These vegan nachos are meaty-without-the-meat and cheesy-without-the-cheese and piled high with so many good things that every single bite is like a little party.
Salty, crispy tortilla chips are loaded up with vegan taco meat, black beans, vegan nacho cheese, crunchy diced veggies and jalapeños, salsa, and creamy vegan sour cream. Best nachos ever.
Why vegan nachos? I mean, if you're vegan the answer is obvious and you've likely already skipped down to the recipe. But what about those of us who are not on an exclusive plant-based diet?
Two answers:
- Because vegan nachos taste better and
- they are more convenient
I am not vegan but I prioritize plant based food and eat much more of it than animal products. However, I am never willing to sacrifice flavor and I'll take vegan taco meat, vegan sour cream, and vegan nacho cheese sauce all day long over their animal-based counterparts.
And besides, vegan nachos are more convenient, especially when serving a crowd, or when you're eating outside - think camping, picnics, BBQs and cookouts.
- Vegan taco meat, sour cream, and nacho cheese can all be made in advance and kept in the refrigerator for several days (or frozen).
- They all reheat well and can safely sit out at room temperature for much longer than anything containing animal based ingredients
This is one of my favorite camping recipes for exactly that reason! Prepare the taco meat, nacho cheese, and sour cream at home and then pack them into your cooler or RV refrigerator. To serve, reheat the meat and nacho cheese on a stovetop (any kind of hot surface will work perfectly well) and set everything out to let each person build their own. All of it is just as good at room temperature as it is hot. 👏
By the way, these loaded vegan baked potatoes are basically exactly the same as these nachos but with a baked potato as the base instead of chips.
What we do around here is this:
- Make enough vegan taco meat, vegan nacho cheese, and vegan sour cream for three meals and pack it in the refrigerator.
- Just like that, meal prep is done for 3 meals: vegan tacos, vegan nachos, and loaded vegan baked potatoes.
Take your meal planning one step further and make enough nacho cheese sauce to also make this delicious vegan broccoli cheese soup with crispy fried potatoes which is really a salad disguised as bowls of creamy cheesy soup and the kind of trickery I am 100% on board with.
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Ingredients
- Vegan nacho cheese - This creamy vegan nacho cheese sauce is 100% plant-based, gluten-free, nut-free, and easily prepared in 2 simple steps. The sauce keeps well in the refrigerator for several days, reheats like a dream, and can even be frozen.
- Diced onion - I like to use red onions for nachos, but use any kind you like.
- Salsa, any kind you like, and/or pico de gallo.
- Vegan sour cream - This recipe is quick and easy, 100% plant-based, dairy-free, AND even more delicious than regular sour cream.
- Pickled jalapeños - spicy or mild, or a diced fresh jalapeño or two .
- Tortilla chips - a bag of your favorite brand OR treat yourself to homemade tortilla chips which are honestly so much better than anything you can buy.
- Tomatoes - I prefer using cherry tomatoes because they tend to be more delicious year round than their larger cousins and because prep work is simply a matter of cutting them in half. Cherry tomatoes are also less watery than regular tomatoes, another plus when making something like nachos.
- Green onions
- Red bell pepper
- Vegan taco meat - This easy recipe makes hearty, meaty-tasting veggie taco meat that's 100% plant-based, high in protein, and so delicious you might not ever be tempted to use ground beef again.
- Black beans - or any kind of beans from a can or slow cooker beans or instant pot beans
Additional toppings and ingredients
It's kind of dumb publishing a nacho recipe because nachos are the kind of thing for which you pile on whatever you like and who needs a recipe for that? And yet, here we are because it's still the best way I can think of to show you how WE like to build our vegan nachos. How YOU build them is, obviously, up to you. Add whatever else you like. Here are a few ideas:
- Skip the taco meat and load them up with mushroom ragu. This is, of course, delicious because mushroom ragu makes literally anything delicious. Also use it to make creamy mushroom pasta, mushroom pizza, and cheesy mushroom stuffed flatbread.
