Made with a rich blend of creamy cashews and pumpkin, this savory vegan queso cheese sauce is delicious. Then it’s topped with shredded jackfruit that’s spiced to perfection and simmered in pumpkin too! These vegan pumpkin queso jackfruit taquitos are the perfect fall snack or meal prep recipe!
Did anyone else love taquitos as a kid? I used to get super excited when we had a box of Costco frozen taquitos in the freezer. So, why it took me so long to make a homemade vegan taquito is beyond me.
Homemade vegan taquitos recipe ingredients:
- Tortillas– This one is obvious! We love using these small corn tortillas but, you could definitely use small flour if you prefer.
- Jackfruit– This is the star of the show! Its meaty texture will soak up all the delicious spices and taste so similar to meat is shocking! It’s spiced up with cumin, smoked paprika, liquid smoke, and garlic for an extra boost of flavor.
- Pumpkin– To get in the fall spirit, this recipe is infused with pumpkin puree in both the jackfruit sauce and the vegan cashew queso cheese!
- Cashews– These nuts will blend with garlic, nutritional yeast, and salt to make the creamiest queso cheese sauce.
- Vegan Jack Cheese– Adds a stretch, cheesy, layer of goodness in every bite! We love using Violife pepper jack or Diya cheddar cheese shreds.
What is Jackfruit?
Ever since I found jackfruit I’ve been hooked! It absorbs any flavor you add to it and has a shredded chicken texture that will make any vegan meal taste divine! It’s that good.
Jackfruit is a fruit from Southeast Asia and is a large green fruit with a mild flavor and a meaty inside. It has an amazing ability to mimic the texture of shredded meat when cooked and seasoned plus it has extra health benefits too! Jack fruit has more protein than most fruits and its full of vitamin C!
Where to buy jackfruit?
The easiest way to use jackfruit is to buy it canned. I have found it at Trader Joe’s and at the Asian supermarkets.
How to make jackfruit taquitos:
First, soak your cashews over night in water so they become soft and will blend well.
The day of, cook the onions in some olive oil in the bottom of the crock pot until fragrant. Then add in the jackfruit, pumpkin puree, and spices. Slow cook for 2 hours. Then shred the jackfruit with a fork and cook for an additional 20 minutes with the lid off so it soaks up more of the liquid.
While it’s cooking, make the vegan queso cheese by combining the cashews, nutritional yeast, pumpkin, and spices and blending until smooth and creamy.
Toast each tortilla lightly before making the taquitos. Then spread a layer of pumpkin queso, add the jackfruit, sprinkle with cheese and roll-up. Place them seamed side down and toast for 15 minutes at 370 degrees in the air fryer!
Last, take them out and garnish with your favorite fixings like, avocado, lime crema, and cilantro.
Best vegan taquitos recipe tips:
Warm the tortillas before rolling them: you can lightly toast them with oil on a fry pan or microwave them in a damp paper town for 30 seconds. This helps them be pliable and not break as you roll!
Save some for later! These vegan pumpkin queso jackfruit taquitos store wonderfully in the freezer for a quick and easy snack or meal! To thaw simply reheat in the air fryer or place in the oven at 400 degrees for about 20 minutes.
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If you make these homemade jackfruit taquitos let me know how you liked it by leaving a comment and rating below or by tagging me on Instagram @flaxandsugar, I love seeing all of your tasty recreations!
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Pumpkin Queso Jackfruit Taquitos
- Prep Time: 35 minutes
- Cook Time: 2 1/2 hours
- Total Time: 31 minute
- Yield: 30 taquitos 1x
- Category: Savory
- Method: crockpot
- Cuisine: Mexican
- Diet: Gluten Free
Description
Easy vegan taquito recipe filled with pumpkin cashew queso cheese and spicy pulled jackfruit! This is the perfect snack for football games or a quick weeknight dinner!
