So, I broke down last week and bought a burrito from the hospital cafeteria for lunch. It was SO good, but at $5.50 for the least expensive option, I knew I could do better.
I just finished tallying my cost for this recipe and I have to say, I’m sure I could have done much better. To be fair, I didn’t do any comparison shopping, I just ran in, got what I needed, and ran out. So, you might be able to make these for far less than I did. I did, however, make my own black beans instead of buying cans. That saved me a dollar or two. Oh, and I lucked out with the red bell peppers – on sale 10/$10! That’s a SUPER good price.
I seasoned up some regular old white rice, added my black beans (you can season those too, if you’d like), and then topped those with some amazing roasted vegetables. Roasting vegetables intensifies their flavor, and when you add herbs like I did, they become even more amazing. I suggest using whatever vegetables you can get for a good price (I was a bad example here), but the mushrooms really did make this special. So, get the mushrooms if at all possible!
Now I have 8 awesome burritos in my freezer just waiting to be grabbed for lunch in the morning. The recipe is enough for 10, but I already ate one burrito and I had previously used one of the tortillas for something else. To reaheat just place in a microwavable dish and nuke until hot.
Roasted Vegetable Burritos
Roasted Vegetable Burritos
Servings 10Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups uncooked long grain white rice ($0.75)
- 1 tsp salt ($0.05)
- 1/2 Tbsp chili powder ($0.07)
- 1 zucchini ($1.65)
- 1 red onion ($1.93)
- 1 red bell pepper ($1.00)
- 8 oz. mushrooms ($1.49)
- 1/2 tsp salt ($0.02)
- 1/2 tsp ground cumin ($0.03)
- 1/2 tsp dried oregano ($0.03)
- 2 Tbsp olive oil ($0.32)
- 10 large flour tortillas ($2.99)
- 2 15oz. cans black beans ($0.75)
- 2 1/2 cups shredded cheese ($2.31)
- 1 bunch fresh cilantro ($0.75)
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 400 degrees. Chop the zucchini, bell pepper, onion, and mushrooms into bite-sized pieces. Toss the vegetables with 2 Tbsp olive oil, 1/2 tsp salt, 1/2 tsp cumin, and 1/2 tsp oregano. Spread the vegetables out over a large sheet pan and roast for 40 minutes, stirring once half way through.
- Combine the rice in a medium pot with 1 tsp of salt and 1/2 Tbsp of chili powder. Add 3 cups of water, place a lid on top, and bring up to a boil over high heat. As soon as it reaches a full boil, turn the heat down to the lowest setting and allow it to simmer for 20 minutes. After 20 minutes, turn the heat off and let it sit undisturbed until you’re ready to assemble the burritos. Fluff the rice just before using.
- When you’re ready to make the burritos, stack a few tortillas on a large plate, place a damp paper towel over top, and microwave for 30 seconds. This will make the tortillas more pliable as you wrap the burritos.
- Place 1/4-1/3 cup of rice on a tortilla, add 1/4 cup of black beans, 1/3 cup of the roasted vegetables, 1/4 cup of shredded cheese, and a handful of fresh cilantro leaves. Roll the burrito tightly and wrap in plastic until ready to eat.
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Notes
Nutrition
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Step By Step Photos
Since the vegetables take the longest to cook, get them going first. You can use any mix of vegetables, but I like to make sure that I have an onion, some type of pepper, and some mushrooms. The mushrooms get ULTRA delicious when roasted.
Cut the vegetables into bite-sized chunks and then toss with olive oil, salt, cumin, and oregano.
Spread the seasoned vegetables out over a large baking sheet (cover with foil for easy clean up). Roast the vegetables in a preheated oven for 40 minutes, stirring once half way through.
