BBQ Cauliflower Tacos with Green Tahini Sauce are a hearty and healthy fiesta of flavors. Loved by both vegetarians and meat eaters, these vegan cauliflower tacos will become a weeknight favorite.
Why You'll Love these Cauliflower Tacos
Tacos and tahini basically compose my love language, so consider this recipe a symbol of my food affection.
These tacos take the finger-licking beauty of a BBQ wing experience and wrap it in a tortilla. Balanced by a creamy sauce and crunchy fixings, they check every box for a top-tier taco.
Because of the inherent meatiness of roasted cauliflower, these are kind of tacos you could impress even the most devout meat eaters with. They're hearty without feeling heavy, and a complete flavor fiesta.
The green sauce gets an herbaceous lift from cilantro and bright finish from lemon. A hit of garlic and cumin make for a more dynamic dressing with endless drizzling potential.
If you end up with leftovers, drizzle it over grain bowls, salads, or roasted veggies.
The Ingredients
- Cauliflower: You need 1 medium head of cauliflower, which should amount to roughly 6 cups of florets.
- BBQ Sauce: Use any BBQ sauce you like! Whether it's bottled or homemade, BBQ sauce elevates the roasted cauliflower with sweet, smoky flavor.
- Tahini: My go-to tahini is Soom brand because it’s unctuous and supremely smooth with rich flavor and nuanced bitterness. If you’d like try out any Soom products, you can get 10% off your order by using the code ‘dishingouthealth’ at checkout!
- Cilantro: Use both the leaves and tender stems of cilantro in the sauce. If you're not a cilantro lover, parsley will also work here.
- Lemon: Fresh lemon juice adds a bright hit of acid to the sauce. Alternatively, use the juice of 1 lime.
- Cumin: I love the earthy spice that ground cumin adds to the sauce. Coriander is also delicious here!
- Garlic: If you prefer an extra-garlicky sauce, feel free to use more than 2 gloves. Just know the garlic flavor will get more intense as the sauce sits.
- Tortillas: Any variety of tortilla-- corn, flour, cassava, etc.-- will work here. Just make sure it's nicely toasted.
- Garnishes: In terms of the toppers, thinly shredded purple cabbage adds colorful crunch, which is countered by cool and creamy avocado slices. Finish with fresh cilantro to brighten each bite, along with a squeeze of lemon or lime juice.
The Directions
Step 1: Roast the Cauliflower
Preheat oven to 425ºF. Arrange cauliflower on a baking sheet and toss with 2 Tbsp. olive oil, ½ tsp. salt, and ½ tsp. black pepper. Roast for 30 minutes, tossing once halfway through.
Remove from oven and brush cauliflower with BBQ sauce. Place back in the oven for 10 more minutes.
Step 2: Prepare Green Tahini Sauce
Combine cilantro, tahini, lemon juice, garlic, cumin, 2 Tbsp. olive oil, and remaining ½ tsp. salt and ¼ tsp. black pepper in a small food processor or blender; blend until texture is similar to pesto. Add 3 Tbsp. water and continue blending until smooth and creamy.
Step 3: Assemble Vegan Cauliflower Tacos
Toast or warm tortillas over a gas flame or in a cast iron skillet. Spread a layer of tahini sauce on tortilla and arrange roasted cauliflower overtop. Garnish with shredded cabbage, sliced avocado, and fresh cilantro. Add a final drizzle of tahini sauce.
Make-Ahead and Storage Tips:
- Make-Ahead: Prepare the green tahini sauce up to 3 days ahead. Refrigerate in a covered jar or container until ready to use.
- Store: Refrigerate cauliflower separate from sauce and garnishes for up to 4 days.
- Reheat: Warm cauliflower in the oven or microwave until warm. Toast tortillas fresh each time.
More Vegan Taco Recipes to Try:
Zesty Quinoa Tacos with Cilantro Sauce
Chili Chickpea Tacos with Mango Salsa
Vegan Chorizo Tacos
If you try these vegan cauliflower tacos, snap a pic and tag #dishingouthealth so I can see your beautiful creations. I also really appreciate readers taking the time to leave a rating and review! Lastly, follow along on Facebook and Pinterest for the latest recipe updates.
BBQ Cauliflower Tacos with Green Tahini Sauce
Equipment
- Large rimmed baking sheet
- Food processor or blender
Ingredients
- 6 cups cauliflower florets (from 1 medium head cauliflower)
- 2 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
- ½ tsp. kosher salt
- ¼ tsp. black pepper
- ⅓ cup store-bought or homemade BBQ sauce
- 8 tortillas, warmed
- Suggested garnishes: shredded purple cabbage, sliced avocado, extra cilantro
Green Tahini Sauce
- 1 cup fresh cilantro leaves and tender stems
- ⅓ cup tahini
- 2 Tbsp. fresh lemon juice (from 1 lemon)
- 2 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
- 2 garlic cloves
- 1 tsp. ground cumin
- ½ tsp. kosher salt
- ¼ tsp. black pepper
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425ºF. Arrange cauliflower on a baking sheet and toss with 2 Tbsp. olive oil, ½ tsp. salt, and ¼ tsp. black pepper. Roast for 30 minutes, tossing once halfway through.Remove from oven and brush cauliflower with BBQ sauce. Place back in the oven for 10 more minutes.
