If you're a vegan who loves fast food, you've probably reveled in how easy it is to eat vegan at Taco Bell. It's one of the easiest places I've found to get vegan meals on the go. That's partially because Taco Bell lets vegans and veggies get pretty creative — with 13 AVA-certified menu items, 36 certified vegetarian ingredients, and 26 vegan ingredients. One trick to enjoy their food as a non-meat eater is to take advantage of the fact that you can basically customize their whole menu — and the launch of their Taco Bell's new vegetarian menu was a welcome addition, giving veggies even more room to play.
“At Taco Bell, we believe that vegetarian food shouldn’t be a compromise; it shouldn’t be limited to one item, and it shouldn’t be just for vegetarians,” Liz Matthews, Taco Bell’s Global Chief Food Innovation Officer, explained in a press release. “For years, we’ve consistently proven that our vegetarian menu options are so craveable that even non-vegetarians unknowingly go veggie because they just love the taste. We’re committed to building on this insight and plan to further innovate in this growing space.”
You'd be surprised how you can turn Taco Bell's vegetarian (and even meat-based) options into vegan treats in a flash. If you want to make your Taco Bell order vegan, one good trick is to ask for your meal to be "fresco-style”, which works on most menu items and means they'll ditch the dairy and put something fresh in its place — like some delicious pico de gallo. But this can also mean ditching the guac, so make sure to specify what you're after.
And don't be shy with the add-ins. The Taco Bell beans, potatoes, tortillas, guacamole, and rice are all vegan-friendly additions that you can make to most menu items — as any vegan knows, sometimes you need to give your options a little boost to avoid a life of just tortillas filled with lettuce. Here's how you can make four of the most epic veggie options into vegan ones — because it's actually really easy.
Black Bean Crunchwrap Supreme
OK, this Taco Bell fave has already been given a veggie twist by adding black beans instead of meat — and it's actually really straightforward to make vegan. Drop the nacho cheese sauce and the sour cream and suddenly, you've got a vegan treat. If you wanted to have some guacamole on the side for dipping or spreading, I definitely wouldn't be mad about it.
Black Bean Quesarito
OK, this is an option where you might want to get creative with your add-ins. They've already got black beans in there — and the rice and tortilla are vegan, but you're going to have to remove the cheese, cheese sauce, sour cream, and the chipotle sauce. So get wild, add in some pico de gallo, guac, maybe see if they'll throw some potatoes in there — don't be afraid to dream big.
7-Layer Burrito
This little lovely packs a punch — and you only need to remove the sour cream and cheese blend. You'll still have delicious, filling ingredients like refried beans, rice, guac — along with lettuce and tomato — but if you want to go even bigger, who am I to stop you?
Bean Burrito
Perhaps the classic Taco Bell menu item, this is really easy to make vegan. The refried beans, onions, and red sauce are all vegan — just remove that cheese and you're good to go. If you want to add some more veggies or guac, then go for it.
See? I told you it was easy. All you need is a few swaps to turn your favorite veggie option into vegan ones — so eat up.