Now the vegetables are all roasted and totally delicious. Try not to snack on them :)
While the vegetables are roasting, you can cook the rice. Combine the dry rice in a medium pot along with salt and chili powder. Add 3 cups of water, put a lid on top, and bring up to a boil over high heat. As soon as it reaches a boil, reduce the heat to low and let it simmer for 20 minutes. After 20 minutes, turn the heat off and let it sit, undisturbed, until you’re ready to make the burritos. Fluff the rice just before using.
When you’re ready to assemble, you can make the tortillas more pliable by microwaving them with a damp paper towel over top. I do a few at a time as I’m making the burritos.
It’s really easy to accidentally over fill the burritos to the point that you can’t roll them up. So, you might have to play around with the quantities. I used about 1/4 to 1/3 cup of rice and 1/4 cup of beans per burrito.
…and about 1/3 cup of roasted vegeatbles.
And lastly, 1/4 cup of shredded cheese and a small handfull of fresh cilantro.
Roll the burritos up and wrap each one in plastic. To freeze, place them in a heavy duty freezer bag.
Hahah, okay, I had to document this… this is the first and last time my freezer will ever be so clean, neat, and tidy! See what a hurricane can do for you? :D
Your recipe reminded me of happier times trying to survive a strict budget.
Wow, look at that freezer: frozen burritos, ice and VODKA – my kind of girl! :D
Thanks for the recipe – tried to make them without one and it was complete disaster. So awesome – I do a search for what I’m craving and all roads always seem to lead to your site!
These are fabulous as written.
Second time I used:
-refried beans (family preference)
-added roasted carrots and broccoli
-rolled (open ended), poured mild chili verde over w/ a little more cheese (agree w/ earlier reviewer, the cheese inside really isn’t necessary)
It’s the roasted veggies that seal the deal. Thanks Beth!
Fantastic! I “invented” an almost identical recipe 30+ years ago and it was a family staple for years. It fell by the wayside and early this morning I spent an hour going thru stacks of recipe cards trying to find it. While that brought back many great memories, no joy in finding my recipe. Thru the wonders of the internet, this Fantastic recipe so close to what I remember that it more than fits the bill.
I love this recipe. This and the zucchini corn burritos are a staple in this mostly vegetarian house. The only thing I do differently is make only a cup of rice and keep the seasoning the same (it was a little bland before) and after I season the veggies together and put them on the sheet I sprinkle a little extra cumin and oregano. I do this because the first batch I made felt a little bland on its own. It was perfect reheated with some avocado and fresh salsa on top. I’ve made so many of these because it’s easy to reheat and feel like I’m eating a relatively healthy, fresh lunch.
For those wondering how to reheat from frozen. The best, fastest way I’ve found is to loosely wrap in a slightly damp paper towel (helps keeps the ends from drying out) and heating in microwave for around 2 minutes, Then tossing in a pan over medium heat until you get a nice gold crust on all sides. Tastes like it’s freshly made.
Yum!
I thought this might be a little too simple for my taste, I’m from Texas and eat a lot of tex-mex lol. But after grilling the burritos on the stove top and letting them rest for a minute, they were wonderful. I did use chicken stock instead of water for the rice, and instead of plain salt I used a salted fajita seasoning for the veggies. The cilantro is key for me, and grilling them on a stove top grill pan really gave them a great texture. Very happy with how these turned out!
These were excellent. I wanted to try to mimic my favorite veggie burritos from a local restaurant and these were amazingly PERFECT. It’s my first time trying something like this and i was so happy to serve and eat these. Thanks!!
Great work Beth!
These are so delicious words cannot describe how yummy these are!!! And I have 8 more in the freezer for lunch, thank you thank you :) I am going to share this recipe with my daughter in college. I cannot get over how incredibly tasty these are. Great work!
Great work! Thank you!
I vary your cooking style a bit. Add tomatoes and fry them up with olive oil and add hatch green chili’s with the other veggies. Also serve with fresh avocado slices. These are definitely better when the veggies are cooked ahead of time and left to sit overnight intensifying the flavor.
Thank you for such a simple, flexible and delicious recipe!
How long are they good in the freezer for?