- While cauliflower bakes, prepare Green Tahini Sauce:Combine cilantro, tahini, lemon juice, olive oil, garlic, cumin, salt, and black pepper in a small food processor or blender; blend until texture is similar to pesto. Add 3 Tbsp. water and continue blending until smooth and creamy. (If sauce is still too thick, add more water as needed in 1 Tbsp. increments.)
- Toast or warm tortillas over a gas flame or in a cast iron skillet. Spread a layer of green tahini sauce on tortilla and arrange roasted cauliflower overtop. Garnish with shredded cabbage, sliced avocado, and fresh cilantro. Add a final drizzle of tahini sauce.
Notes
Nutrition
HP
Easy and very tasty!
Jamie Vespa
So glad you enjoyed them!!
Helen Rettberg
Absolutely amazing! I used a salt creek spicy barbecue sauce so it didn’t caramelize as much but the flavors are out of this world
Jamie Vespa
I'm so glad you enjoyed them! Thank you for taking the time to leave a review!
Meredith
Absoultely DELICIOUS!!! Bursting with flavor and the tortillas you recommended ( La Tortilla Factory) are a game changer!
Jamie Vespa
I'm so glad you enjoyed them, Meredith! Thank you for taking the time to leave a review!
Ashley
Wow!!! These were absolutely Amazing!! A recipe that I will be making over and over again!
Jamie Vespa
Yay so glad you loved these, Ashley!!
Diane
This is absolutely delicious!!! The sauce is amazing!
Jamie Vespa
I'm so glad you enjoyed this one, Diane! Thank you for taking the time to leave a review!
Sarah S.
Delicious! I love anything with tahini and the green tahini sauce with the bbq sauce is such a magical combination.
Jamie Vespa
I'm so glad you enjoyed them, Sarah! Thank you for taking the time to leave a review!
Sarah
New taco Tuesday go too! Amazing! Another favorite. Easy, healthy and kid friendly☺️
Jamie Vespa
Yay! I'm so thrilled the recipe was a hit, Sarah! Thank you for taking the time to leave a review!
Liza
These are delicious!
Chanice
Hi how much calories is this meal? Can’t wait to try it?
Antenette
This was so delicious. Who knew it would taste so good?!? I was skeptical about the sauce, but it was delicious on the tacos. It was so filling that I didn’t bother cooking anything to go with it for dinner. I’ll make it again for sure and try different barbecue sauces.
Ashwini Vaidya
This was absolutely delicious! My entire family loved it, and my husband thought it was a restaurant worthy dish! This will definitely be a dish we eat regularly. I added a little extra BBQ sauce to to the cauliflower because I love the flavor. It was so easy to make- one of my favorite plant based recipes!
Jamie Vespa
Thank you so much for taking the time to write this fab review, Ashwini!
Chanice
Hi do you know how much calories this is?
Annu
Just discovered your beautiful blog, and I Love Love Cauliflower, I'm a fool for cauliflower :). I can't wait to make this recipe and I'm wondering if I could add some pickling juice from home made pickled jalapenos plus a splash of lemon juice in the green tahini sauce? It might work..
dishingouthealth
Hi Annu—thank you so much for the sweet compliment. I imagine adding the pickling juice plus a splash of lemon for extra acid would be totally fine! Enjoy
EnricoPallazzo
THIS IS SO SO DELICIOUS! It doesn’t make sense; how satisfying this dish is, while being so simple. The bbq cauliflower goes so well with the sauce!
This is a simple, surprisingly delicious meal that I’ve made a dozen times.
dishingouthealth
I'm so happy you enjoyed it, my friend! It's a favorite over here, too. Thank you for dropping by and leaving a review!
Casey caldwell
Absolutely loved these!! Will be making again very soon. I used leftover tahini sauce on salad for lunch and it was great.
dishingouthealth
Yay! So happy to hear that! Love using the leftover sauce on salads and grain bowls!
Deb Rongstad
These were amazing. I used a spicy BBQ sauce to give it some zing. So good. Keep the great re Iowa coming!!
Deb Rongstad
Recipes. Oops autocorrect mistake
dishingouthealth
Hi Deb, I'm so thrilled to hear that! Good call on the spicy BBQ sauce. They are a favorite around here, too.