- Diced avocado or guacamole. I don't have a good explanation for why there aren't diced avocados in the photos for the nachos you see here because I almost always include them in our nacho spread. 🤷🏻♀️
- Chopped cilantro
- Any kind of olives
- Multiple kinds of salsa and/ or hot sauce. Our favorite kind of prepared salsa is Herdez Salsa Verde. But, we also almost always have a couple of other options in the fridge and ALWAYS have a container of Aleppo pepper oil on the countertop. I usually want some of all of it on there because I just don't think that too many kinds of salsa is a thing.
- Pico de gallo. Yes, I know pico de gallo is a kind of salsa, but I think I've been clear on my more salsa is better position so it gets its own bullet.
- Pickled onions. This is another ingredient that has me rolling my eyes at myself because HOW IN THE WORLD did I forget about those when taking these photos??? There was probably even a jar in the refrigerator because there is almost always a jar in the refrigerator. Don't make my mistake. You want these on there.
Step-by-step photos and instructions
Whether you are serving 1 or 100 people, this is a build-you-own kind of recipe. Set everything out and let each person go to town, building their plate of nachos however they like.
Start with chips, of course. I almost always like to use homemade tortilla chips because they are damn delicious. But a bag of your favorite brand of chips will work just as well.
Pile on some black beans mixed into vegan taco meat. Or, serve the black beans and taco meat separate if you want to give everyone the option of meat without beans or beans without meat.
Smother everything with plenty of vegan nacho cheese sauce.
Load it up. Top your cheesy-without-the-cheese and meaty-without-the-meat plate of nachos with salsa, chopped veggies, jalapeños, and vegan sour cream.
Nachos and sandwiches are supposed to be messy and these will not disappoint.
More plant based recipes
More nacho recipes
For all of you plant based peeps who also eat some meat, these Asian short rib nachos are just one way to eat Asian short ribs which happen to be one of the best things on the planet.
I am also a fan of chicken nachos as a way to use up leftover chicken meat or as a quick meal using a rotisserie chicken. Chicken nachos with chimichurri sauce and BBQ chicken nachos are my faves (chicken smothered in BBQ sauce + pickled onions + cheddar cheese).
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If you give this recipe a try, let me know! Leave a comment and rate the recipe below.
📖 Recipe
Vegan Nachos
Ingredients
- One 15 ounce can black beans, OR 1 ⅕ cups cooked beans
- 4 cups vegan taco meat
- 1 ½ cups vegan nacho cheese
- 8 cups corn tortilla chips, your favorite brand or homemade tortilla chips
- 1 cup salsa and/ or pico de gallo
- 1 cup diced red onion (or any kind of onion)
- 1 jar of picked jalapeños, or a couple diced or sliced fresh jalapeños
- 1 cup diced tomatoes, I used cherry tomatoes
- 1 cup diced green onions, white and light green parts only
- 1 cup diced red bell pepper, seeds and stem removed
- 1 cup vegan sour cream
Instructions
- Drain the beans in a colander set inside the sink then dump them into a saucepan and add the vegan taco meat. Set the pan over medium-low heat and cook, stirring frequently, until it's warm. (Or heat in the microwave.)
- Add the vegan nacho cheese sauce to another saucepan and set it over medium low heat. Cook, stirring frequently, until warm. (Or heat in the microwave.)
- Divide the chips amongst the number of plates for the people you are serving.
- Set all the other ingredients out next to the plates and allow everyone to build their own plate of nachos: chips, taco meat and beans, nacho cheese sauce, diced veggies and jalapeños, and sour cream.
Notes
*Prep and cook times for this recipe assume the vegan taco meat, vegan nacho cheese, and vegan sour cream have already been prepared.
Scroll up for a list of other ideas for additional nacho toppings.
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Nutrition Information:
Yield:
6Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 734Total Fat: 39gSaturated Fat: 5gTrans Fat: 1gUnsaturated Fat: 30gCholesterol: 1mgSodium: 1048mgCarbohydrates: 80gFiber: 17gSugar: 10gProtein: 26g
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