Taco Bell has won the hearts of many across America, and understandably so. Known for its innovative menu creations and its quirky brand personality, this fan-favorite fast food chain dishes out Tex-Mex eats at unbeatable low prices.
Since its beginnings in California in the 1960s, Taco Bell has been a great spot for quick, on-the-go, cheap meals and guilty-pleasure late night snacks. From beloved specialty items like the Mexican Pizza and the Crunchwrap Supreme to entirely wacky menu inventions like the Chalupa and the Cheesy Gordita Crunch, everyone’s got something they love at Taco Bell.
And in return, Taco Bell’s got something for everyone to love – including vegans and vegetarians. So what are your options if you follow a vegan diet and find yourself inching your way through the Taco Bell drive-thru? Here’s everything you need to know about ordering vegan so you can “Live Más”.
Vegan items available on the Taco Bell menu
The fast food chain has made an effort to provide vegan-friendly food, offering a list of vegan-certified (AVA) ingredients on their website along with a blog post about how to eat vegan at Taco Bell.
Only a handful of their actual menu items are vegan as is (a bit of solace: those deliciously crunchy Cinnamon Twists are one of them)! But the chain started testing a vegan carne asada in 2022, and has tested other meatless and plant-based items in the past like a vegan beef and a vegan chalupa. And more promising news: Taco Bell is currently testing a Vegan Crunchwrap in a handful of cities, which consists of seasoned plant-based protein, blanco sauce, warm nacho sauce, shredded lettuce and diced tomatoes in a crunchy tostada shell. None have officially hit the menu long-term yet, but there’s definitely hope for more vegan-friendly Taco Bell meals in the future.
Either way, Taco Bell is a popular vegan and vegetarian destination because it does carry many vegan-certified ingredients, from tortillas and taco shells to add-ons and sauces – making for easy modifications to their popular menu items.
Taco Bell defines vegan as menu items or ingredients with no animal products. But keep in mind that since this is a fast food franchise, the risk of cross-contact with animal products is fairly high (for example, Taco Bell states that they use the same frying oil to cook both vegan and non-vegan items).
Here’s a complete list of Taco Bell’s vegan-friendly items and ingredients.
| Vegan Menu Items (Vegan As Is) |
| Hash Brown Cinnamon Twists Black Beans Black Beans and Rice |
| Vegan Ingredients + Add-Ons |
| Black Beans Seasoned Refried Beans Seasoned Rice Hash Brown Jalapeno Peppers Lettuce Nacho Chips Onions Potato Bites Premium Guacamole Red Strips Tomatoes |
| Vegan Tortillas + Shells |
| Tortillas Tostada Shell Taco Shell Chalupa Shell Gordita Flatbread |
| Vegan Sauces |
| Breakfast Salsa Diablo Sauce Packet Fire Sauce Packet Hot Sauce Packet Mild Sauce Packet Red Sauce Green Sauce |
| Vegan Beverages |
| Black Coffee Soda Mtn Dew Baja Blast Freeze Mango Freeze Gatorade Fruit Punch Iced Tea |
The trick to ordering vegan at Taco Bell: make it fresco
If you’re not a build-your-own-meal kind of person (a la Chipotle), don’t worry – there are plenty of existing Taco Bell menu items that you can easily tweak and modify using the vegan-certified ingredient options listed above.
Herein lies the key to vegan ordering at Taco Bell: simply order any vegetarian item fresco style, and Taco Bell will create a certified vegan version of that item. Fresco style essentially replaces any dairy products like cheese or sour cream with fresh tomatoes. So if you order a bean burrito and “make it fresco”, you’ll get a burrito with beans, red sauce, onions, and tomatoes (instead of cheese). Just note that if you’re ordering something that comes with meat, you can make it fresco but you’ll have to specifically request no meat as well. It’s a simple fix, but an effective one; the ultimate Taco Bell menu hack for vegans.
To make it easy, we’ve gathered a list of Taco Bell’s vegetarian items based on their current menu that can be ordered fresco style, so you have some go-tos next time you visit.
| Vegetarian Tacos |
| Spicy Potato Soft Taco |
| Black Bean Chalupa Supreme |
| Black Bean Taco (Soft or Crunchy) |
| Refried Bean Taco (Soft or Crunchy) |
| Vegetarian Burritos |
| Bean Burrito |
| Fiesta Veggie Burrito |
| Cheesy Bean and Rice Burrito |
| Vegetarian Specialties |
| Black Bean Crunchwrap Supreme |
| Veggie Mexican Pizza |
| Vegetarian Bowls |
| Power Menu Bowl – Veggie |
At Taco Bell, “make it fresco” is essentially code for “make it vegan”. For any vegetarian item that’s ordered fresco style, Taco Bell will replace any dairy or animal products with fresh tomatoes – removing things like cheese, sour cream, or dairy-based sauces.
Yes! Taco Bell offers vegan potato bites – they disappeared from the menu in 2020, but after much demand for their return, Taco Bell added potatoes back to the menu in early 2021.
As of now, there is no vegan meat on the current menu. However, Taco Bell did announce in March of 2021 that the chain is partnering with Beyond Meat to create plant-based meat options for their menu, and has since tested various vegan meat items. The assumption is that after testing phases, Taco Bell plans to add a plant-based meat to their menu in the future.
While it’s not on the menu yet, Taco Bell is currently testing a Vegan Crunchwrap in three cities. It’s made with a plant-based protein, blanco sauce, warm nacho sauce, shredded lettuce and diced tomatoes in a crunchy tostada shell.
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