TVP taco meat is the easiest and fastest way to make tasty, high protein vegan tacos! If you’ve never cooked with TVP before, this is the ideal first recipe to try because it’s packed with flavor and takes less than 15 minutes to cook.

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What is TVP?
You might be wondering what the heck TVP is. It stands for Textured Vegetable Protein and is essentially dry soy protein crumbles.
Neither description sounds appetizing but this is an extremely versatile ingredient. Just add liquid to the TVP (and lots of flavor) and the result is a product very similar to veggie ground round or ground meat.
TVP is inexpensive so can be a great staple in a vegan kitchen.
How to Make TVP Taco Meat
TVP taco meat couldn’t be easier to make. To cook TVP, just add liquid.
I’ve seen countless recipes that soak TVP in water, but where’s the flavor in that? TVP doesn’t taste like anything on its own so this recipe for TVP taco meat uses lots of flavor.
Start by sautéing onions and garlic with some oil. Oil adds much needed fat (flavor) to this recipe. Then simply toss in taco seasoning, TVP and veggie broth. Mix well so the TVP is coated with the seasoning and broth then simmer until the liquid is gone.
Start to finish this takes about 12 – 15 minutes, depending on how long it takes you to chop the onion and how hot your pan/ stove is.
TVP as a Ground Beef Substitute
The end result is a perfect vegan replacement for ground beef tacos.
TVP is an excellent ground beef substitute, or really a substitute for any ground meat. You can use TVP in almost any recipe that would normally call for ground meat.
Are TVP Tacos Nutritionally Balanced?
I don’t like to classify food or ingredients as healthy or unhealthy. Instead, look at the nutrition that these TVP tacos provide.
As the name implies, textured vegetable protein is essentially just protein. There’s a small amount of carbohydrates in TVP, but there’s also some fiber, so I tend to simply consider TVP a source of protein.
Some brands of TVP are fortified and some are not. If the product is fortified, read the label to see what nutrients are added. Fortified TVP often contains vitamin B12.
If the TVP is not fortified, it’s still a good source of zinc, potassium, magnesium, iron, folate and provides some calcium and other B-vitamins (excluding vitamin B12).
TVP Taco Substitutions
If you don’t have TVP around, you can easily substitute for veggie ground round to make a very similar final product as these TVP tacos.
Veggie ground round is almost the same as TVP except it’s already hydrated which means you don’t have to add liquid. If you want to use veggie ground round to make vegan tacos, simply use one pound of ground round with only ⅓ cup of veggie broth (some broth helps distribute the taco seasoning).
Additionally, you can add lentils to this TVP taco meat recipe. Drain and rinse a can of lentils and add it to the TVP once it’s done cooking. An additional 1-2 tablespoons of taco seasoning is helpful if you want to add lentils.
Serving TVP Tacos
You can serve TVP tacos however you’d like. There’s almost nothing you can’t add to a taco! I can’t live without fresh lime juice and some avocado, but do what you enjoy.
Some tasty ideas for serving TVP tacos are:
- In corn or flour tortillas
- As a taco bowl/ burrito bowl
- With vegan sour cream (homemade or store-bought)
- Topped with guacamole
- With fresh salsa
- Use vegan cheese shreds
- Add black beans
- Top with veggies like corn, tomato, green or red onion, shredded lettuce
- With hot sauce
If you make this recipe, please rate and comment below to help others benefit from your experience!
TVP Taco Meat (Vegan)
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 ¼ cups onion , diced
- 3 cloves garlic , minced
- 2 tablespoons oil (I use avocado)
- 1 cup TVP (textured vegetable protein)
- 3 tablespoons taco seasoning
- 1 ½ cups vegetable broth
Instructions
- Warm some oil in a large pan over medium-high heat.2 tablespoons oil
- Add the onion and cook until it starts to soften, about 3 minutes.1 ¼ cups onion
- Add garlic to the pan and cook for another 3 minutes, until the onions are nicely softened.3 cloves garlic
- Add the TVP, taco seasoning and vegetable broth to the pan. Stir well to ensure the TVP is coated with taco seasoning and the vegetable broth is well dispersed.1 cup TVP, 3 tablespoons taco seasoning, 1 ½ cups vegetable broth
- Cook until all liquid is completely soaked up by the TVP, about 3-5 minutes.
- As an optional step (for extra flavor and nutrition) add cooked lentils and extra taco seasoning.
- Serve with your favorite taco fillings!
Video
Notes
Nutrition
More Vegan Meat Recipes
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About Nicole Stevens
Nicole is a vegan Registered Dietitian (RD) and founder of Lettuce Veg Out.
She helps people thrive on a vegan diet with balanced recipes and easy-to-understand nutrition science.
Katie
Easy and delicious! My only changes were to add a couple of pinches of habanero (we are a household of heat-eaters) and a splash of Maggi sauce. So good! Thanks!
Nicole
Glad you enjoyed!
Cassie B
Nicole! We LOVE this recipe and discovered this method of cooking TVP/curls through you. We've used your basic principles and base recipe to make some yummy meals, by changing out the dry ingredients/seasonings (tonight was soy curl shawarma). Thank you for sharing this!!
Nicole
Hi Cassie, this is amazing to hear and I'm so glad my recipe was helpful! TVP is so versatile and great to have on hand. I've yet to experiment with soy curls because they are very expensive (where I live at least) but I know lots of people who love them 🙂
Rebekah
I just made this and it was absolutely delicious. I actually stir-fried small pieces of carrots and added them the same time I was cooking the onions. I browned the TVP as well and added other spices like garlic powder, onion powder and other seasonings before adding the vegetable broth. I drizzled mine off with some of my homemade cashew vegan cheese—left over from the Mac & cheese. This recipe was simple and definitely a keeper. Thank You!
Nicole Stevens
Sounds like a tasty way to make and serve the recipe - glad you enjoyed!
Celena
Usually I buy frozen crumbles and add taco seasoning. I used this recipe instead and added a can of black beans. Turned out great. Even my meat eating family members loved it. I ended up adding 4 tablespoons of taco seasoning because of the black beans.
Nicole Stevens
Glad you liked it! I love adding black beans into the mix too 🙂
Aysha
I added capsicums and used plant-based beef broth (its all I had) and it turned out perfect. Thanks for the recipe!
Nicole Stevens
Plant-based beef broth (or plant-based chicken broth) would be a great option!
Lena
This came out so delicious! Loved the idea of putting onions in the mix. This was the only recipe I found that had ingredients I already have. So quick and EASY.
Nicole Stevens
Hi Lena, so happy you enjoyed and found it an easy recipe!
Diane
This recipe was easy, quick, & a delicious way to incorporate TVP into my diet.A tasty protein choice using ingredients I have on hand. I will be using this recipe again & again!
Nicole Stevens
Glad you liked it!