Hibiscus Flower Tacos

Last Updated on January 18, 2023 by Catrina

Is there anything more lovely than eating flowers? I think not. And if you think like me, you’re going to love these hibiscus flower tacos. These tacos are savory, tart, and the perfect way to use the leftover hibiscus flowers from agua de jamaica. Plus, these tacos are vegan, making this a quick meat-alternative taco filling for your next meal.

Where to get hibiscus flowers

You may be wondering where the heck to find the hibiscus flowers used in this dish. It’s probably not an ingredient that you have used before or ever thought of making into a taco filling.

Luckily, these flowers are dried and then packaged for sale year-round, which means you can make these tacos in the dead of winter or in the heat of summer. Whenever the craving strikes.

In fact, you have probably breezed by a package of these in the Hispanic food aisle at your grocery store. So, take a look there first. These come packaged in bags labeled “flor de jamaica” in Spanish.

If you can’t find them at your major grocer, you could check your local Hispanic or Mexican food market or they can be ordered online.

Where are these tacos from?

Hibiscus flowers, at least as far as I am aware, aren’t your typical taco filling. But recently, I have noticed traditional Mexican foods (like tacos and tamales) with vegan and vegetarian options.

Vegan or even vegetarian food used to be hard to come by. Mexicans tend to eat lots of meat. And even dishes that are vegetable-heavy or that don’t include meat are often cooked with meat broth or lard (like sopa de fideo or Mexican red rice).

Now we know several families that are vegetarian and vegan. And more and more restaurants are catering to these diets by offering creative and flavorful dishes.

This dish was inspired by the delicious hibiscus flower tacos that I ate in Tepoztlan, Morelos at Mesa de Origen. The tacos were tart and savory, with a texture that was soft, but not mushy. The restaurant version included dried chiles, crunchy peanuts, and a hibiscus flower reduction.

My version doesn’t include any chopped peanut topping. And, I eliminated the chiles in my version so that the taco filling was completely mild. But, feel free to top with your salsa of choice if you need a bit of zip.

How to make hibiscus flower tacos

These tacos are simple and fast to make. Since these flowers come dried, you will first need to cook them so that they are tender. The instructions to do that are here.

Don’t discard the cooking water used for these tacos! This hibiscus flower tea makes a refreshing agua de jamaica!

With the flowers cooked, this recipe comes together fast!

Simply heat a bit of vegetable oil of your choice in a non-stick skillet until the oil is hot. Fry the chopped onion for a couple of minutes until soft, then add in the tomatoes. Continue to fry the ingredients for a couple of minutes more. Add in the hibiscus flowers, stir everything together and cook until the ingredients are warmed through and the flavors blended.

Divide the filling evenly between 6 warm 6-inch corn tortillas and enjoy!

That’s it! I told you it was simple!

I love to add a bit of sliced avocado to make these more filling. And I think these tacos pair perfectly with a dried chile salsa, like this chile morita salsa or salsa de chile pasilla.

Did you try this dish? Let me know in the comments!

Inspiration: Mesa de Origen, Tepoztlan, Morelos