Tacos Get Much More Interesting With This Lettuce Swap

Tacos are a food that is practically impossible to hate. They come in so many different forms, with an array of different proteins and fillings. And unlike so many other cuisines and dishes, they're a food that you can make just as well at home as you would buy from your local taqueria (or at least, good enough to satisfy a craving). When many people make homemade tacos, they opt for the basic toppings — guacamole, salsa, cilantro, and lettuce — the latter of which doesn't always cut it. 

No matter how you slice it, lettuce is bland, watery, and rarely does anything for your tacos. And if you go through all this effort perfectly season your carne asada or even sweet potato and black bean taco filling, the last thing you're going to want to do is drown out that flavor with boring lettuce. A better alternative is roasted veggies. Roasted veggies offer a depth of flavor that sad iceberg lettuce shavings never will. And, you can roast them in your oven as you cook your other taco components, making them a simple and tasty addition to any taco recipe. 

The second your mind hears "roasted veggies" and "tacos" used in the same sentence, it may immediately go to fajita veggies, like onions and bell peppers. And sure, roasting onions makes their flavor sweeter and reduces the otherwise sharp bite that raw onions have on a taco, but there are many more creative options besides that. One of our favorites has to be mushrooms, as they're sweet, umami, and versatile enough to bulk up both plant-based and meaty tacos. Sweet potatoes and regular potatoes are also excellent options, as you can toss them in your favorite Tex-Mex-inspired seasonings, roast them in the oven, and pile them in your taco. 

When selecting a veggie (or multiple, for that matter) for your tacos, we recommend thinking first and foremost about the flavors at play. Carne asada, for example, is a really beautiful and well-developed protein; if you just tossed some potatoes in there, you would distract from it too much. But roasted poblanos, zucchini, or corn, which have a milder flavor and less heaviness, would be far better options.