.
To serve
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Wrap taco shells in tin foil and bake for 5 minutes or until heated. Alternatively, warm individually in a pan on medium heat. Fill taco shells with beans, slaw, lime crema and desired toppings.