There is no hard time limit, rather frozen goods tend to slowly degrade in quality over time. I like to try to use up my frozen food within three months for the best quality.
These look great! Looking for some easy freezer meals to pop in and eat before going to the gym. How long would they take to heat up in the oven from frozen?
Hmm, I’m not sure. I always used the microwave! It will probably vary depending on the size of your burrito, as well.
Just wanted to report back and throw my 2 cents in. I made a batch to freeze and they’re so simple but so delicious! Reheat from frozen at 400 degrees for 30 mins. Thanks Beth!
My husband and I made these last weekend, and they’ve been a huge hit. We’re vegan, so we used vegan cheese, and we don’t like cilantro, so we just left that part out. Also used brown rice instead of white, because that’s what we had on hand. Otherwise, we made them according to your directions. Honestly, we may also leave the cheese out next time, because it didn’t really add much. The roasted veggies (especially the red onion – wow!) are the stars here, and really pull everything together. I had one this morning for breakfast straight out of the fridge, no warming up or anything, and it was so tasty – the flavors had actually improved sitting in the fridge for a couple days. My husband liked how easy and quick they were to cook and assemble – roasting veggies takes time, but after the chopping you can mostly walk away and do something else while they cook. We will definitely make again. In fact, we may double (or triple) the recipe and stock up our freezer with these things! Thank you for the fantastic recipe.
I made this for the 2nd time last night and added butternut squash. It was AMAZING. Thanks for the great recipe!
I made them for the first time today and they are delicious! So handy to have batch of them in the freezer to take out when I’m too tired to cook. Thank you for a great recipe!
Fantastic! Just made the first batch and will make many more in the future.
Such a great idea! Made these twice now and love having such a convenient and healthy option for a quick lunch or dinner! The second time I decreased the rice to 1 cup dry and upped the veggies because we liked it better that way. Also added some salsa as others suggested. This will be a regular in our house – thank you!!
I’m about to give these a try! Could you tell me what you did to brown the outside of the tortilla so nicely?
I just place the wrapped burrito in a dry skillet over medium heat and let it brown and crisp up on each side. :) I love crispy tortillas!
How many calories/grams of fat is in a portion?
I now have a Sunday afternoon ritual – I make a batch of these for lunches for the week ahead. As well as being incredibly tasty, they’re also a really filling lunch without being too heavy. Mine do get soggy when I reheat them but that’s OK, I have cutlery.
I add jalapenos and salsa for some extra zing. I also use whatever vegetables are going cheap – it’s a pretty forgiving recipe, thanks Beth!
I love this recipie. Today is the forth time I’ve made these, and stocked up my freezer with easy meals on the go. Yum!
Made these last night, but with the veggies I had on hand that needed to be used (sweet potato, pablano pepper, red onion and a couple of orange bellpeppers) but left all the other ingredients the same. They’re great!
These are so yummy! I’ve been eating them for the past few days, just want to say I definitely did not need two whole cans of black beans, can probably get away with one next time.
I made these last week and L-O-V-E-D them! I did change a few things, which I thought I would share. Instead of zucchini I used butternut squash. This roasted up amazingly, and was so moist and smooth in the burrito’s. I also added a few tablespoons of salsa to each. I found this REALLY made a difference in helping keep the burrito’s moist, and it added such great flavour, I don’t know that I would ever make them without. They definitely freeze up nice too. Thanks for the great recipe!
Is it possible that I could add some chicken to the burritos? My sister is NOT very fond of meatless dishes, but I would make these burritos in a heartbeat!!
Absolutely! You can cook a chicken breast and then cube it and toss it into the mix, or just take the meat from a rotisserie chicken from the store. Whatever you think is easiest.
Awesome recipe
Yum! Just made these and loved them! Before assembling, I mixed all the filling together except the cheese and cilantro. It made assembling them a little bit quicker.
I made these tonight and used the BBQ to roast the veggies then to brown the burritos. My 11 year old son asked if he could take them for school lunches – a hit!!!
