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My new go-to weeknight tacos, Chipotle Cauliflower Tacos with Creamy Jalapeño Verde. Saucy-spicy cauliflower with smoky poblano peppers stuffed into warmed tortillas. Top with a creamy jalapeño cilantro garlic verde sauce, plus avocados, and you’ll have tacos you won’t soon forget. These spicy vegetarian cauliflower tacos are made in just one skillet in about 30 minutes. They’re quick, simple, healthy, and so delicious…great all year round!
I mentioned this last week, but my brother Red was in town and he’s kind of a funny kid. He used to be a lot pickier about what he ate. But with age, he’s pretty much willing, and excited, to try almost anything.
That being said he still has his favorites. There are certain foods he’ll gravitate towards more than others. He’s an avocado toast, sushi, and taco loving kind of guy. His absolute favorite is my dad’s crispy, cheesy tacos. But another big favorite is cauliflower, especially buffalo cauliflower.
Every time he’s home he requests that I make the buffalo cauliflower from HBH Super Simple. It’s a great recipe, but it was time to try something new. And since Red loves a good taco, cauliflower tacos were the obvious choice.
The cauliflower portion of this recipe is very similar to my crispy cauliflower tinga tacos, only I added in a poblano pepper. It’s such an awesome combination of spicy chipotle and smoky poblano peppers.
You’ll want to cook the cauliflower, poblano pepper, and onion together in a super hot skillet. Try to get a bit of a char on the cauliflower and peppers, but leave them tender, not mushy. Once the cauliflower starts to char, add in the chipotle peppers and enchilada sauce. The enchilada sauce is the secret here, it keeps these tacos saucy and flavorful.
Once the cauliflower simmers in the sauce for a bit, it’s ready. It shouldn’t take more than fifteen minutes, then you can assemble the tacos!
The jalapeño verde is my favorite part…this sauce is really really good. And it’s so easy to make!
Simply add everything to a blender or food processor and blend until creamy. It’s a mix of fresh cilantro, jalapeños, creamy mayo (plain yogurt would work too), garlic, and just a small squeeze of honey to balance the heat level.
It’s creamy, spicy, just a touch salty, and totally addicting. Meaning, the perfect taco recipe.
I really did my tacos up with all the fixings here…smashed avocado, shredded lettuce, and grilled corn. Then I layered in the chipotle cauliflower and finished with the jalapeño verde and cotija cheese.
This looks like a lot, but everything comes together pretty quickly. And really, you can use as little or as many toppings as you’d like.
Just do not skip the verde sauce, it really is the best.
Oh, and yes, Red did love these tacos (and so did the rest of the fam!).
Looking for other fun taco recipes? Here are some favorites:
Crispy Chipotle BBQ Chicken Tacos with Creamy Charred Corn Salsa
Sheet Pan Jalapeño Pineapple Shrimp Tacos with Cilantro Garlic Sauce
Homemade Cheesy Gordita Crunch Tacos
Lastly, if you make these Chipotle Cauliflower Tacos with Creamy Jalapeño Verde, be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
We made this tonight for dinner. It was sooo good! We added shrimp because my husband has to have some sort of meat with every meal. It was fabulous with the shrimp as well as just the cauliflower like the recipe calls for. The green sauce was AMAZING
Hey Allie,
Happy Wednesday! Thanks a lot for making this recipe, I love to hear that it was enjoyed! Have the best day:) xTieghan
These were so tasty! Came together very quickly and made a ton of food.
Hey Kayla,
Happy Wednesday! Thanks a lot for making this recipe, I love to hear that it was enjoyed! Have the best day:) xTieghan
These were amazing. I’ll definitely be making them again. Thanks for another great cauliflower recipe!
Hey Maria,
Happy Wednesday! Thanks a lot for making this recipe, I love to hear that it was enjoyed! Have the best day:) xTieghan
So incredibly delicious! Didn’t realize I was out of mayo so substituted sour cream and the verde still came out incredible. Will definitely be making this one again.
Hey Erin,
Awesome! I love to hear that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks for making it! xTieghan
This was yummy. It took longer than I thought for the cauliflower to soften and I had to add a bit more water. I want to try this again with aubergine instead of cauliflower, as I think that would also be amazing.
Hey Simone,
Happy Sunday! Thanks a lot for making this recipe. I am delighted to hear that it was enjoyed! xTieghan
Hi, how did you get your corn tortillas to look charred? Thanks
Hey there,
I put them directly over my stove top flame. I hope you love the recipe, please let me know if you have any other questions! xTieghan
The tacos were delicious! The flavor of the enchilada and chipotle sauce in the cauliflower was perfect. The balance of the spice was also good. Only thing I did not know how to incorporate was the pumpkin seeds. Did those just go on top?
Hey Ana,
Awesome! Thanks a lot for making this recipe and sharing your feedback. I’m glad it was enjoyed! xTieghan
Absolutely delicious. I saved this recipe to serve when my in laws visit next– it’s company worthy! 🙂
Hey Sarah,
Awesome! I love to hear that this recipe was enjoyed and appreciate you giving it a go! Have a wonderful week:) xTieghan
Hey there. Can’t wait to try this recipe. I’d like to add in some protein just to give my boys the option to add along with a cauliflower with my daughter and I will devour! Would you suggest ground chicken or tenders? I was just prepare it the same way as directed for the cauliflower. And I’m so bad to other stuff my tacos I probably won’t end up putting mine in a bowl. Brown rice maybe? Thanks!
Hey Anderson,
I would do some ground chicken and yes you could make over a rice bowl as well:) I hope you love the recipe! xTieghan
so flavoursome – def recommend
Hey Izzy,
I love to hear that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks a lot for giving it a go! xTieghan
Hi! This looks so good. One question, can the cauliflower and the sauce be made a day in advance? Thanks
Hey Priti,
You could make the sauce in advance, but I would make the cauliflower the day you want to serve these. I hope you love this recipe, please let me know if you give it a try! xTieghan
Do you have a favorite way to roast corn? I found a recipe online that I used for these tacos, but the corn in your picture looks yummier?
Hey Heidi,
I typically roast mine on the grill:) Thanks for giving the recipe a try! xTieghan
Made these tonight and they were very good. My husband said he could eat the sauce with anything. Will definitely be making these again
Hey Rachel,
Wonderful! I am so glad that this recipe was enjoyed, thank you so much for giving the recipe a try!! xTieghan
Made this with chicken instead of cauliflower and it turned out great!! I cut the chicken into strips and put it in with the poblano and onion in the first step. I will probably use tenders instead of breast next time, but it’s what I had. Also used a little extra enchilada sauce. Will make again!
Hey Aislinn,
Wonderful! I am so glad that this recipe was enjoyed, thank you so much for giving the recipe a try!! xTieghan
Made these last night. Superb & tasty.
Side note…for the Verde, we opted to forego the olive oil/mayo; instead using just about 1.5Tbs of olive oil, 2Tbs of lime juice, smashing another avocado and mixing to a creamy consistency. As our jalapeno’s are somewhat on the large side, used just one, which gave it a perfect bite to compliment the chipotles & adobo.
Had the leftover filling/verde today, sans Tortillas, straight out of the bowl for lunch.
Hey there,
Wonderful! I am so glad that this recipe was enjoyed, thank you so much for giving the recipe a try!! xTieghan