Roasted Butternut Squash Tacos
Colorful butternut squash tacos with crisp slaw, black beans and guacamole! These tacos are a simple weeknight meal. Vegetarian, vegan and gluten free.
Updated by Kathryne Taylor on September 5, 2024
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Just when I thought I couldn’t come up with another recipe, my wonderful hair stylist said, “Tacos.” So here we are, two grocery stores later, with tacos that are as tasty as they are colorful. You need some color to brighten up drab winter days, you know?
For these tacos, I drew inspiration from my sweet potato tacos and roasted up some cubed butternut squash instead (sweet potatoes would be awesome here, too!). I actually cheated, for once, and used two bags of pre-cut squash from Trader Joe’s. I think I’ll do it again soon.
While the squash roasts in the oven, just mix up some simple cabbage and black bean slaw (a riff on the slaw used in my spaghetti squash burrito bowls) and mash up some guacamole. I have finally learned that mashing guacamole with a pastry cutter or potato masher works way better than a dinky fork. Hallelujah! Hope you love these. Find more tacos over here!
Roasted Butternut Squash Tacos
Colorful butternut squash tacos with crisp slaw, black beans and guacamole! These tacos are a simple weeknight meal and a great option for vegan and gluten-free eaters. Recipe yields about 8 tacos (4 servings).
Ingredients
Roasted butternut squash
- 1 medium butternut squash (about 2 to 2 ½ pounds, I used two 12-ounce bags of pre-sliced butternut from Trader Joe’s), peeled and sliced into ¾-inch cubes
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- Salt and freshly ground pepper
Cabbage and black bean slaw
- 2 cups purple cabbage, thinly sliced and roughly chopped into 2-inch long pieces
- 2 cans black beans (15 ounces each), rinsed and drained, or 3 cups cooked black beans
- ⅓ cup chopped green onions, both green and white parts
- ⅓ cup chopped fresh cilantro
- 2 to 3 tablespoons fresh lime juice, to taste
- 1 teaspoon olive oil
- ¼ teaspoon salt, more to taste
Simple guacamole (double if you love guac!)
- 1 large avocado, diced
- 1 tablespoon lime juice
- ¼ teaspoon ground coriander (optional)
- Pinch of salt, more to taste
Everything else
- 8 corn tortillas (certified gluten free if necessary)
- Optional garnishes: additional chopped cilantro, hot sauce, toasted pepitas, crumbled feta cheese (omit for vegan tacos)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit. Line one large, rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper for easier cleanup.
- To roast the squash: On your prepared baking sheet, toss the cubed butternut in enough olive oil to lightly coat all sides, about 2 tablespoons. Sprinkle with 1 teaspoon chili pepper and a pinch of salt and pepper. Arrange the butternut in a single layer. Bake until the butternut is tender throughout and caramelized on the edges, about 30 to 35 minutes, tossing halfway.
- Meanwhile, to assemble the slaw: In a medium mixing bowl, combine the cabbage, black beans, green onion, cilantro, lime juice, olive oil and salt. Toss to combine, then taste and add additional lime juice and/or salt if necessary. Set aside to marinate.
- To prepare the guacamole: In a small bowl, combine the diced avocado, lime juice, coriander and salt. Mash with a pastry cutter, potato masher or fork until the mixture is blended and no longer chunky. Taste and add additional salt if necessary.
- To warm the tortillas: In a small skillet over medium heat, warm each tortilla on both sides before transferring to a plate and covering with a lint-free towel to keep warm. Repeat with each tortilla, stacking each warmed tortilla on the last.
- To assemble the tacos, spoon an ample amount of slaw down the center of your taco, top with roasted butternut and spread a spoonful of guacamole down the side. Top with garnishes of your choice and serve immediately.
Notes
Change it up: Sweet potatoes would be an awesome substitute for the butternut.
Storage suggestions: Store individual components separately for best results. Store leftover guacamole in a small bowl with plastic wrap pressed against the top to prevent oxidation.
Nutrition
The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice. See our full nutrition disclosure here.
This tacos are SO delicious! We are not vegetarian, but this is one I make all the time. We love everything about it. And it’s so easy to make.
Hooray! Thank you for sharing, Marisa.
Our household makes your recipes all the time but this is my FIRST comment! Going to try to be better about doing these in the future… I made these tacos for two separate groups (with vegans, flegans, vegetarians, and flexitarians) and everybody LOVED them. Topped the tacos with radish and roasted/salted pepitas, added jalapeño into the guacamole, and used chipotle chili seasoning. The meal made for spectacular lunch leftovers. One batch of the slaw served 10 hungry people over the course of 4 days. This one is going into our regular meal rotation!