I was wondering what your opinion is on using corn tortillas for this recipe. I have celiac disease so i was wondering what you thought would be the best choice for making this dish gfree! thank you!!
The only drawback to corn tortillas is that they are not as pliable as flour tortillas and tend to crack and break when bent. They might not wrap around the filling nicely. Instead, you could make a layered “burrito casserole” where the corn tortillas are laid flat in layers between the filling. Then just bake until everything is heated through.
I’ve made these a bunch by now and I love them. My tips: I make them, roll them, and quickly roast the rolled burritos (seam down) on a sheet in the oven to crisp. Then freeze on a sheet, THEN wrap. Unwrap, then, Microwave wrapped in a paper towel. Also, I roast especially liquid-y veggies separately (like zucchini?) and seed them. Whole beans are better than refried. I can’t tell you how much I love flexible recipes like this. Easy breezy, and totally delish. You rock.
I just want you to know that I have tried # of your recipes this week. All I can say is…you are the bomb! Every one of your recipes were delicious! Please keep them coming.
Recipes that I’ve made: Dragon Noodles, Roasted Vegetable Burritos and Black Bean Burritos. All were very good!
Thanks for sharing!
So I made this recipe and it was to die for! I made some changes because I’m trying to cut calories (grrr) and I like quinoa over rice. I just topped the quinoa with the veggies, black beans, and a smidge of cheese and sr. crm. The rest of the family had it on tortillas. It was soooooo good with the quinoa. I used the salt and chili powder, and then just followed the package directions for the quinoa. yum!!!! Thanks for another great recipe!
I added chipotle salsa and some shredded chicken to mine. Got 6 burritos total. I was skeptical that I wouldn’t have enough salsa or moisture in these, but they were excellent. Can’t wait to try a couple with enchilada sauce on top, too!
Love these! How long do they last in the freezer?
Probably about three months or so.
To that person who freezes flour tortillas, do you have any brands that you would recommend that don’t stick?
You mentioned seasoning the black beans and I know you cook your own. Would you do this the same way the not refried beans are seasoned by any chance?
Yep, that would be the perfect way to season the black beans as well.
These are fantastic!
I made these last night and they were a hit! Thanks, Beth!
This recipe is perfect for busy college students. What other recipes do you suggest for busy college students on the go?
Definitely check out the Hearty Black Bean Quesadillas, Dragon Noodles, and Oven Fajitas, all of which can be found in the lists on the side bar. Some of them take a little bit to cook, but then once it’s done they’re great to eat off of for the rest of the week!
I went to that “How to Wrap a Burrito” page, but you do it differently. He leaves one end open, but you don’t. Did you just fold both ends over and roll? I’m taking these camping so I probably can’t use the method in the link.
Yep, the only thing I did differently was fold in both sides before rolling.
These are wonderful! My husband and I just made and ate them for lunch for the first time. My taste buds and tummy are so happy! Thanks for the great recipe. Very happy to have found your blog.
these are SO AWESOME.
These look amazing! I’m just wondering what size tortillas you use; the ‘large’ ones we have here look a lot smaller than the ones you use! Could you give me the diameter pleas? :D
I’m not sure of the exact diameter, but they’re probably around 10-12 inches.
These are amazing. We add chicken with siracha and medium salsa and do 20 at a time. With a six month old, two minutes in the microwave and two minutes in the grill perfect for me. Any leftover fillings we throw into your recipe of chicken chili, and any leftover rice gets turned into stirfry. Perfect!!
i just want to thank you for this recipe! i love all of your recipes on this blog, but this one specifically has changed my life! i now make a huge batch of these every month, enough for my boyfriend & i to take one to work every day. it has saved us sooo much money and we have something easy and delicious to eat every day that is also healthy. yay for freezer burritos!
I just made these this past weekend and had my first frozen one for lunch. They turned out wonderful! I love that I now I have a bunch of easy lunch options! Great recipe.
