Vegan Breakfast Burritos

If you’re vegan, it’s easy to enjoy tasty, filling breakfasts even though you don’t eat eggs or bacon. A vegan breakfast burrito includes a delicious filling that even meat eaters will crave. It’s just one of many ideas for a vegan and plant-based breakfast recipe to jump-start your day.

In this plant-based burrito, tofu, black beans and potatoes form a protein-heavy filling that can take on many flavors. This recipe adds onion, sweet pepper, garlic and seasonings, including fresh cilantro. Fold in additional toppings like salsa, vegan cheese and avocado for fully loaded vegan breakfast burritos. With so many ways to vary this vegan breakfast burrito recipe, it can be a regular feature in a weekly vegan meal plan or join other healthy breakfast ideas for a more relaxed plant-based diet.

Vegan Breakfast Burrito Ingredients

• Potatoes: Potatoes soak up the juicy ingredients and reduce breakfast burrito leaks. When microwaved and pan-fried, as in this recipe, Yukon Gold, red and purple potatoes hold their shape well.
• Onion: Onions develop a lot of flavor when cooked in oil. Yellow onions soften quickly, but other types like sweet Walla Wallas and red or blush varieties are also delicious.
• Sweet pepper: As with onions, a quick saute brings out the flavors of a sweet pepper. Yellow, orange and red bell peppers turn naturally sweeter as they ripen through the color spectrum, but even green sweet peppers taste mellower after sauteing.
• Garlic: Mince garlic cloves if you like small bursts of their distinctive flavor. For bigger garlic bites, smash, slice or coarsely chop the cloves and cook them in the oil until golden.
• Tofu: Firm cubed tofu starts to crumble when cooked in a crowded pan, which is the scrambled effect you want when making vegan breakfast burritos. Tofu also absorbs seasonings, especially when you drain it well.
• Seasonings: You likely have most of the spices used in this recipe in your pantry: ground cumin, salt and pepper, plus optional crushed red pepper flakes.
• Nutritional yeast: Nutritional yeast is worth adding to your seasoning collection. Its naturally nutty, cheesy taste makes vegan dishes pop with flavor. It deliciously tops popcorn and air-fryer kale chips.
• Rice vinegar: A tablespoon of rice vinegar diluted with the same amount of water has two effects in this vegan breakfast burrito recipe: It brightens the other ingredients in the filling and deglazes the pan, capturing the flavor-packed fond.
• Black beans: To ensure your black beans are vegan, look for a can of no- or low-sodium beans that lists no additional ingredients. A more affordable and tasty option is to soak and cook dried beans. Make a big batch: Cooked dried beans last three to five days in the refrigerator and about a month in the freezer.
• Cilantro: Fresh cilantro’s strong herbal flavor contrasts with the cooked ingredients in this vegan breakfast burrito recipe. It stays freshest when stored with the stems in water. If you don’t like cilantro, skip it!
• Flour tortillas: Large 10-inch flour tortillas roll neatly around the bulky filling of these vegan breakfast burritos. Not all tortillas are vegan, so check the label carefully or whip up a batch of easy homemade tortillas.
• Toppings: Breakfast burrito toppings vary widely, but fresh pico de gallo, homemade vegan queso and cubed avocado are a good start. Add these toppings just before you roll up the burritos to avoid overstuffing the tortillas.

Directions

Step 1: Boil the potatoes

Place the potato cubes in a microwave-safe dish and cover them with water. Cover the dish and microwave on high for six to eight minutes or until tender.

Step 2: Saute the vegetables

Meanwhile, in a large cast-iron or other heavy skillet, heat the oil over medium heat. Cook the onion and sweet pepper until tender, and then add the garlic and cook one minute longer. Transfer the onion mixture to a bowl with a slotted spoon.

Step 3: Brown the potatoes

Drain the microwaved potatoes. Cook them in the onion mixture’s drippings until lightly browned. Remove them and place them in the bowl with the onion mixture.

Step 4: Heat the tofu

To the skillet, add the tofu, nutritional yeast, cumin, salt and pepper. Cook until the tofu has softened and is hot, three to four minutes, breaking it up into smaller bits as it cooks. Mix in the vinegar and water, scraping up any browned bits from the pan.

