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    Home » Recipes » Sandwiches, Wraps, Tacos, and Burritos

    Crispy Vegan Cauliflower Tacos

    Published: May 23, 2015 · Modified: Sep 4, 2020 by Jenn Sebestyen

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    Crispy Coconut Lime Baked Cauliflower Tacos - the CRISPIEST cauliflower you've ever had!! A quick sweet and sour slaw, an easy dairy free tartar sauce and soft tortilla complete the flavor and texture explosion! You MUST try these!

    The crispiest cauliflower you’ve ever had…and it’s baked, not fried! Crispy, crunchy, creamy – you can have it all with these Baked Vegan Cauliflower Tacos!

    Three crispy cauliflower tacos on flour tortillas topped with dill tartar sauce.

    I have to admit I haven’t been this excited about a recipe in a long time! These seriously turned out better than I could have ever imagined and now I can’t stop eating them. They are the perfect light summer meal!

    Easy with super fresh flavors, this recipe hits on all the best textures – crispy, crunchy and creamy. You have to try these Baked Vegan Cauliflower Tacos!

    Crispy cauliflower "filet" over slaw on a tortilla and topped with dairy free tartar sauce.

    The crispy cauliflower, the crunchy coleslaw, the creamy tartar sauce – it all works so perfectly together to create one delicious bite!

    Reminiscent of a fried fish taco, it’ll have you dreaming of the waves breaking on the sand while you dine seaside. Perhaps a Pineapple Coconut Smoothie, which tastes like a virgin piña colada, or a blood orange margarita, would be a great choice to wash it down.

    I can easily take down three of these crunchy Cauliflower Tacos in one sitting – sometimes more! It’s so hard to stop! And the whole family loves them too!

    I am not even kidding when I say this cauliflower is the CRISPIEST you’ve ever had! The panko breadcrumbs and coconut flakes combine to make a super crunchy crust surrounding the cauliflower. The cauliflower, on the inside, is tender and delicious!

    With absolutely no oil, it’s BAKED, not fried. I almost couldn’t believe it myself. I have made these cauliflower tacos a huge number of times now because I wanted to make sure it wasn’t just a fluke and that it would turn out super crispy when you guys make it too. I promise, it will!

    Three cauliflower tacos next to several lime wedges and a small dipping bowl of tartar sauce.

    Just look at all that crispy breading! These are just like your favorite crispy fish tacos, but so much better because they are plant based, healthy cauliflower tacos!

    Taco made with coleslaw, super crispy breaded cauliflower "steaks" and tartar sauce.

    These do take a little bit of time to prep, but trust me, it’s worth it! Feel free to skip the tortilla, dip the baked cauliflower right into the tartar sauce and pop it right into your mouth. De-lish! Serve the coleslaw on the side.

    Tip – bagged coleslaw works just as well here and would be a nice time saver.

    More vegan cauliflower recipes

    • Vegan Buffalo Cauliflower Wings
    • Creamy Vegan Cauliflower Soup
    • Roasted Cauliflower Lentil Salad
    • Orange Cauliflower
    • Vegan Cauliflower Bolognese
    • Cauliflower Scampi in Lemon Garlic White Wine Sauce
    • Vegan Ceviche

    I hope you love this recipe as much as we do! If you tried it, please use the rating system in the recipe card and leave a comment below with your feedback.

    Be sure to sign up for my FREE Newsletter to be the first to get my NEW recipes! You can also follow me on Instagram, Facebook, and Pinterest.


    For even more easy family recipes, be sure to check out my cookbook, The Meatless Monday Family Cookbook!

    crispy cauliflower on a tortilla topped with tartar sauce

    Crispy Vegan Cauliflower Tacos

    The crispiest vegan tacos you’ve ever had! The combination of flavors and textures from the crispy baked cauliflower, the sweet and sour crunchy slaw and the creamy tangy tartar sauce are out of this world!
    4.99 from 55 votes
    Print Pin Rate
    Course: Entrées
    Cuisine: American
    Diet: Vegan
    Prep Time: 30 minutes
    Cook Time: 30 minutes
    Total Time: 1 hour
    Servings: 4
    Calories: 413kcal
    Author: Jenn Sebestyen

    Ingredients

    Baked Cauliflower

    • 1 medium cauliflower sliced into long pieces – see note
    • ½ cup full fat coconut milk
    • Juice and Zest of 1 lime
    • ½ teaspoon salt
    • ½ cup panko breadcrumbs gluten free if necessary
    • ½ cup cornmeal
    • ½ cup unsweetened shredded coconut
    • 1 ½ teaspoons smoked paprika
    • 1 teaspoon cumin
    • ½ teaspoon garlic powder
    • ¼ teaspoon turmeric
    • ½ teaspoon salt
    • ¼ teaspoon pepper

