Vegan

Vegan Smash Burger Tacos with Butter Chicken Lentils (soy-free, nut-free, gluten-free)

These vegan smash burger tacos are a 3-step, 1-pan dinner that is so easy to make! We use a lentil mash made in the food processor topped with no-cook butter chicken sauce to give them just an amazing flavor and all of the hearty, crispy texture of a smash burger.

vegan smash burger tacos with butter chicken sauce

So, I hopped on to the smashed burger taco trend, but of course I had to put my own spin on it. These tacos are topped with lettuce, onion, and my super delicious, one-bowl Indian butter chicken sauce. For the meat, we are using lentils and mushrooms seasoned with Indian spices, black pepper, garlic powder and some of the butter chicken sauce. All of those flavors and textures go so well together! These make a great starter for your dinner party too! Serve them as open faced tacos or slice to make kind of nachos with toppings and the sauce! Or fold them over to make mini quesadilla!

To make the butter chicken sauce, we just add all of the ingredients for the sauce to a bowl and mix really well. That’s it! The sauce is the dressing for the tacos and you’ll use some of it to season the lentil meat mixture

You mix the sauce, process the lentil mixture, so that the lentils break down a little bit are kind of like a spreadable consistency, and then you spread that coarse, meaty mixture all over the tortillas. Then, crisp them up on both sides in a skillet. Top these vegan smash burger tacos with some onion, lettuce, cilantro, and butter chicken sauce and serve.

hand holding a vegan smash burger taco with butter chicken sauce

The lentil mixture smells and tastes so meaty, it’s amazing, and the butter chicken sauce pairs incredibly with it! Together, they have this crisp texture and meaty flavor with a creamy dressing.

This is a super versatile recipe. If you don’t want to make the smashed tacos, you can add a little bit of vegan cheese in between, then fold the tortilla over to make mini quesadillas instead. You can also cook the lentil filling on a skillet until it is golden, and then use that to fill tacos, if you don’t want to make smash burger taco version.

You know I love Indian flavors, and I love my butter chicken sauce. I use it in several ways to make my Indian recipes, like butter chickpeas and vegan butter chicken. But I also use it in lots of fusion recipes, like butter chicken ramen, butter chicken lasagna, butter chicken enchiladas, and butter chicken bao. Today’s fusion recipe is a smashed taco. It’s super easy and very delicious, so do try these tacos.

butter chicken smashed tacos on a serving tray

Why You’ll Love Vegan Smash Burger Tacos

incredible, crispy smash burger texture and flavor in vegan taco form
lentil-mushroom meat is packed with Indian spices
1-bowl butter chicken sauce doesn’t need any cooking
naturally soy-free, nut-free, and gluten-free

close-up of a vegan smash burger taco with butter chicken sauce

More Vegan Tacos

Smoky Tofu Tacos
Cajun Gochujang Mushroom Quesatacos
Spicy Garlic Chipotle Jackfruit Tacos
Blackened Tofu tacos

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Vegan

Malvani Chicken Curry (Western Indian Coconut, Kashmiri Chili, Onion Curry) gluten-free, nut-free

Explore regional Indian cuisine with me and Try this fantastic Malvani Chikin curry! Western Indian spicy caramelized onion, toasted coconut and kashmiri chili sauce with crisp tofu! This sauce is flavor packed and has its own malvani masala spice blend! 1-pan meal meal that’s delicious served over rice or with flatbread or naan.

malvani chicken curry in the pan after cooking

Malvani cuisine originates from the western coastal region in India. It has overlap with Maharashtrian(cuisine of state of maharashtra in India) as well as Goan cuisines and includes a lot of fish and local meat dishes. The flavors are very specific to the cuisine, with its own spice mixes (malvani masala or malvani garam masala) and cooking techniques.

I’ve been exploring amazing regional flavors from various parts of India and brining you vegan versions, simplified or inspired dishes and today we are making vegan malvani chicken curry! For the sauce base, we use a blended roasted onion and coconut mixture, which is called vatan, making our own malvani spice blend with some spices, and using crisped up tofu in place of the meat. You can use other protein such as chickpea tofu, vegan chickin or beans as well. Traditionally, you don’t add any cream to this curry, but you can add some(it will also balance out the heat), add in some cashew cream or other non-dairy cream right at the end.

close-up of malvani chicken curry in the pan after cooking

The sauce and spice mix includes a lot of Kashmiri chili powder (I know right, you need some!) and black pepper, so it can get pretty hot. You can reduce these spices to suit your heat preferences, if needed.

Like I mentioned above, we make the flavorful Malvani masala spice blend from scratch. It is so delicious! If you have access to Malvani garam masala, I recommend using it in this recipe instead of the spice mix that I’m making below, to reduce active time. Just mix it with two teaspoons of Kashmiri chili powder and use. You can use this fragrant spicy blend over roasted veggies or with beans. It’s flavorful and can be used in many ways!

Key features of Malvani Curry

Malvani masala: this spice blend and the curry are known for the deep red color. It can be made with milder chilies with deeper color like byadagi chilies and Kashmiri chilies. I am using Kashmiri chili powder for a quicker version

Vatan: the sauce made with blended caramelized onion and toasted coconut makes the base of the curry. It adds a delicious sweet toasty flavor and some texture.

Slow long cooking: the longer cooking time helps the flavors meld and the colors to show up. The sauce when well cooked will get a glaze of the deep red color and a settled flavor. Before that state, the coconut might be a stronger flavor and the sauce might be lighter.