Double decker tacos are an old fast food favorite. Now you can enjoy a vegan version at home with two layers of beans, hard and soft shells, and veggies. It’s a satisfying dinner the whole family will adore.
If I could only eat one food for the rest of time, I’d go with tacos. Rife with possibilities, you can stuff them with anything.
Over the years I’ve shared recipes for tacos stuffed with all manner of beans, fishless filets, and jackfruit carnitas.
I’ve made them raw, on the grill, and fried with puffy shells.
I’ve had tacos disguised as salads and pizzas.
There are so many options with tacos that the only difficult part is choosing which kind you’ll have.
Soft tortilla? Hard corn shell? Do you want refried beans slathered inside, or maybe spicy black beans?
So many tough choices!
With today’s recipe for vegan double decker tacos, you don’t have to choose. You get it all in one cozy bite.
It’s as if the wheat tortilla just had to give that hard corn shell a big hug.
I love how the pillowy softness of the soft tortilla is quickly followed by the hard crunch of the inner shell. It is one of my favorite texture combinations.
I started eating double decker tacos while I was in high school. They were sold at Taco John’s, a fast food chain, where it’s called a Taco Bravo. I’d order them with a side of potato olés, which are similar to tater tots.
In the days when I worked at the mall selling bulk candy and balloons, Taco John’s was in my regular mall food court rotation. But it’s so easy to make a vegan version at home!
And hey, if you want to throw some tater tots in the air fryer to go with it, they would not go amiss.
How to make double layer tacos
First, spread vegan refried beans on a soft tortilla. Then stick a hard corn shell inside.
Fill the crunchy shell with spicy black beans. Then add all of the usual suspects like lettuce, tomatoes, shredded non-dairy cheese, pickled red onions, and guacamole.
Pro tip: If the soft tortilla is way too big for the crunchy corn shell, use kitchen shears to cut it down to size!
I used a broken corn shell as a guide. Just lay it flat on the soft tortilla, and cut around it.
(Kitchen shears are also great for chopping cilantro. A regular chef’s knife sometimes makes the cilantro wet or brown. But kitchen shears keep it looking fresh. )
Make it your own
Double decker tacos are rife with opportunities for variation!
- Use refried black beans instead of pinto for sealing the two taco shells together.
- Instead of refried beans, sandwich the taco shells with guacamole. Then it’s a double guac tac!
- Instead of spicy black beans, fill the crunchy taco shells with seasoned chickpeas, tofu & black beans, sweet potato & black beans, tempeh taco meat, or browned vegan chorizo.
Vegan double decker tacos with black and refried beans
Ingredients
- 4 hard corn taco shells
- 4 small wheat tortillas
- 1 cup refried beans
- 1 batch spicy black beans
- ½ cup chopped tomatoes
- ¼ cup chopped onions
- 1 cup green leaf lettuce chopped
- 1 batch guacamole or 1 diced avocado
- ¼ cup cilantro
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 365 degrees. Put the hard corn shells on a baking sheet and warm in the oven for 3-5 minutes, until crisp.
- In a skillet, warm each wheat tortilla one at a time, flipping once. Move each warmed tortilla to its own plate.
- Slather each wheat tortilla with refried beans.
- Place one hard corn shell inside of each wheat tortilla and wrap the tortilla around it, so that the refried beans are sandwiched between each of them.
- Stuff each corn shell with a couple spoonfuls of spicy black beans, tomatoes, onions, lettuce, avocado or guacamole, cilantro, and any optional toppings. Serve immediately.
Notes
Nutrition
Originally posted September 2012. Content & photos updated July 2019.
Janae @ Bring-Joy
We love soyrizo & scrambled tofu–a veganized version of my husband’s family favorite dish. Soyrizo tastes surprisingly very much like chorizo, minus the animal.
Cadry
Sounds delicious! I could definitely get onboard with a breakfast like that. You’re so right that with things like sausages, it’s pretty much the spices and texture that make them distinct. My parents aren’t vegetarian, but they love soyrizo.
cookeasyvegan
Hmmm. This is the second taco post I’ve seen recently, and I may have to make some. We used to have taco night once a week and I’m thinking it was a tradition that needs to be revived!
I’ve revamped my family’s traditional holiday potato stuffing to be animal-friendly. It was the only thing I missed from our holiday dinners and I was thrilled when I made it and the whole house smelled like Thanksgiving!
Cadry
I love having a weekly taco night! We used to consistently do Taco Tuesdays. It’s not something that we do on a particular night anymore, but it’s certainly a regular in the rotation. Clearly the universe is telling you that you need to bring it back! 😉
Your stuffing sounds excellent! Do you have the recipe on your blog?
Andrea
Yep. Everyone kept asking for the recipe!
