If you read my chili post, you know that this is not becoming a food blog, but is actually just me, helping you to become a better eater on your next camping trip. Yep, eater, not cooker. Because that’s the thing: You could be the happiest in the kitchen when you’re home, but you take the kid of the kitchen & stick her in the camp site (read: me), you just get one girl very interested in enjoying the trails & the camp chair. No cooking involved. But boy do I love eating.

Enter, easy camp meals, the taco version.

These hearty tacos are SO good. Seriously. Sam & I both started the evening with, “I think I’m not that hungry, so maybe two will be good” & ended with, “Can I have a fourth taco, please?” Yep, that good.

Plus, they’re vegetarian & healthy for you (not all vegetarian things are healthy for you & not all healthy things are vegetarian, but in this case the two align), & with minimal changes (i.e. leave out the cheese or replace it with Daiya/your favorite vegan cheese-like brand) it becomes vegan. Yay for inclusive eating! Yay for fancy camp meals!

Plus, another best thing? Non-vegetarian approved as “This is so good, can we eat it at home?”

I also like this meal because you use mostly frozen ingredients (by the time you’re done prepping it at home, which is easy peasy, & are packing for the camping trip), which adds some nice coldness to your camp cooler & you can leave it for a meal later on in the trip.

Honestly, the good things about these tacos is a list so long it’s ridiculous. Make them & you’ll see.

Also, pro tip: don’t forget the lime. It’s too good with it to ever eat these without it.

& there you have it, folks! Really tasty, delicious, hearty, vegetarian tacos that had Instagram in an uproar & will definitely be making it back onto our table in the next few days weeks months.

See the camping trip we took this meal on HERE, the amazing, hearty delicious vegetarian chili we ate HERE, & the really yummy, but also mostly just pretty, can we actually call it a recipe? breakfast oatmeal HERE. More easy camp meals can be found HERE.

Hearty Vegetarian Quinoa, Black Bean, & Corn Tacos (Easily Vegan)

Serves 4-6

Ingredients:

small amount of olive oil

1 medium yellow onion, diced

3 cloves of garlic, sliced

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1/2 teaspoon paprika

a few shakes of salt

a few shakes of pepper

1 cup of vegetable broth

1 14.5-oz can of diced tomatoes with green chili (I used this one from Muir Glen)

1 1/2 cups of cooked quinoa

1 1/2 cups of frozen corn, drained (if unfrozen by the time you use it; explained below)

1 15-oz can of black beans, drained & rinsed

2 limes

fresh cilantro

cheddar cheese (optional, or serve with Daiya cheddar style products)

corn tortillas

fresh avocado

Directions:

1. Heat oil in a large sauce pan over medium heat. Add the onion & garlic & cook for 5-10 minutes or until soft.

2. Add the cumin, paprika, cayenne, salt, & pepper & mix for a minute until spices are well coated over everything.

3. Stir in the broth, undrained tomatoes with chilis, & the cooked quinoa. Let simmer for about 20 minutes.

4. Turn off, let cool. The mixture should appear to thicken as it cools. Put it in a tupperware & put in the freezer overnight or for a few days.

5. Put the tupperware & frozen bag of corn into your camp cooler, along with cheddar cheese. Bring a can of beans (& a can opener!), fresh cilantro, corn tortillas, a few limes, & fresh avocado.

6. At camp, heat up the cooked quinoa mixture with the can of drained, rinsed black beans & the frozen corn (don’t add the water your corn will have in the bag as it defrosts in your cooler). Heat until warm. Serve on a toasty corn taco with melted cheese (works best if you make a bit of a quesadilla to melt & then open it back up to fill), fresh avocado slices, fresh cilantro, & a hearty squeeze of fresh lime juice.