    Sweet and Sour Slaw

    • ¾ cup chopped red cabbage
    • ¾ cup chopped green cabbage
    • ½ cup shredded carrots
    • Juice of 1 lime
    • 1 tablespoon white vinegar
    • 1-2 teaspoon(s) pure maple syrup
    • ½ teaspoon salt

    Tangy Vegan Tartar Sauce

    • ⅓ cup homemade vegan mayonnaise or your favorite store-bought vegan mayo
    • ⅓ cup diced dill pickle
    • Juice and Zest of 1 lime
    • 1 ½ teaspoons dried dill
    • ½ teaspoon salt
    • Dash of sriracha optional

    Extras

    • Tortillas use corn tortillas for gluten free
    • Extra Lime Wedges
    • Dash of Sriracha

    Instructions

    • Preheat oven to 400°F.

    For the Slaw:

    • Make the slaw first so it has time to marinate and soften just a bit. Whisk all the wet ingredients together and pour them over the veggies in a medium bowl. Cover it and put it in the fridge.

    For the Baked Cauliflower:

    • Whisk together the coconut milk, zest and juice of 1 lime and½ teaspoon salt in a wide shallow bowl, set aside.
    • Whisk together the panko, cornmeal, shredded coconut, smoked paprika, cumin, garlic powder, turmeric, ½ teaspoon salt and the pepper in another wide shallow bowl, set aside.
    • Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and line up your breading station in this order: cauliflower, wet batter, dry breading, baking sheet.
    • Take a slice of the cauliflower and place it in the coconut milk batter, flipping it over to make sure all sides are covered. Next, place that piece of cauliflower in the dry breading mix, pressing it down and flipping it over to make sure it’s coated evenly on both sides. The breading should stick easily and not fall off. Transfer your breaded piece of cauliflower to the lined baking sheet. Repeat with all remaining slices of cauliflower. My medium sized cauliflower filled up one baking sheet perfectly!
    • Bake the breaded cauliflower for 25 to 30 minutes, flipping each piece over after 15 minutes, until both sides are golden brown and crispy.

    For the Tartar Sauce:

    • While the cauliflower is baking, make your tartar sauce. In a small bowl, stir together all ingredients. Place in the fridge until you are ready to use it.

    For the Tacos:

    • To assemble the tacos, place a tortilla on a plate, top with a bit of the slaw, a piece or two of the crispy breaded cauliflower and top with a big dollop of tangy tartar sauce. Garnish with an extra squeeze of lime or dash of sriracha.

    Notes

    ~I like my cauliflower pieces to be long and fairly thin for this recipe, not your traditional floret style. To do this, I place the head of cauliflower on my cutting board stem side down and cut in half from top to bottom. Cut the bottom of the stem off. Stand one half upright on your cutting board and make thin slices from top to bottom. Take one of the large thin slices and place it on the cutting board. Cut any remaining stem off if you wish…I like to leave a little bit to help hold it together. If it’s too long, cut it in half again. Repeat with the remaining cauliflower. Of course, if you like chunkier florets, that will work just as well.
    ~Nutrition facts calculated for baked cauliflower, tartar sauce, and slaw. This does not include tortillas.
     
     

    Nutrition

    Calories: 413kcal | Carbohydrates: 47g | Protein: 10g | Fat: 22g | Saturated Fat: 12g | Sodium: 877mg | Potassium: 857mg | Fiber: 12g | Sugar: 11g | Vitamin A: 2950IU | Vitamin C: 175.7mg | Calcium: 80mg | Iron: 2.2mg

    Nutrition values are calculated using online calculators and are estimates only. Please verify using your own data.

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    Comments

    1. Anne says

      August 28, 2021 at 6:58 am

      Should I use sweetened or unsweetened coconut milk?

      Reply
      • Jenn Sebestyen says

        August 29, 2021 at 9:39 am

        Unsweetened from a can.

        Reply
    2. Andrea says

      August 20, 2021 at 2:41 am

      Now that looks amazing! I have to make this soon – love cauliflower and I can imagine the crunch of the slaw will be so tasty!5 stars

      Reply
    3. Laura says

      August 02, 2021 at 7:41 pm

      Delicious and easy to follow recipe. Thank you!5 stars

      Reply
      • Jenn Sebestyen says

        August 02, 2021 at 7:56 pm

        I’m so glad you loved it, Laura. Thank you!

        Reply
    4. Amanda Weighill says

      July 08, 2021 at 12:14 pm

      Is there a way to add more protein into this dish? Could you add all plant protein powder to the batter?

      Reply
      • Jenn Sebestyen says

        July 09, 2021 at 8:35 am

        I haven’t tried adding protein powder, so I can’t say for sure. Most protein powders have a distinctive taste, so I would be hesitant. You could try making your own breadcrumbs from high protein sprouted grain bread. Other than that, I would say round out your plate with a high protein side.