Cadry
Very cool!
Kittee-Bee Berns
Cadry, I’ve never even heard of a double decker taco before! I can’t image the texture of the soft tortilla hitting the crunchy one, but it sounds interesting!
These posts make for some terrific resources…
xo
kittee
Cadry
You should get some soft gluten-free tortillas and try it out for yourself! You’ll never have to choose between a refried bean burrito or black bean taco ever again. You get them both at once! 🙂
Thanks for your support, Kittee!
Richa
i love the sound of these tacos.. double decked! i havent eaten any double decker tacos ever.. i need to whip up more mexican food.
Thanks for the mention:) I am already stressing out for this Diwali, since my mum and sis said that they will try my recipes and be mostly vegan throughout the dairy intense festival, if i can vegan-ize some of their fave indian sweets.. lets just say,, there is a lot of experimentation going on and the compost microbes are happy.
Cadry
I wonder if the double decker taco is more of a local favorite. Like taco pizza, perhaps it’s more common in the Midwest.
I’m so happy to hear that your mom and sister are up for a mostly vegan Diwali! Good for them! If there’s anyone who’s up for the challenge of veganizing their favorite Indian sweets, it’s you. I’m sure you’ll make recipes that they’ll love!
Mel
You have introduced me to a couple of new and exciting concepts recently, first it was black bean taco pizza, now double decker tacos! I love the thought of munching on the different textured tortillas and am interested to know if they are less messy to eat than hard shell tacos. I’ll have to give this a whirl one day!
Cadry
I think you’ll love them, Mel! Definitely give them a go! 🙂
Kristy
I was just thinking about double decker tacos the other day- I used to have one from Taco Bell for lunch almost every day my senior year of highschool (As a senior, we could leave campus for lunch, which I took full advantage of). And I wondered why I was a little overweight in highschool… 😉 Your new vegan version looks much tastier and much healthier than the fast food ones I remember!
Last year, I brought a vegan mushroom gravy to Thanksgiving (along with some other things) and my sister-in-law made vegan caulipots. The gravy and the caulipots were such a hit that they were requested (by the omnivores) to make a repeat appearance at Christmas, and at all future holidays.
Cadry
Your mushroom gravy sounds delicious over caulipots! It always feels good when vegan items are a hit. I’ve made the caulipots from Appetite for Reduction, and they’re very tasty indeed!
Nikki @ The Tolerant Vegan
How is it that I’ve gone my entire life without eating a taco shell wrapped in a taco shell? I’m going to have to change that QUICK!
I love this post. Since becoming vegan I’ve thought a lot about traditional foods and, when I crave them, I ask myself if I’m really craving the food or what the food symbolized or made me feel at the time. Like when I crave chicken and dumplings I know it’s not the chicken I want, but the comfort I associate with it because my grandma used to make it on special occasions. I’m trying to make new traditions with new foods, but I also love to veganize food that has meaning to me, like mac and cheese, buttermilk biscuits, holiday desserts, etc. I love the challenge!
Cadry
You definitely need to get on the taco-making pronto! The only thing better than one taco is a taco wrapped in a taco. (It’s kind of Dali-esque that way, but completely tantalizing.) 🙂
I love your attitude regarding taking old favorites and focusing on the essential elements that you enjoyed most about them. Plus, when we find ways to update our old school favorites in a way that includes our current values, it’s a win all around!
moonsword
Double Decker Tacos? How is it I’ve lived on this Earth for many eons and not heard of such wondrousness? It’s like a superdelicious black bean bear hug with crunchy/chewy/spicy goodness! I wonder if you could do an Indian version, maybe with hummus between the shells and a spicy curry lentil or veggie filling?
Most of my family favorites were easy to veganize as we are a pasta and pizza-centered people. I’m so grateful for the multitude of vegan cheeses now that make it so easy!
Thanks so much for sharing your recipes…cheers!
Cadry
A black bean bear hug! I love that! That’s pretty much it all the way around. Your hummus & curry idea sounds wonderful! It’s like a super fusion with Middle Eastern meets Mexican meets Indian. We could call it around the world in a taco. I’ll get started on it! 🙂
johanna @ green gourmet giraffe
wow you have opened my eyes to a new slice of taco heaven – I have never heard or dreamed of eating tacos this way but I think I need to try it. Sounds excellent!
Cadry
Hooray! My work here is done if I’ve brought the good word about double decker tacos to the land down under. Let me know if you try them!
David
No more taco indecision – yay!!! I love these with the refried black beans in between the two kinds of shell. (But there’s no wrong way to enjoy tacos, really.)
Cadry
Taco indecision is the worst! I’m glad this remedy worked for you. And good call on the refried black beans!