This One Pot Vegan Taco Mac is unbelievably easy, delicious and the ideal weeknight meal! Think effortless, vegan hamburger helper leveled up with bright, fresh and tasty toppings!
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Let's put a fun spin on Taco Tuesday! This Vegan One-Pot Taco Mac is creamy, cheesy and full of all the goodness of a taco, top it off with fresh herbs, crisp veggies for a complete and simple weeknight meal!
This 30 minute meal requires only one pot to make and brings me back to my hamburger helper days growing up. While it would be super easy to zhuzh up this dish, I decided to keep the pasta basic so we can pile on the toppings of our choice at the end! SO FUN.
If you want to level up your Taco Tuesday even more, make sure you whip up a batch of quick air fried taquitos and roasted chile guac to pair along with this Taco Mac!
How to make an Easy One Pot Pasta
This Vegan Taco Mac recipe uses simple, wholesome ingredients to make a scrumptious protein packed meal! Let's make it:
1. In a bowl add soy curl crumbles (or tvp) and warm water to reconstitute. Let it sit for 5 minutes. (If using oil, drain soy curls well and use hands to squeeze out any extra liquid.)
2. In a large non-stick skillet, warm oil over medium-low heat (if using). Add diced onion, garlic and soy curls and pan fry for 5-7 minutes. Stirring occasionally.
3. Stir in spices, macaroni, water and broth and scrap up any brown bits that may have stuck to the bottom of the pan. Cover and simmer for 16-18 minutes, stirring every 2-3 minutes to prevent pasta from sticking.
4. While pasta is cooking add the cashew cream ingredients to a blender and process until smooth and no cashew chunks remain.
5. Once pasta is cooked and most of liquid is cooked away from pan, stir in salsa and cashew cream and remove from heat.
It's all about the Toppings
Here comes the BEST PART: THE TOPPINGS. If you've been here a minute, you may have already learned that I have an absolute obsession with toppings. Any excuse to add a delicious sauce, pickled onions, fresh herbs... I'm gonna take it.
This vegan taco macaroni recipe is the perfect palate for all the toppings of your choice, just like your favorite taco! The customizations are as limitless as your imagination. It's such a fun family meal, when you have a spread of toppings across the table for everyone to top to their heart's content.
Here's a few combinations I love:
- Classic- top your pasta off with traditional taco toppings like salsa, shredded lettuce, chopped tomatoes and vegan cheese!
- Fresh veggies- I love the crisp clash of fresh veggies on top of this macaroni! Fresh pico de gallo, diced bell peppers, arugula and pickled onions are all great choices.
- Make it Spicy- add your favorite hot sauce or pickled or fresh jalapeños for a kick!
If you can't be bothered with toppings, you could also choose to add some veggies in while cooking if you'd like! My suggestions, that would not affect the recipe would be to add in chopped mushrooms, jalapenos or bell peppers while cooking up the onions, or wilting in some baby greens at the end when stirring in the cashew cream!
Low Waste Tip
My favorite thing about this recipe is that it's an amazing way to use up the little bites and crumbs at the bottom of the bag of soy curls. Don't let them go to waste! Every time you finish a bag, save those bits for this Taco Mac or some Homestyle Vegan Meatballs!
Did you make this recipe? Please leave a comment and ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ rating below! Take a picture and tag me on Instagram @samcookskindness !
Recipe
One Pot Vegan Taco Mac
Ingredients
- 90 g Soy Curl Crumbles or substitute TVP (textured vegetable protein)
- 1 cup warm water
- 1 tablespoon olive oil optional
- 1 small onion diced
- 4 cloves garlic minced
- 10 ounces elbow or shell macaroni
- 1¼ cup water
- 2½ cups vegetable broth
- ½ cup salsa
Spice Blend
- 3 teaspoons chili powder
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon oregano
- ½ teaspoon smoked paprika
- ½ teaspoon cumin
Cashew Cream
- ⅓ cup cashews soaked overnight or boiled for 10 minutes
- ½ cup water
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 2 teaspoons tapioca starch optional
Suggested Toppings
- pico de gallo
- cilantro
- diced bell pepper
- diced jalapeno
- shredded lettuce
- fresh lime juice
Instructions
- In a bowl add soy curl crumbles (or tvp) and warm water to reconstitute. Let sit for 5 minutes. (If using oil, drain soy curls well and use hands to squeeze out any extra liquid.)
- In a large non-stick skillet, warm oil over medium-low heat (if using). Add diced onion, garlic and soy curls and pan fry for 5-7 minutes. Stirring occasionally.
- Stir in spices, macaroni, water and broth and scrap up any brown bits that may have stuck to the bottom of the pan. Cover and simmer for 16-18 minutes, stirring every 2-3 minutes to prevent pasta from sticking.
- While pasta is cooking add the cashew cream ingredients to a blender and process until smooth and no cashew chunks remain.
- Once pasta is cooked and most of liquid is cooked away from pan, stir in salsa and cashew cream and remove from heat.
- Divide into bowls and top as desired!
Kj says
I love this pasta! I’ve been on a one pot meal kick and this one delivers. It’s super creamy and I love to top mine with fresh pico, my kids loved it plain. Thank you!