Ingredients
Cashew Pumpkin Queso:
- 2 3/4 cup soaked raw cashews*
- 3/4 cup pumpkin puree
- 1/2 tablespoon garlic
- 3 tablespoons nutritional yeast
- 1/4 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 tablespoon water
Pulled Jackfruit:
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1/2 cup onions
- 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1/2 teaspoon Hungarian hot paprika or cayenne pepper
- 1/2 tablespoon garlic
- 1 teaspoon ground cummin
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/8 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/2 tablespoon liquid smoke
- 1 cup pumpkin puree
- 1 cup water
- 2 tablespoons maple syrup
- 1 cup of corn
- 1 tablespoon chili onion crunch (from trader joes-optional)
Taquitos:
- 30 medium corn tortillas
- 1 bag of nondairy shredded cheddar or pepper jack cheese
- 2 avocados
- 2 limes
- fresh cilantro
Lime Crema:
- 1/4 cup of nondairy yogurt
- 1 tablespoon lime juice
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic
Instructions
Cashew Pumpkin Queso:
- Soak raw unsalted cashews in a bowl of water for 24 hrs or boil water and pour over the cashews and allow them to soak for 4 hours until soft.
- Drain the water from the cashews and pour them into a food processor or blender.
- Add the pumpkin, garlic, nutritional yeast, smoked paprika, salt, and water to the blender.
- Blend until smooth and creamy, stirring the sides as needed.
- Transfer to a bowl and refrigerate while jackfruit finishes cooking.
Pulled Jackfruit:
- Slice onions into small pieces and turn the crockpot on sautee/brown. Pour the olive oil in the crockpot and cook down the onions until translucent and fragrant.
- Add pumpkin, water, liquid smoke, chili powder, cumin, smoked paprika, hot paprika, and salt to the crockpot and stir.
- Drain the water or brine from two cans of jackfruit and add the jackfruit to the crockpot.
- Stir well and cover the jackfruit in the pumpkin puree mix.
- Close the lid and cook on slow cook for 2 1/2 hours.
- Open the crockpot and using a fork shred the jackfruit into small pieces that will resemble pulled chicken.
- Add maple syrup, chili onion crunch, and corn to the jackfruit and stir well.
- Turn the crockpot back on to the simmer/brown setting and leave the lid off so some of the moisture can escape.
- Cook for an additional 15 min, stirring occasionally.
Making homemade taquitos:
- Heat a small amount of oil in a pan. Place one corn tortilla face down and cook for a minute and flip the corn tortilla to the other side and cook again until the tortilla becomes soft and slightly brown. Alternatively, you can wrap the tortillas in a damp paper towel and microwave for 30 seconds.
- Next, take one tortilla and spread a layer of pumpkin queso cheese, near the middle or on one side of the tortilla.
- Add a small layer of the pulled jackfruit and sprinkle with cheese.
- Roll the tortilla up tightly and place the taquito seam side down.
- Repeat until the mixture is gone or until the desired number of taquitos is made.
- Transfer the taquitos to the air fryer and place them seam-side down.
- Cook in the air fryer at 370 for 15 minutes or you can bake them in the oven at 350 degrees for 35 minutes.
- Once they are baked fully the outside should be nice and crispy.
- Transfer to a plate and garnish with toppings.
Lime Crema and toppings:
- Mix the nondairy yogurt with lime juice and garlic in a small bowl.
- Slice the avocado and lime into small pieces and wedges.
- Chop the fresh cilantro
- Drizzle the taquitos with the lime crema and garnish with avocado, fresh cilantro, and lime wedges.
- Serve and enjoy!
Notes
* to soak the raw cashews leave them in a bowl of water for 24 hours or boil water and pour over the cashews and allow to soak for 2-4 hours. The softer the cashews are the more creamy and smooth the queso will be!
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 3 taquitos
- Calories: 390
Keywords: taquitos, vegan cheese, pumpkin, crockpot meals, jackfruit, meatless meals, vegan, gluten-free,
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