Collard Wrap Tacos with Citrus Slaw Recipe

Collard green wraps make these tacos one of the healthiest dinners around. With a bright citrus slaw & tangy sunflower cream, they're delicious, too.

I love tortillas as much as the next person. Actually, I take that back. I probably love tortillas more than the average person, but today I’m ditching them to wrap taco-like things with green wraps instead. This lightened-up “taco” recipe is inspired by these gorgeous collard greens that were in my Farmhouse box a little while ago. How pretty are they??

Along with local oranges, a chunk of red cabbage, a few limes, and an avocado, these wraps became a brighter, healthier version of fish tacos. The collard greens make delicious wrappers, but the key is to blanch them a little bit first. By dipping them in boiling water for about 10 seconds and putting them in an ice water bath, they soften and become a little less bitter in flavor.

Instead of a sour cream type of sauce, I served these with my go-to creamy sauce that’s made out of sunflower seeds. I also added chipotle spices for a little kick. I should mention that you can use any protein you like here – I often make these with seared tofu (from this recipe) or tempeh (from this recipe).

If you love using collards instead of tortillas, try these collard green burritos next! Or, if you’re looking for another taco recipe to try, make these yummy many-veggie tacos.

4.8 from 4 reviews

Collard Wrap Tacos with Citrus Slaw

Prep time

20 mins

Cook time

10 mins

Total time

30 mins

Ditch the tortillas tonight and make your tacos in collard wraps! This fresh take on a fish taco works with a protein of your choice - I like tofu & tempeh, but real fish works too. Gluten-free.

Author: Jeanine Donofrio

Recipe type: Main dish

Serves: 3 to 4

Ingredients

6 to 8 medium collard leaves
2 cups shredded red cabbage
2 small oranges, segmented, plus remaining juice
2 scallions, chopped
Juice and zest of 1 lime, plus lime wedges for serving
Sea salt
Cooked protein of choice* (see note below)
1 avocado, cubed
Chopped cilantro

creamy chipotle sunflower sauce:

1¼ cups sunflower seeds
1 cup water
1 garlic clove
1 tablespoon white wine vinegar
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
½ teaspoon sea salt
Chipotle paste or powder, to taste

Instructions

Make the chipotle sun cheese: In a blender, puree the sunflower seeds, water, garlic, vinegar, lemon juice, salt and chipotle paste or powder. Taste and adjust seasonings. Chill until ready to use.
In a medium bowl, mix together the shredded cabbage, orange segments, any juice you can squeeze out of remaining orange rinds, scallions, lime juice, lime zest, and a few generous pinches of salt. Chill for at least 10 minutes, or until ready to use. Taste and adjust seasonings just before you serve.
Prepare a medium pot of salted boiling water and a large bowl of ice water. Dip the collard leaves one at a time into the boiling water for 10 to 20 seconds until they turn bright green. Remove and immediately immerse into the ice water to cool for about 15 seconds. Place on papers towels to dry. Repeat with the remaining collard leaves. Before assembling, trim off the coarse part of the stem.
Assemble the wraps with the protein of your choice, the cabbage slaw, avocado and cilantro. Serve with the chipotle sun cheese and additional lime wedges.

Notes

If you use tempeh, use the cooking method from this recipe.
If you use tofu, use the cooking method from this recipe
If you use fish, drizzle tilapia with olive oil, a pinch of paprika, salt and pepper, and bake in a 350 degree oven for about 8 minutes, or until it flakes with a fork.