20-minute vegetarian tacos with bell peppers and portobello mushrooms cooked in a savory citrus sauce. This is a great meatless meal to include in your weekly meal plan.

20-minute vegetarian tacos with bell peppers and portobello mushrooms cooked in a savory citrus sauce. It's a great meatless meal for your weekly meal plan.

Ever since we purchased our first home in Austin, TX in September 2016, we have been doing a lot of improvements on the property. Man! That’s a lot of work. But our handyman Tommy has been helping a lot. He brought two guys with him the other day to improve our laundry room, which is located outside of our unit.

The same day, a truck came by and dumped 1 yard of rocks we ordered on our driveway. Tommy and his helpers decided to work overtime and spread the rocks for us. I decided to cook them dinner.

20-minute vegetarian tacos with bell peppers and portobello mushrooms cooked in a savory citrus sauce. It's a great meatless meal for your weekly meal plan.

In my fridge, I had a whole batch of beef barbacoa ready to go. The plan was to make some barbacoa tacos quickly until Tommy told me that one of his helpers is a vegetarian. That’s when things got a little challenging.

I took a second look at my fridge and found bell peppers and portobello mushrooms in it. That’s when these vegetarian tacos came into my mind. The two non-vegetarians ended up asking for the vegetarian tacos. That’s how fabulous they are.

20-minute vegetarian tacos with bell peppers and portobello mushrooms cooked in a savory citrus sauce. It's a great meatless meal for your weekly meal plan.

The secret is always the sauce.

I picked plant-based Ponzu sauce for those vegetarian tacos. If you are not familiar with Ponzu sauce, it’s a citrus-based sauce commonly used in Japanese cuisine. I discovered that basil and ponzu complement each other very well. That’s what I did to season the peppers and mushrooms with a little brown sugar to help enhance the flavor.

To make the tacos, place the veggies in the center of a tortilla and top with your favorite salsa and cheese. I made green salsa for these tacos. You can find the green salsa recipe here along with two other authentic Mexican salsa I learned in Mexico. If you use a regular salsa, feel free to add some avocados to the tacos. Omit the cheese if vegan. It turns out that the vegetarian dude is actually vegan. Thankfully, I put the cheese aside when I served the tacos to the handymen.

Even if you don’t make tacos, the stir-fried bell peppers and mushrooms with the Ponzu sauce is a very savory vegetable dish by itself. Plus, it’s really quick to put together.

20-minute vegetarian tacos with bell peppers and portobello mushrooms cooked in a savory citrus sauce. It's a great meatless meal for your weekly meal plan.

When you get a chance to make this recipe, I would love to know how you enjoyed these vegetables. Did you make vegetarian tacos like I did or did you make it as a side dish? How about a buddha bowl?

Print
clock clock iconcutlery cutlery iconflag flag iconfolder folder iconinstagram instagram iconpinterest pinterest iconfacebook facebook iconprint print iconsquares squares iconheart heart iconheart solid heart solid icon
20-minute vegetarian tacos with bell peppers and portobello mushrooms cooked in a savory citrus sauce. It's a great meatless meal for your weekly meal plan.

Vegetarian Tacos

5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star No reviews
  • Author: Sharon Chen
  • Prep Time: 10 minutes
  • Cook Time: 10 minutes
  • Total Time: 20 minutes
  • Yield: 2 1x
  • Category: Tacos, Main
  • Cuisine: Asian Mexican
Print Recipe
Save Recipe

Description

20-minute vegetarian tacos with bell peppers and portobello mushrooms cooked in a savory citrus sauce. This is a great meatless meal to include in your weekly meal plan.

Ingredients

Units Scale
  • 3 tablespoons coconut oil
  • 8 ounces portobello mushrooms, sliced
  • 1 red bell pepper, sliced
  • 1 yellow bell pepper, sliced
  • Salt to taste
  • 3 tablespoons Ponzu sauce lime flavor
  • 1 teaspoon dried basil
  • 1 teaspoon brown sugar

For the tacos:

  • Tortillas
  • Salsa of your choice (I used homemade salsa verde. Click here for the recipe.
  • Fresh basil leaves (optional)
  • Mexican-style four cheese (optional)

Instructions

  1. In a large nonstick skillet, heat up coconut oil over medium-high heat for 1 minute. Add mushrooms and bell peppers to the skillet. Add a pinch of salt. Sauté and cook until the vegetables start becoming tender, about 5 minutes.
  2. Add Ponzu sauce, dried basil and brown sugar. Stir slowly and let the sauce and spices to combine evenly. Remove from heat.
  3. Place the vegetables in the center of a tortilla, add a couple fresh basil leaves if using, drizzle with green salsa and cheese. (Omit the cheese if vegan.) Enjoy!

Nutrition

  • Serving Size: 1
  • Calories: 258
  • Sugar: 7.8g
  • Sodium: 694mg
  • Fat: 21g
  • Saturated Fat: 17.7g
  • Carbohydrates: 18.1g
  • Fiber: 2.6g
  • Protein: 2.4g
  • Cholesterol: 18.1g

About the Author

Sharon Chen, StreetSmart Kitchen
Sharon Chen

Sharon Chen is an Integrative Nutrition Health Coach and author of the Complete Sous Vide Cookbook. She believes food not only brings healing but also connection. As the creator of StreetSmart Kitchen, she aims to make meal prep easier than ever and help you find balance, ease, joy, and simplicity in the kitchen as you improve your well-being.