Well, thank you for commenting! I’m happy you enjoy so many recipes and commented on this one, Hayley!
First off, I have to say that your cookbook and blog are my absolute FAVORITE!!! Everything I make of yours turns out beautifully and has the most utterly delicious flavors – you’re always my go to when I’m looking for a new recipe or have company coming over. I hope you release another cookbook(s) in the future!
Okay, now on to my question: I’m dying to try this recipe however my husband is allergic to avocado. Do you have any suggestions to what could replace the guac?
I’m so happy to hear that, Arlene! Instead of the guacamole, you could do a salsa, sour cream and/or some more feta.
I made this for dinner last night. It was delicious and I’ll be making it regularly, for sure. And, the leftover squash and guacamole made a yummy avocado toast for breakfast this morning. Thanks!!
You’re welcome, Nancy!
This was seriously the best dinner I have made in awhile!
I added thinly sliced matchstick green apples to the slaw to add a pop of flavor, and it was delicious. These are now my favorite recipe when I am craving tacos. Thanks for the recipe!
Made this for my entire family, didn’t even add cheese, and they loved it! They all agreed they would buy these in a restaurant. This is going to be a taco Tuesday staple in our house. Thanks!
Made these tonight – they were delicious! Didn’t have cilantro but they were great without it.
Loved the butternut squash in the tacos! The cabbage slaw was fresh and tasty! So easy to put together!
Beautiful, delicious, and healthy! Could we ask for more? Oh, yes…forgot healthy!
I’m happy you are excited about this taco recipe! I appreciate your review.
Made these for the first time tonight, absolutely delicious snd filling! The roasted butternut squash is amazing!
Love these tacos and make them again and again. Simple, delicious, easy to customize. We just ate them again tonight with non-veg friends and everyone loved them.
I’m excited they were a hit, Jenna! Thank you for your review.
These are awesome! I used shredded brussel sprouts in place of the cabbage and it was delicious!
I have to say, I did have some doubts about this recipe. The pictures made it look so good. I wanted to try it. Other reviews said it was so good. I made it for lunch today and it was absolutely delicious! Definitely a winner. The beans were flavored so well, the butternut squash gave it a little sweetness and obviously you can’t go wrong with guacamole. Such a good and healthy taco! Thank you!!!
Hooray! I’m glad you tried it anyway.Thank you for sharing, Rachel!
Hi Kate,
These are delicious. I love the cabbage slaw! Just out of curiosity, I was wondering why the sodium is listed as so high? It did not seem to be much salt at all in this recipe. Thank you so much!
Hi Sierra, More on my nutrition information can be found in my disclaimer. There are other sources of sodium other than added salt (canned beans, etc). I hope this helps!
Ok, thank you for your reply!!
I loved these tacos! I wanted to add something unexpected and put matchstick slices of green apple in the slaw and it was amazing. You should definitely try.
This recipe is incredibleeee! Made it so much this past season to use up the butternut squashes coming in my CSA boxes every week. The coriander powder in the avocado mash makes such a difference! A sprinkling of cotija on top and a healthy dash of Tapatio makes it perfect. It’s like the winter counterpart to my favorite tacos to make in the summer, your sweet corn black bean tacos!
Thank you, Monica! I appreciate your review.
I just love these tacos! I just made them after not having them for 6 months or so. My mouth and stomach are SO very happy right now!
Thank you!
Hooray! Thank you for sharing, Donna.
One of my favorite recipes – and it’s so beautiful. I come back to it time and time again!
Very good and easy. We will make this again.
I followed this basic recipe but did make a few modifications:
– Instead of only chili powder on the butternut squash I used taco seasoning that I make a batch of to have on hand all of the time. It’s mostly chili powder but I also put into it a small amount of garlic powder, onion powder, cayenne pepper, oregano, smoked paprika, cumin, and white pepper.
– Speaking of butternut squash, I only used half of one that was about 2¼ pounds and it was plenty. With the squash and everything else, we had enough for 8 tacos. The recipe says that it yields 8 tacos but I would guess that if the quantities in the recipe are followed, it would yield more than that. Likewise, I only used one can of black beans and had more than enough slaw. I decreased the seasoning, lime juice, salt, etc, accordingly.
– I’m the only cilantro fan in my house but strangely, everyone is fine with crushed coriander seed. I used that in the slaw and had cilantro at the table that I added myself.
