Spicy Black Bean Burritos

June 19, 2019

#food #yummy

Hand Grabbing Half of a Black Bean Burrito

Easy, delicious, and incredibly satisfying, these black bean burritos are the weeknight dinner you need in your life. Made with layers of spicy black beans, coconut rice, and creamy avocado slices, these vegan burritos are great for meal-prep and easy on your budget!

Hand Grabbing Half of a Black Bean Burrito

We’re entering the season where I don’t feel like doing much of anything. Even cooking. And I love to cook! But we’ve had a few hot days already, and the last thing I want to do is sweat it out over a hot stove on those days.

So I’m planning ahead. I’ve never been that big on meal prep, but I can get on board during the hot summer months, especially when it involves burritos.

You really can’t go wrong with burritos. They’re cheap, easy to make, and everybody loves burritos! And fortunately for those of us in search of some convenient meal prep recipes, they’re great for making ahead.

I like to make the rice and fillings for these burritos in advance, and then just reheat and stuff them for dinner. But you can also completely assemble the burritos and freeze them if you prefer.

Elements of a Burrito

Two Halves of a Black Bean Burrito Stacked and Held Together with a Skewer

So what’s the difference between a burrito and say, a wrap, you may be wondering. Is a burrito just a wrap that has Mexican-flavored food in it? Well, yes and no. In a burrito you’ll typically find your main filling (in this case beans), some rice (a coconut-cilantro-lime rice here), and various fixings and/or sauces (hot sauce, avocado and cilantro in this one).

The Rice

Hand Stirring a Pot of Cilantro Lime Rice

Confession: I’ll sometimes cheat and leave the rice out of my burritos. That’s just me being lazy! And it’s fine to do, but rice in a burrito is awesome because it sucks up just a bit of the moisture from the beans, making your burrito more solid and easier to handle. (In other words, less sloppy!).

For these burritos I used basmati rice, which isn’t exactly traditional, but it works really well with the seasonings in this recipe and cooks up rather quickly. If you want to substitute another type of rice, that’s fine with me! Adjust the amount of liquid and cook time according to the package directions.

You’ll be cooking your rice with a mix of water and coconut milk. Once it’s finished cooking, season the rice with some lime juice, cilantro, and salt.

How to Make Black Bean Burrito Filling

Collage Showing How to Cook Black Bean Burrito Filling: Sauté Onions and Spices, Add Beans and Water, Mash, and Add Cilantro

Start by sautéing some onion in a bit of oil. Once the onion softens up and begins to brown, add some garlic and Mexican spices. You’re going to toast the spices for a minute before adding everything else.

Once the mixture becomes very fragrant, add in your beans and some water. Let the beans simmer for a few minutes to soften up, and then mash up some of the beans with a fork or potato masher. I like to do this for about half of them, but do as you see fit.

Take your beans off the heat and stir in some fresh cilantro, a squeeze of lime, salt and pepper. Give them a taste test and feel free to adjust any seasonings as needed.

Wrapping a Burrito

Collage Showing How to Wrap a Burrito: Arrange Fillings in Center, Fold Side of Tortilla Over Fillings, Fold Sides in, and Roll Burrito Away From You

This can be tricky and it took me forever to get.

First arrange your fillings in a small strip down the center of the burrito. You’ll need less than you think!

Fold the side of the tortilla closest to you over the fillings, then fold the outer sides in over the first fold. It needs to be tight! If it doesn’t feel tight enough at this point, take a hand and shove the fillings back into that first fold that you made.

Now roll everything away from you, again keeping it tight!

Don’t fret if your first one comes out a mess. Take the fillings out and try again, or just eat your burrito with a fork.