Step 5: Finish the filling

Return the onion mixture and potatoes to the pan. Add the black beans and cilantro, and heat through. If desired, add red pepper flakes.

Step 6: Roll the burritos

Divide the tofu mixture among the tortillas. Top each with pico de gallo, vegan queso and diced avocado as desired. Fold the bottom of each tortilla over the filling and roll it up.

Editor’s Tip: It’s easiest to fold a burrito if you briefly warm the tortilla first. Once you cover the filling with the bottom edge of the tortilla, fold in the sides and then roll until the burrito rests seam side down with everything tucked neatly inside.

Vegan Breakfast Burrito Variations

• Reduce the proteins: Black beans, tofu and nutritional yeast are all high in protein, so don’t worry if you have to skip one. If you leave out the tofu, smash the beans lightly as you heat them so that they stick to the other ingredients. If you leave out the beans, scramble the tofu and nutritional yeast in a vegan imitation of scrambled eggs.
• Use other beans: Grab whichever canned beans you find in your pantry. Pinto beans have a milder, creamier flavor than black beans. Cannellini beans are another creamy option, whereas garbanzo beans have a meaty texture. If you’re cooking dried beans yourself, seek heirloom varieties for some of the most flavorful, creamiest cooked beans you’ll ever eat.
• Change the veggies: Other delicious vegetables for the sauteed filling can include mushrooms, tomatillos, zucchini, sweet potatoes and carrots. Watery or firm vegetables may need to cook longer so they don’t make the filling too soggy or crunchy. You can replace some of the vegetables in the burrito filling or use extra vegetables to stretch the filling to more burritos.
• Lay on the greens: Leave room in your breakfast burrito for soft chard or beet greens, mild spinach, spicy arugula or crisp shredded cabbage. Replace the cilantro with fresh basil leaves, and fold in a little chopped fresh mint for a surprising but subtle flavor twist.
• Get pickled: Replace the sauteed onions with pickled red onions, and add pickled corn for a mellow zing or pickled jalapeno rings for a spicier one. With the pickled ingredients in the mix, you may prefer to deglaze the pan with just water.
• Be creative with toppings: Replace the fresh tomato salsa with spicy salsa verde or fruity mango salsa. Drain juicy salsas before you spread them on the toppings so they don’t soak through the tortillas.

How to Store Vegan Breakfast Burritos

Store vegan breakfast burritos in the refrigerator in a sealed container or tightly wrapped. For the best texture, store them unassembled and roll the tofu mixture and toppings in the tortillas in the morning. Fully assembled burritos become soggy quickly, and the tortilla wraps turn chewy.

How long do vegan breakfast burritos last?

When tightly wrapped, vegan breakfast burritos last three to four days in the refrigerator, although their texture is best the first day. Stored separately, the filling, ripe avocados, pico de gallo and dairy-free queso also last up to four days. Flour tortillas keep well for up to three months in the pantry with their bag still sealed, and once opened, store them in the fridge.

Can you freeze vegan breakfast burritos?

This vegan breakfast burrito recipe freezes well if you leave out the toppings. The burritos keep well for up to two months when wrapped tightly in aluminum foil or freezer-safe packaging. Let a burrito thaw overnight in the refrigerator before you reheat it. When heated from frozen, the tortilla becomes piping hot but the filling stays frosty.

How should you reheat vegan breakfast burritos?

Reheat a refrigerated or frozen and thawed vegan breakfast burrito in a toaster oven or microwave. Remove the wrapping so that the tortilla loses its chewiness, and then heat the burrito in a 350°F toaster oven until warmed through, about 10 minutes, or in the microwave in 30-second bursts, turning the burrito as needed. Store the burritos without the salsa, dairy-free queso and avocado, and then add these after reheating for a fresh finish.

Vegan Breakfast Burrito Tips

What else can you serve with vegan breakfast burritos?

Vegan breakfast burritos are a full meal, so serve them simply with additional salsa, hot sauce and fresh lime wedges. If you’re featuring them in a brunch spread, set out fresh fruit and corn tomato salad. Add something sweet, like sopapillas, to round out the meal. These vegan burritos are also delicious for lunch or as the main dish at dinner. Serve them with Southwest rice made with vegetable broth as well as grilled corn seasoned simply with a squeeze of lime or spread with vegan butter.