These super tasty Black Bean Quesadillas have been a runaway Budget Bytes hit since they were first posted in 2012. The spicy mix of cheese, beans, corn, cilantro, and onion makes and incredibly flavorful quesadilla that’s perfect for dipping in some cool sour cream or salsa. Make up an entire batch and freeze some for later!
Why I’m In Love with These Quesadillas ❤️
I love these quesadillas for three reasons:
- they’re bursting with flavor
- incredibly EASY to make
- perfect for the freezer!
Students and other busy people take note: this recipe is perfect for you!
I called them “hearty” black bean quesadillas because they are surprisingly filling. I hastily ate two and then promptly felt like my belly was not just full, but full-full. This is one of those vegetarian recipes that meat-eaters won’t feel deprived when eating. Promise.
How to Freeze Hearty Black Bean Quesadillas
These quesadillas are perfect for freezing and will last two to three months in the freezer. Just fill and fold your quesadillas, but before you cook them, stack them with parchment paper in between each quesadilla. Place the stacked quesadillas in a gallon-sized freezer bag (or two) and pop them into the freezer. When you want to eat one, take a quesadilla out of the freezer and reheat it slowly over medium-low heat until the outside is crispy and the inside has melted. Using a lower heat gives the black bean quesadilla time to thaw and heat on the inside before the outside overcooks or burns.
Or, for a faster method, microwave from frozen for 30-60 seconds, or until the inside is thawed, then finish in a skillet to crisp up the outside and melt the cheese on the inside.
What Kind of Taco Seasoning to Use
To make these black bean quesadillas super fast and easy, you can use a packet of store-bought taco seasoning. Or, if you have a well-stocked spice cabinet, you can use my homemade taco seasoning recipe
What to Serve with Quesadillas
I love to have something like Cumin Lime Coleslaw on the side for an extra dose of vegetable freshness. Warm Corn and Avocado Salad or Charred Corn and Zucchini Salad are also great choices. And don’t forget a little salsa or sour cream for dipping. :)
Make it Meaty
These black bean quesadillas are incredible on their own, but if you DO decide you want to add some meat, try adding some Slow Cooker Pulled Pork, ground beef, Carnitas, or something as simple as chicken breast cooked in a skillet, then diced. They’d all be delish!
Hearty Black Bean Quesadillas
Servings 10 quesadillasIngredients
- 1 15oz.can black beans ($0.49)
- 1 cup frozen corn ($0.20)
- 1/2 cup red onion ($0.22)
- 1 clove garlic ($0.08)
- 1/4 bunch fresh cilantro (about ½ cup chopped) ($0.20)
- 2 cups shredded cheddar cheese ($1.69)
- 1 batch taco seasoning* ($0.67)
- 10 flour tortillas (7-inch diameter) ($2.00)
Instructions
- Drain the black beans and add them to a bowl along with the frozen corn (no need to thaw)
- Finely dice the onion, mince the garlic, and roughly chop the cilantro.
- Add the onion, garlic, cilantro, shredded cheddar, and taco seasoning to the bowl with the beans and corn. Stir until everything is evenly combined and coated in seasoning.
- Place a half cup of the filling on one side of each tortilla and fold over. Cook the quesadillas in a skillet over medium heat on each side until brown and crispy and the cheesy filling has melted. Slice into triangles then serve.
- To freeze the quesadillas, stack the filled and uncooked quesadillas with a piece of parchment paper between each quesadilla. Place in a freezer bag and freeze for up to three months. To reheat either microwave (for a soft quesadilla) or cook in a skillet on low heat (make sure to use low heat so that the filling has time to thaw and melt before the outside burns).
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Notes
Nutrition
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Scroll down for the step by step photos
How to Make Black Bean Quesadillas – Step By Step Photos
Add 1 cup frozen corn (no need to thaw) and one 15oz. can of black beans (drained) to a large bowl.
Next, finely dice about ½ cup red onion, mince one clove of garlic, and roughly chop about ¼ bunch fresh cilantro. These ingredients are super flexible, so you don’t need to be exact on the measurements.
You can use either one packet of store-bought taco seasoning, or make your own using my Homemade Taco Seasoning recipe.
