I love a good vegan breakfast burrito- tofu scramble, hash browns or tater tots, soyrizo or vegan sausage- the works. So why this veggie-filled one with none of those things in sight? Well, for one, it’s just good plus bonus: it’s pretty healthy. The vegan substitutes are delicious for sure but not the healthiest thing to have on repeat.
The real story behind this burrito was actually a happy accident. When I used to work my corporate job and worked in the office (pre-pandemic, obviously) we had a little cafeteria on site that served breakfast and lunch. In the mornings they would do short-order things like breakfast burritos, omelets, things like that. They had a hot bar with roasted potatoes (maybe home fries?) and hash browns. I definitely ate my fair share of the roasted potatoes, slathered in hot sauce and dipped in ketchup. I only saw one other person order just potatoes once and it was a solidarity moment- you know the vegans are the only ones ordering only potatoes.
Anyway, not that I ate there often, but there were times where I would be hungry but not in the mood for potatoes. So eventually I started asking if they would make me a burrito. Because of the short-order set up, they had chopped veggies ready for omelettes. Most of the chefs knew me, so asking for a burrito with ALL the veggies but with no egg, cheese, or meat wasn’t that weird to them, but every once in a while someone new would take my order and they would be so confused, haha! But it was actually really good, especially if they added avocado, and always with the roasted salsa verde, always.
Recipe Notes
This burrito is my exact recreation of this veggie burrito, and I had to include the salsa verde to make it complete. The thing with this burrito is the fillings themselves are quite bland, and can be boring, so seasoning is really your friend here. Not to the point where food tastes salty, but enough to bring out the flavors of each component, especially the hash browns.
The salsa verde is adapted from this recipe. I tried it with both poblano and jalapeño, and while I prefer the jalapeño, you could use either, especially if you’re sensitive to spice. Even using jalapeño the recipe is not that spicy at all, just very flavorful.
Veggie Breakfast Burrito Recipe Variations
Salsa- While this salsa is super easy to make, if scratch-making salsa does not appeal to you, I have seen plenty decent looking ones at the store, feel free to just buy one. Or, substitute for any salsa you prefer.
Veggies- I’ve made mine with the veggies that came from my inspiration burrito, but feel free to use whatever you like or have on hand.
Recipe
Recipe
Veggie Breakfast Burrito with Roasted Salsa Verde
Ingredients
Burrito Ingredients
- 3 tbsp olive oil, divided
- 8 oz frozen hashbrowns (½ of a 16oz bag)
- ½ cup red bell pepper, diced
- ½ cup green bell pepper, diced
- ½ cup red onion, diced
- 2 handfuls spinach
- ½ avocado
- 2 burrito size tortillas
- salt
- pepper
- salsa verde, for serving
Salsa Verde
- 1 lb tomatillos
- 2 cloves garlic
- 1 yellow onion
- 1 jalepeño (use poblano for less spice)
- ½ cup cilantro
- 1 tsp salt
- juice of 1 lime
Instructions
Make the Salsa Verde
- Prep all ingredients. Peel the husk from the tomatillos. Cut the end off the onion, cut in half and peel the outer layer. Peel the garlic cloves.
- Roast the ingredients. Roast tomatillos and jalepeño, onion and garlic are option, though I did include. I roasted mine on a cast iron pan, but you could broil in the oven or roast over an open flame as well. Roast until the skin darkens.
- Add roasted veggies along with the remaining ingredients into a food processor, pulse until desired consistency is achieved. Set aside.
Make the Burrito
- Start with the hasbrowns. To a skillet, heat 2 tbsp olive oil. Once heated, add the frozen hashbrowns. Season generously with salt and pepper, seasoned salt is really good here too if you have it. Leave hashbrowns alone, one the edges are starting to turn golden brown, flip with a spatula, trying to flip as much as possible in a single flip. Cook this side until golden brown, remove from heat.
- Meanwhile, chop bell peppers and onion. To another pan, add the remaining tbsp of olive oil. Cook the pepper and onion, season with salt and pepper. Once they start to soften (5 minutes or so) add the spinach and cook until slightly wilted. Remove from heat.
Assemble the Burrito
- Heat tortillas on a flame, pan, or griddle. To each tortilla add the cooked hashbrowns, the veggie mixure, and avocado. Fold burrito and put it back onto the pan or griddle to grill the burrito, flipping once so both sides are cooked.
- Once burritos are grilled, serve with a side of roasted tomatillo salsa.