        Reply
    5. Nicole says

      March 11, 2021 at 6:52 pm

      I make these about once a week. They are soooooo good the tartar sauce is amazing! I usually just do a very simple batter for my cauliflower. 1:1 flour , oat milk salt pepper5 stars

      Reply
      • Jenn Sebestyen says

        March 11, 2021 at 7:19 pm

        Thank you for your feedback, Nicole! Happy to hear you love them!

        Reply
    6. Melissa Frey says

      February 07, 2021 at 7:59 pm

      My husband and teenage son were skeptical but loved this dinner. They came out great and looked very pretty as well. Made them as a healthy Super Bowl dish.5 stars

      Reply
      • Jenn Sebestyen says

        February 07, 2021 at 8:40 pm

        I’m so happy to hear this, Melissa! Thank you for your comment. I hope your team wins!

        Reply
    7. Kayley says

      January 15, 2021 at 8:04 am

      Hi and thank you for such a great recipe! Maybe my kids will finally eat cauliflower this way! One questionI have is would using normal coconut milk affect the recipe too much? Thanks!5 stars

      Reply
      • Jenn Sebestyen says

        January 15, 2021 at 11:27 am

        Hi, Kayley. I’m not sure what you mean by “normal” coconut milk. Do you mean the kind from a box that you drink? I think that might be too thin to adhere the breading well.

        Reply
    8. Jenna says

      January 13, 2021 at 7:59 pm

      Does this taste like cauliflower?

      Reply
      • Jenn Sebestyen says

        January 14, 2021 at 9:18 am

        Yes, if you really tried to pick out that individual flavor, BUT all the ingredients combine to create the textures and flavors reminiscent of fish tacos. I think if you eat it all together as designed, you won’t get a big cauliflower flavor.

        Reply
    9. Chloe says

      November 30, 2020 at 7:50 pm

      Ok, so, confession: Totally made this even though I was missing so many of the ingredients actually needed, and they STILL turned out delicious! I didn’t have cornmeal, and the cabbage I thought I had had just gone bad. So I wasn’t even able to make the slaw. Instead, I just used shredded carrots.
      EVEN STILL, this turned out to be so yummy, and I feel so light but full after eating this. I cannot wait to retry this with the proper ingredients, because I can only imagine how much better it would be. Thank you for such a brilliant recipe! <35 stars

      Reply
      • Jenn Sebestyen says

        December 01, 2020 at 8:38 am

        Oh, that is so wonderful to hear, Chloe! Thank you!

        Reply
    10. Jillian says

      September 10, 2020 at 9:40 am

      Can I use coconut cream instead?

      Reply
      • Jenn Sebestyen says

        September 10, 2020 at 2:33 pm

        Potentially. If you whisk it really well so it’s thin enough to to dip the coconut in to. If it’s too thick it could cause the breading to be clumpy. Let me know how it turns out.

        Reply
    11. Pam says

      July 20, 2020 at 9:11 pm

      Amazing! So tasty! Thank you so much for sharing the recipe.
      I made a couple of teeeny adjustments (I added green onion to the slaw- totally didn’t need to lol, and added a touch of sweetener to the tartar sauce. Oh! And I didn’t have cornmeal, so I doubled the panko. Will 100% be making these again…probably this week! Haha
      Thank you kindly5 stars

      Reply
      • Jenn Sebestyen says

        July 21, 2020 at 7:38 pm

        Wonderful, Pam! So happy to hear it!

        Reply
    12. Bianca Galdamez says

      July 17, 2020 at 7:07 pm

      So good!5 stars

      Reply
      • Jenn Sebestyen says

        July 18, 2020 at 4:45 pm

        Thank you!

        Reply
    13. Erica says

      June 29, 2020 at 5:30 pm

      Really good and I was honestly skeptical about it. I used normal breadcrumbs so it wasn’t as crunchy, but the flavor was all there!5 stars

      Reply
      • Jenn Sebestyen says

        June 29, 2020 at 7:47 pm

        Wonderful, Erica! So glad you love it! Thank you for your feedback!

        Reply
    14. Dwight says

      May 03, 2020 at 10:31 pm

      These were excellent

      Reply
      • Jenn Sebestyen says

        May 04, 2020 at 9:16 am

        I’m so glad! Thanks, Dwight!

        Reply
    15. Laurie F. says

      May 03, 2020 at 9:28 pm

      Thanks Jenn for sharing this recipe!! My husband and I just loved it. 🙂 We are trying to cook more veggie inspired meals so I look forward to making some of your other great recipes.

      Reply
      • Jenn Sebestyen says

        May 04, 2020 at 9:15 am

        Thank you, Laurie! I’m so glad you enjoyed them!!

        Reply
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    Jenn Sebestyen of Veggie Inspired

    Hi, I'm Jenn! This is where I share delicious plant based recipes for the whole family. I love to cook; I can read cookbooks like novels; and I enjoy experimenting in the kitchen by making standard American favorites healthier.

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