For a delicious meal that’s ready in minutes, vegan wraps are impossible to beat. Just like sandwiches, they require zero cooking skills, take only minutes to prepare, and there is no end to the sorts of wraps you can prepare. Quite a few wraps don’t require heating anything up or dirtying a pan, so cleanup time is minimal. In this article, I’ll quickly explain the wrap concept, and then I’ll move on to give you more than a dozen delicious ideas for making wraps at home. Just a few minutes spent here will give you the know-how to prepare one of the easiest and most versatile meals in the vegan repertoire.
The Perfect Easy Meal for Vegans
While restaurants often serve wraps that are loaded with meat and cheese, vegan offerings are quite common. And when you make your own wraps, they can be vegan every time since you’re in charge of what goes into them.
The key to making a perfect vegan wrap is to balance the dry ingredients sufficiently with the wet ingredients. You want enough moisture that the wrap holds together, but not so much that it drips while being eaten.
Depending on what you’re making, a spoonful or two of salsa, salad dressing, or hummus can provide just the right amount of moisture.
Choosing a Tortilla
Wraps tend to be big meals, so you’ll generally want to use a large tortilla (at least 12″ in diameter) to make your wrap. Lavash is a terrific alternative to tortillas and is well worth seeking out. If you are unfamiliar with lavash, here’s a fantastic video showing the traditional baking method in Armenia.
The tortilla used to make a wrap may be made of white flour, whole wheat, or sprouted grains. Whole wheat or sprouted grains are much healthier choices than white flour. Nearly all tortillas sold today are vegan, whereas a few decades ago most white flour tortillas contained lard. Always check the ingredients to confirm the brand’s vegan status. And never use corn tortillas since they’ll fall apart when rolled, and most are too small anyway for a proper wrap.
It’s best to warm your tortilla for a few seconds in either a microwave or on a skillet, especially if you’ve kept your tortillas refrigerated. This will make the tortilla less likely to tear when you roll your wrap, and it’ll also bring out more flavor. Most Mexican places use specialized equipment to steam their tortillas before rolling a burrito. This is the ideal way to go. Unfortunately, tortilla steamers are too unwieldy and expensive to be practical for home kitchens.
For added texture, you can also lightly brown your completed wrap by frying it on each side in a little oil, or sticking it into a panini press.
Vegan Wrap Fillings
Here are some delicious selections to try:
- Brown or basmati rice
- Spiced beans, either whole or refried
- Raw or sautéed vegetables
- Salsa
- Guacamole
- Scrambled tofu
- Hummus
- Beyond Chicken Pieces or other vegan chicken-style or beef-style strips
- Chopped greens
- Nut butters
- Grated vegan cheese
- Chopped cabbage
- Baked tofu slices or sautéed tofu cubes
- Dal
- Avocado slices
- Vegan sour cream
- Sprouts
As with salads, go for as many colors as possible. This will make your wraps more visually appealing, and also add flavors and textures. I always make sure to include at least one protein-rich filling for my wraps, as it adds heft and increases satiety.
Sauces and Seasonings
Before you roll up your wrap, you can further jazz things up by adding:
- Vegan mayonnaise
- Hot sauce
- Roasted sesame oil
- Pickled cucumbers, cabbage, or peppers
- Tahini sauce (tahini mixed with water, lemon juice, and garlic)
- Salad dressing
- Peanut sauce
And a dusting of your favorite herb or spice mix, or some freshly-ground pepper, will add even more zing.
Convert Your Favorite Sandwich to a Wrap
Add some diversity to your diet by converting your favorite sandwich into a wrap. A nut butter and jam wrap is a terrific variation of the classic sandwich, and can be prepared in seconds. Likewise, no meal is quicker to prepare than a wrap made from store-bought hummus and sprouts. Keep some large vegan tortillas in your refrigerator and you’ll discover that many savory leftovers make excellent wrap fillings.
As you can see, when it comes to vegan wraps you’ve got limitless possibilities.