Add the taco seasoning and 2 cups shredded cheddar cheese to the bowl. The cheese is the “glue” that holds the quesadillas together.
Stir the ingredients until everything is mixed.
Now it’s time to stuff the quesadillas. You’ll need about 10 7-inch diameter flour tortillas for these quesadillas (the tortillas I had today were slightly larger so my quesadillas ended up being a bit thinner). Place a half cup of filling in each tortilla and fold it over. You can either cook them or freeze them at this point (see instructions for freezing in the post above the recipe).
To cook the black bean quesadillas, place the quesadilla in a skillet over medium heat and cook on both sides until golden brown, crispy, and the filling has melted. I don’t use any sort of oil or butter, but you certainly can if you want more of a fried finish to the quesadillas.
Slice then serve! You can slice each quesadilla into two or three pieces. I find that if I cut starting on the outside edge going in toward the center fold, I get less of the filling oozing out. A pizza cutter also works great!
I also add a squeeze of one lime, brightens up the whole dish.
This sounds great, thank you. And an extra thank you for putting the recipe first. On most sites you have to scroll past tons of pics just to get to the recipe. I usually don’t bother. I’ll visit your site regularly.
Good recipe––with modifications. I reduced the amount of pepper to tone down the heat a bit and I was glad I did. The quesadillas were sufficiently spicing using less pepper in the Taco Seasoning. I used 2 teaspoons of chili powder instead of 1 tablespoon and cut the cayenne in half (1/8 teaspoon instead of 1/4). To increase the vegetable content, I added 1 cup grated (squeesed dry) zucchini, 1 diced avocado, and some grated carrot to the filling. Next time plan to add some sauteed mushrooms and spinach as well. Of course, doing so will compromise the simplicity of the recipe (will add another step and dirty another skillet) but to my mind the trade off would be worth it. Lastly, one final element of the recipe that I did not care for was the rawness of the garlic. The next time I make the recipe I plan to sautee the garlic (along with some mushrooms) to mellow out the harshness of the garlic.
This was amazing! My whole family loved it!
I made these last week and they were wonderful! Super easy and tasty. Thank you! :)
Has anyone cooked them first and then put them in the freezer successfully? Thanks!
The only reason I suggest against cooking them before freezing is that you’ll lose the crispness of the tortilla when it thaws. So I suggest filling and folding, then freezing. Then reheat it in a skillet so that it gets crisp as the inside warms up.
First – these are EASY and delicious! However, I had some issues with the corn tortillas breaking and ended up using two, with the filling in between them. I may have rinsed the beans too much, not sure, but it didn’t matter because they were delicious. Also, I added a green pepper and chicken breast so the recipe yielded far more than it should have (bonus!)
I especially loved following your recipe for homemade taco seasoning. I’ll never buy bagged again!
THANK YOU!
Would it be okay to use a yellow onion?
I think sliced green onions would provide better flavor.
I used a yellow onion and it was just fine!
What is the serving size? How many can you have at a meal? It says “servings 10 each”. I don’t think It means 10.
Thank you, I would love to make these if I can find out many you get for 243 calories…
Sorry, the serving info got messed up when I switched to the new recipe card plugin. The recipe makes 10 quesadillas, but how many you eat per serving is very variable from person to person, or whether you’re making it a meal with side dishes, or just eating it as a snack.
I had some zucchini to use up so I added 1 c.
grated and squeezed. Nice recipe
How many calories do these have?
Nutrition (per serving): Calories: 243; Total Fat: 7g; Saturated Fat: 4g; Monounsaturated Fat: 2g; Cholesterol: 15mg; Sodium: 501mg; Carbohydrate: 37g; Dietary Fiber: 7g; Sugar: 2g; Protein: 11g
This was absolutely delicious! I hope my husband enjoys them, so I can put them in our dinner options for our busy nights!
I just made this tonight and used sprouted grain tortillas, turned out absolutely wonderful! Thanks for the awesome recipe!
I made these tonight, they turned out great!! I got all the ingredients at Aldi’s. Instead of taco seasoning mix, I used burrito seasoning mix (they didn’t have the taco). That is the only substitution I made. The red onion and garlic give this a lot of flavor also.
Nevermind; just found answer in older comments. I use your site all the time; thanks!