Two Halves of a Black Bean Burrito On Deli Paper

FAQ & Tips for Making Awesome Black Bean Burritos

  • Make ahead option number 1: Cook the beans and rice, then store them in the fridge. When ready to serve, reheat and stuff into tortillas with avocado, hot sauce, cilantro, and/or any other fillings you like.
  • Make ahead option number 2: Make the burritos, then wrap each one individually in foil or paper, arrange the burritos in freezer bags and freeze. When ready to use, thaw and reheat by microwaving for about 2 minutes or baking at 400° for about 8 minutes.
  • Switch things up by skipping the tortilla and making burrito bowls.
  • Can these burritos be made gluten-free? Yes! Just use your favorite gluten-free tortillas.
  • Want to use a different type of bean? Pinto, kidney and navy beans would work great!

Pair of Hands Holding Two Halves of a Black Bean Burrito

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Spicy Black Bean Burritos

Easy, delicious, and incredibly satisfying, these black bean burritos are the weeknight dinner you need in your life. Made with layers of spicy black beans, coconut rice, and creamy avocado slices, these vegan burritos are great for meal-prep and easy on your budget!

For the Rice

  • 1 cup basmati rice
  • 3/4 cup water
  • 3/4 cup light coconut milk ((from a can))
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1 tablespoon lime juice
  • 1/4 cup fresh cilantro

For the Black Bean Filling

  • 1 tablespoon canola oil, (or high-heat oil of choice)
  • 1 medium onion, (diced)
  • 3 garlic cloves, (minced)
  • 1 jalapeño pepper, (seeded and minced (optional, or use half a pepper for a milder version))
  • 1 tablespoon ground cumin
  • 1 teaspoon ancho chile powder
  • 1 teaspoon dried oregano
  • 2 (14 ounce or 400 ml) cans black beans, (drained and rinsed)
  • 1/2 cup water, (plus more as needed)
  • 2 tablespoons lime juice
  • 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
  • Salt and pepper to taste

For Wrapping and Serving

  • 6 large (10-inch) flour tortillas
  • 1 avocados, (sliced)
  • Fresh cilantro
  • Hot sauce or salsa

To Make The Rice

  1. Stir the rice, water, coconut milk, and salt together in a small saucepan and place it over medium-high heat.

  2. Heat the liquid, stirring frequently, until it comes to a boil.

  3. Lower the heat until the liquid is at a low simmer. Cover the pot and allow the rice to simmer for 15 minutes, until all of the liquid is absorbed.

  4. Remove the pot from heat and let it sit for 5 minutes with the lid on.

  5. Remove the lid and stir in the lime juice and cilantro. Taste-test and add more salt if desired.

  6. Replace the lid until you're ready to use the rice.

To Make the Black Bean Filling

  1. While the rice cooks, coat the bottom of a large skillet with oil and place it over medium-high heat.

  2. Give the oil a minute to heat up, and then add the onion.

  3. Sauté the onion for about 4 minutes, until soft and just beginning to brown.

  4. Stir in the garlic, jalapeño pepper, cumin, ancho chile powder, and oregano.

  5. Sauté everything for about 1 minute more, until very fragrant.

  6. Stir in the beans and 1/2 cup of water.

  7. Bring the water to a boil, lower the heat and simmer for about 10 minutes, until the beans soften up a bit, adding more water as it dries up in the skillet.

  8. Use a fork or potato masher to mash about half the beans.

  9. If needed, stir in more water to get your filling to your desired consistency, and heat for another minute, then remove the skillet from heat.

  10. Stir in the lime juice, cilantro, and salt to taste. Adjust any other seasonings to your liking.

To Roll the Burritos

  1. Arrange about a sixth of the rice in a small strip down the center of a tortilla. Top the rice with a strip of about a sixth of the beans, then a few avocado slices, cilantro, and hot sauce or salsa.

  2. Orient the tortilla so that the strip runs perpendicular to you, then fold the side of the tortilla closest to you over the fillings.

  3. Fold opposite sides of the tortilla inward, then roll the burrito away from you.

  4. Repeat until all fillings and tortillas are used, then serve.

The post Spicy Black Bean Burritos appeared first on Connoisseurus Veg.





Recipe

Alissa Saenz, Khareem Sudlow

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