– From another recipe that I had earlier in the week, I had some leftover chopped red cabbage with some diced fennel bulb and shredded carrots added to it. I just used that and added a bit more red cabbage. When I make these again I’ll just use red cabbage.
– At the table, as I mentioned, I added cilantro. We also had toasted pepitas and feta and those were nice additions. And, of course, the guacamole. My vegan daughter didn’t use the feta.
– A comment about the nutritional information: I am wondering how you came up with 1589 mg of sodium. That is really a lot of sodium for one serving of food. Before I even made this recipe I looked it over and thought that there is no way there could be that much sodium. There is a small amount of salt in the chili powder that I use and I did not add a lot of extra salt before roasting the squash. I rinsed the black beans pretty thoroughly so there was not much sodium there. Also, the tortilla shells that I use do not have salt added to them. I realize that feta is a salty cheese so maybe that is where the sodium is? There is not a lot of naturally occurring sodium in the ingredients. Nevertheless, this is definitely a keeper.
Hi Ken, thank you for your detailed comment and sharing how you approached this soup. For more on the nutritional information, I recommend checking out my Nutrition Disclaimer
I’ve made this twice now and it’s delicious and healthy. Loved it!!!!
Great to hear, Sandi!
You can use peas in place of the avocado. The texture is the same and with enough spices you really can’t tell the difference.
This was soooo good. I followed the recipe exactly and it was a hit at our Mexican theme party. I did only use one can of beans abs it was plenty. I used the butternut squash from TJ’s so it was super easy
Thank you for sharing, Michelle! I appreciate your review.
These were pretty good but needed some work seasonings-wise. The proportions were way off as well. I have so much leftover slaw that I will be eating it for many meals.
I appreciate your feedback, Anne.
One of my favorite recipes- so good! And my son and husband love it too
I love to hear that, Su! Thank you for sharing.
This is a go-to in my house! My partner doesn’t love a ton of vegetarian mains, and he absolutely loves this. The cabbage slaw is a nice sub the typical shredded lettuce.
Great to hear, Sally! I appreciate your review.
Our family loves, loves, loves these tacos and I’m ready to serve them to guests coming over this week!
I am wondering two things.
1) What white or red wine would go well with these
?2) What small side dish would work well to make this a bit more of an entertainment meal?
Thank you for your help
Hi! You could serve these with a wine you prefer – I love a dry red. Mexican Brown Rice would be good with these too. Enjoy!
This was sooo yummy and easy! Leftovers were just as good, stored all in separate containers (as recommended). Will def make again! Thank you for the tasty recipe!
You’re welcome, Michelle! I’m delighted you enjoyed this recipe.
I landed on this recipe because we had squash and cabbage in our fridge about to go bad. I threw in a cauliflower with the squash, because that was on it’s last legs too. SO, SO GOOD! I think the cauliflower added a little extra texture making it feel a little more taco-y. Highly recommend. Thank you for sharing this recipe!
This is quite possibly the greatest meal I have ever had. My family is obsessed with it.
The flavors in this recipe are fabulous! I am giving 5 stars because of the flavors. My husband and I really enjoy it.
I am also hoping maybe someone can help me troubleshoot a problem. I cook A LOT, so I am no newbie in the kitchen; however, I don’t typically cook with butternut squash. I have made this recipe 3 times now, and every time I have ended up cooking the squash for about an hour and 15 minutes because prior to that it is just complete mush. They’re little cubes that disintegrate when I scoop them off of the baking sheet. I don’t live at high altitude, so that isn’t a factor. This time around I diced it up early in the morning and let it dry out all day (9 hours) thinking that maybe the water content was the culprit. It didn’t make a difference at all. Can anyone point me to a solve for the mushy squash issue, or do I just need to resign myself to the fact that it takes a reaaaally long time to cook? Or is the squash in this recipe supposed to turn out like a mash that you smear in the tortilla and the cabbage is the crunch factor? TIA fellow home cooks! :)
It sounds like the water content is likely the problem if its been left out all day. Have you had issues with other recipes? It could be an oven variation too.
Yum! Another great hit. Love all your recipes and this was no different. Really enjoyed the flavors. Thanks so much
You’re welcome, Courtney!
This was FABULOUS! I used 4 sweet potatoes instead of the butternut squash, precut organic coleslaw, organic jarred jalapeños, & store bought organic guacamole. My husband used flour tortillas, taco sauce, and hot sauce. Easy to add a side of taco meat for those that aren’t following a vegan diet. Definitely will make this again!
Do you have the nutritional information per serving of your recipe?
I’m happy to hear that, Susan! The nutritional information is below the notes section of the blog. You will need to click to expand.