Spicy Potato Tacos

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These scrumptious potato tacos are stuffed with crispy oven-roasted potatoes smothered in creamy chipotle sauce and piled with your favorite taco toppings! A delicious comforting vegan meal that’s perfect for your next taco Tuesday.

I’m a big fan of Taco Bell copycat recipes, as you might have noticed by my seven layer burrito and beefy vegan burrito recipes.

A while back Taco Bell nixed a bunch of items from it’s menu, including the spicy potato tacos, which were apparently one of their few vegetarian items. They’ve since returned to the menu, but I learned that the sauce is made with dairy, as well as the fact that the potatoes are fried in the same oil as meat at some locations. So they’re not vegan.

Well, I guess this is a recipe that we’ve all needed a vegan version of for a while now! Maybe it’s a good thing that Taco Bell decided to temporarily ditch the dish and bring it to my attention.

I can’t say for sure if my potato tacos taste like Taco Bell’s. Give them a try and tell me what you think! But I can promise that these are delicious. I mean, crispy potatoes, soft tortillas, and creamy chipotle sauce…you really can’t go wrong with all of that.

What You’ll Need

• Potatoes. Use russet potatoes for this recipe. I’m usually okay with subbing another variety, but in this case the starchiness will give your spicy potatoes the perfect texture.
• Oil. We’re using olive oil, but feel free to substitute another high-heat oil.
• Cornstarch.
• Spices. We’re using a blend of cumin, paprika, ancho chile powder, cayenne pepper, onion powder, and garlic powder.
• Salt & pepper.
• Raw cashews. These are for the dairy-free chipotle sauce, and it’s really important that they’re raw — roasted cashews will make your sauce taste nutty instead of creamy.
• Water.
• Adobo sauce. This is the sauce that canned chipotle peppers are packed in. Open up a can and save the peppers for another use, like this sweet potato chili.
• Red wine vinegar.
• Flour tortillas. I like flour tortillas best with potatoes, but feel free to use corn tortillas, or even hard taco shells if you prefer.
• Shredded lettuce.
• Any other toppings you like!

How They’re Made

The following is a detailed photo tutorial on how to make this dish. Scroll all the way down if you’d like to skip right to the recipe!

The Potatoes

I wanted my potatoes for these tacos to have the best possible texture and crispiness, so I went the extra mile in prepping them.

Start by dicing your potatoes. Cover the potatoes with some salted water and boil them for just a few minutes, until they’re just starting to become tender.

Why boil the potatoes first? Starting the process by boiling will give you potatoes that are extra tender on the inside, with a starchy-crispy coating on the outside.

When the potatoes are done boiling, drain them in a colander and rinse them with some cool water. Now place them in a bowl with some olive oil, cornstarch, and spices. Toss everything to evenly coat the potatoes.

Arrange the potatoes on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and roast them until they’re tender and crispy on the outside.

Shortcut method: Don’t feel like boiling your potatoes in advance? You can skip that step and otherwise proceed with the recipe. They’ll take a bit longer to bake and be a bit a bit tougher, but the tacos should still be tasty!

Chipotle Sauce

While the potatoes roast, make the sauce for your potato tacos. You’ll need to use soaked cashews for this. Ideally, this means covering them with water and letting them sit for 4 to 8 hours. If you forget to plan in advance for this, simply boil the cashews for 15 minutes.

Place your cashews into the bowl of a food processor, along with some water, adobo sauce, red wine vinegar, spices, and salt. Blend everything until the mixture is smooth and creamy.

Tip: This recipe makes more chipotle sauce than you’ll probably need. I don’t recommend cutting down on the batch size, as this can make blending it until smooth a challenge. Instead, make the full batch and save the rest for another taco night or another use.

Assemble the Tacos

Warm up some flour tortillas and stuff them with potatoes. Drizzle on some chipotle sauce and pile on your favorite taco toppings.

Leftovers & Storage

The potato taco filling will keep in a sealed container in the refrigerator for 3 to 4 days. To reheat it, just place the potatoes on a baking sheet under a broiler until they recrisp.

The chipotle sauce will keep in a sealed container in the fridge for 4 to 5 days, or in the freezer for 3 months.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can these tacos be made gluten-free?

Yes! Simply use gluten-free flour tortillas or corn tortillas.

Do I need to peel the potatoes?

That’s up to you! I don’t bother peeling mine, but if you find potato peel off-putting, then go for it!