ramyaramesh3007These easy fusion Jamaican jerk rib tacos are bursting with flavours from the sticky roasted jerk ribs, avocado lime crema and a refreshing mango salsa!
Tacos are especially hard find veganised versions of, so making them at home became a really fun experience for me and my family! It’s surprising as tacos are some of the easiest dishes to veganise (just skip the cheese and substitute the meat with mushrooms or tofu).
What inspired me to make this dish was having one of the most flavourful vegan rib tacos in London – my life hasn’t been the same since. Naturally, I had to recreate it at home as I’m physically many many MANY miles away from this wonderful delight of a taco.
Jamaican jerk seasoning is renowned for its spicy, aromatic blend of allspice, scotch bonnet peppers, and a variety of herbs and spices. It’s quite hard to get in Singapore so I’ve tried my best to incorporate most of the ingredients that gives its unique flavour profile – that pairs exceptionally well with tender, slow-cooked ribs.
Only in this case, these slow cooked ribs are VEGAN and they will be slow baked (or roasted) instead. And when I mean slow, just 30 to 40 minutes – which gives you enough time to prep the rest of the ingredients!
If you love tacos, you need to check out my Vegan Birria ‘Beef’ Tacos!
What Do I Need?
- plant based protein – I used Juicy Marbles ribs (gifted) but you can use any other protein like tofu or tempeh. Just cube them and you’re good to go!
- jamaican jerk seasoning – I got this pre-made seasoning that made life a whole lot easier!
- thyme / fresh thyme – this is one of the key components in the jerk-spiced dishes
- seasoning – onion powder, garlic powder, cayenne pepper
- jerk bbq sauce
- mango salsa – tomatoes, mangoes, cilantro, jalapeños, salt & pepper
- avocado lime crema – avocado, vegan and dairy free cream cheese, garlic powder, lime juice, chopped cilantro with some stems
Jamaican Jerk Vegan Rib Tacos
Ingredients
Jamaican Jerk Ribs
- 1 pack vegan ribs (sub 450g tofu or any other plant based protein)
- 2 tbsp jamaican jerk seasoning
- 1 tsp dried or fresh thyme
- 2 tsp onion powder
- 2 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp cayenne pepper
- 1 tsp allspice
- 3/4 cup vegan jerk bbq sauce
Avocado Lime Crema
- 1 avocado
- 1/2 cup vegan cream cheese (substitute vegan yogurt)
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- squeeze lime juice
- 1/4 cup cilantro
- 1 tsp salt
Salsa
- 1.5 medium tomatoes
- 1/2 ripe mango
- 1 jalapeno
- 2 tbsp chopped cilantro
- salt
- black pepper
Others
- 8 corn or wheat tortillas
- oil for baking
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 200°C.
- In a bowl, mix together the jerk seasoning, thyme, allspice, cayenne pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, salt, and pepper.
- Rub this dry marinade onto the vegan ribs and spray some oil. Bake at 200C for 20 minutes, flipping them halfway.
- After 20 minutes, spread some jerk bbq sauce on side and grill/broil in oven for 10 minutes. Repeat the same on the other side after 10 minutes. The edges should be crispy and caramelised (but not burnt!)
- Once the ribs are cooked, let them rest for a few minutes before removing the meat from the bones. Shred or chop the meat into bite-sized pieces.
- Chop tomatoes, mangoes, jalapeno and cilantro. Combine all the ingredients needed for the mango salsa.
- Blend all the ingredients for the avocado lime crema in a high speed blender until smooth and creamy.
- Spread some of the leftover jerk bbq sauce on the tortillas and fry them on a pan until lightly smoky and charred. Repeat for both sides and all remaining tortillas.
- Spread a spoonful of crema in the middle of the taco, followed by the bite-sized rib pieces. Top with mango salsa and serve!