Chickpea Tinga Tacos
with Monterey Jack Cheese, Poblano Pepper & Lime Crema
- Milk
- Wheat
- Soy
Our chefs took a traditional meat-based taco recipe and turned it into something that’s completely veg-friendly and just as satisfying. It uses chickpeas as the main protein, and they become all the more hearty when simmered in a warmly spiced tomato sauce. They’re joined by add-ins and toppings like poblano pepper, pickled shallot, and Monterey Jack cheese, making them a winner on Meatless Monday or any other night of the week.
Ingredients
1 unit
Veggie Stock Concentrate
1 unit
Chickpeas
1 unit
Tomato Paste
4 tablespoon
Sour Cream
5 teaspoon
White Wine Vinegar
1 unit
Long Green Pepper
½ cup
Monterey Jack Cheese
(Contains: Milk)
1 unit
Tomato
1 unit
Lime
6 unit
Flour Tortillas
(Contains: Wheat, Soy)
2 tablespoon
Southwest Spice Blend
1 unit
Shallot
Not included in your delivery
4 teaspoon (tsp)
Olive Oil
1 teaspoon (tsp)
Sugar
teaspoon (tsp)
Salt
teaspoon (tsp)
Black Pepper
Nutrition Values
Utensils
Cooking Steps
• Wash and dry all produce. • Halve, peel, and very thinly slice shallot. Drain and rinse chickpeas. Core, deseed, and finely chop poblano. Quarter lime. Dice tomato.
• In a medium bowl, combine vinegar, half the shallot, 1 tsp sugar (2 tsp for 4 servings), a pinch of salt, and 1 TBSP water until sugar and salt are mostly dissolved. • Set aside to pickle, stirring occasionally, until ready to serve.
• Pat chickpeas dry with paper towels; season with half the Southwest Spice (you’ll use the rest in the next step), salt, and pepper. • Heat a large drizzle of olive oil in a large pan over medium-high heat. Add chickpeas and cook, stirring occasionally, until lightly browned and crisped, 4-5 minutes. • Transfer to a second medium bowl.
• Heat another large drizzle of olive oil in same pan over medium-high heat. Add poblano and remaining shallot; season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring, until softened, 3-4 minutes. • Return chickpeas to pan and stir in tomato paste, stock concentrate, remaining Southwest Spice, and ¼ cup water (½ cup for 4 servings). Cook, stirring, until chickpeas are coated in a thick sauce, 2-3 minutes more.
While filling cooks, wrap tortillas in damp paper towels and microwave until warm and pliable, 30 seconds. • In a small bowl, combine sour cream and a squeeze of lime juice. Season with salt and pepper. Stir in water 1 tsp at a time until mixture reaches a drizzling consistency.
• Divide tortillas between plates. Fill with chickpea filling, tomato, Monterey Jack, crema, and as much pickled shallot (draining first) as you like. Serve with remaining lime wedges on the side.
Customer reviews
Review summary
Updated on Dec 2025- Flavor: Many loved the unique, flavorful blend of spices and veggies, though some found it bland or overly tomato-heavy.
- Ease of prep: Quick and simple to make, with several praising it as an easy weeknight meal 🍲.
- Suggestions: Consider adding cilantro, avocado, or slaw for freshness; roast chickpeas for better texture.
- Leftovers: Reheats well for some; others found it didn't keep as nicely the next day.
- Texture: Some enjoyed the chickpea texture, while others found it mushy or dry; crisp them up more.
- Vegetarian appeal: Many meat-eaters were pleasantly surprised by this satisfying meatless option 🌶️.
Reviews from our home cooks
The Chickpea Tinga Tacos were phenomenal! This recipe was uniquely flavored- I had never eaten Tinga sauce before. The tomato paste blended really well with the spices to make for delicious chickpeas. The tomatoes, pickled onions, and crema were great toppings for the tacos. Overall, a delicious meal.
These tacos were delicious! I did end up adding a little bit of shredded lettuce just for the crunch and the coolness, but overall they were very tasty and easy to make! (I recommend draining and rinsing the chickpeas several hours prior to making the dish...gives them plenty of time to dry without using 25 paper towels to dry them).
Very tasty, good texture. Really blossoms with a dash of vinegary hot sauce. Didn't use all the tomato paste, since the sweet was overwhelming the spice profile. Chickpeas are better tossed in oil and thrown in a hot oven than pan fried-and it takes less oil to get a nice crisp on the outside. Just don't leave them in too long or they get dried out and crunchy.
Very cool! Worked out great and was an awesome spin on tinga tacos! Kind of like a Mexican/Middle Eastern fusion. Will make again for my vegetarian friends!
This recipe was better, though again it needed modifications, oven roasted zucchini with blackening spices and a homemade tomatillo salsa. My poblano arrived damaged and half rotten and slimy. I managed to salvage a small amount of it. The diced tomato was texturally out of place here. It just should have been cooked with the chickpeas.
Delicious tacos, dangerous recipe. I got a serious burn on my arm from the popping chickpeas while cooking on the pan. Followed instructions exactly. They tasted great but at 8 months pregnant I was not happy about the splatter burns.
I wasn't sure about chickpeas in tacos, but they were great! Awesome texture and flavor. I also loved the pickled shallots!
What a surprising delicious meal! Both my husband and I were blown away by how amazing these tacos were. This recipe will be our go to now, rather than artificial meat alternatives.
We loved these tacos, just wish there was something on the side with it. We made some rice and guacamole. The tacos alone are filling, but it just seemed like it needed more. Would eat again! Great flavors.
I've had one other HelloFresh experience with cooking chickpeas this way - another recipe called for doing this in the oven, seemingly to get to the same end result. When I saw the same warning message about "popping chickpeas" I almost ran for the hills. However! This time the directions called for a stovetop method. Well, Mr. Popping Chickpea Sir, I'm one step ahead of you this time! For my kitchen was protected by the fabulous invention of...the lid! 😈 Needless to say, things went much better this time & this was one of my favorite recipes thus far! It was easy, quick to make & delicious!