I just made these and froze them just like you did! I’m so excited about all the lunches I’ll have. I also ended up with a lot of extra rice though.
LOVE THESE!!!!! WOnderful!
Just like all of your recipes, these are great! Portion size is perfect. Ended up with a ton of extra rice, so I’d probably just use 3/4 C dry next time. But no worries, it will all get eaten. Can’t wait to dive into the leftovers.
This is the best burrito of all time, and I’ve eaten a LOT of burritos in my day!!!
Make your own tortillas! Sure it takes a little effort, but so so SO much more nutritious and delicious!
These are great! Made them with brown rice and multigrain tortillas to bulk up the fiber even more. I was a bit skeptical about how well the multigrain tortilla would hold up, texturally, after freezing, so here’s what I did: I unwrapped the frozen burrito and re-wrapped in a paper towel, then nuked on high for 90 seconds, turning over halfway through. Then I crisped it up in a skillet sprayed with cooking spray under a weight over medium-high heat for about 2 minutes per side until golden brown. So yummy!
This is the perfect solution for feeding my hungry hubby before his night shift on evenings when I just can’t get dinner on the table before he has to leave.
Om nom nom, this is the second time I’ve made this recipe and it just keeps getting better. I used eggplant instead of the peppers and put the chili powder in the vegetables instead of cumin. And instead of using the seasoned rice, I used your lime-cilantro rice. I think the lime-cilantro rice works even better with the vegetables this way.
I had a bit of the rice and veggies left over after making the burritos, and that ended up being dinner. It’s a good thing, because those burritos were really tempting and they need to be my lunch during a very busy week coming up!
I just made these with a batch of your Red Enchilada Sauce. I baked them in the oven together at 400 degrees for about 45 minutes. It isn’t the quickest way, but I’ve made these burritos a few times and this was by FAR the best way. They were so delicious! Definitely found a new favorite recipe! Thanks!
OMG! These are wonderful. Used more vegies and made 12 huge wraps. Plan to let defrost in lunch tote and nuke in the microwave for lunch atwork. The skillet at home works nicely to crisp. Thank you so much for this super recipe!
Ooooh, these sound like a great idea for a quick lunch or lazy dinner. I am definitely one of those people though who is notorious for overstuffing my burritos though, so it looks like I’m going to have to work on that.
wow simply wow!!Looks bright, delicious and so very easy to make. Thanks you for the recipe.It’s lovely!!
I”ve been on a freezer burrito kick for the last few weeks, and now that my roommate has gone vegetarian, this recipe will come in handy since I have to replenish the stash! those are the exact same brand of wraps that I use, and they work so well and are surprisingly healthy!
for those wondering about reheating, I find that throwing them in the oven cooks them evenly and browns them in a way that you can’t get with the microwave. if you do have a little bit of time on your hands, just pop em in a 400 degree oven for 30 minutes and you’ll be good to go! cooked all the way through – which I always had a hard time doing before I came upon this technique, and nice and crispy. the timing may have to be adjusted depending on the size of the burrito, so check often!
Very nice explained recipe! Food looks good on the photos.
wow, I NEED to make these and freeze them as well! awesome idea
<3
Seven of them waiting in the freezer. Lovely!
Just made these, amazing!! Mine only came out to 6. Perfect freezer meal for work. First Burrito I’ve ever made, completely manageable. I would have done a couple things different in retrospect, but still a delicious meal. I love the flexibility in this recipe, I substituted mushrooms for semi-sweet corn (not roasted, cooked separately)that little bit of sweetness worked out so well.
Made these for dinner last night. Everyone loved them. Thanks for sharing!
i’ve followed your blog for a while, always telling myself i’d try one of your recipes… and today i finally did! i look forward to trying one of these guys out tomorrow at work. very easy to follow instructions.
Yum! Making these tonight! You can eliminate the plastic wrap waste by freezing on a cookie sheet and then transferring to the zip lock once they’re frozen…I do this with breakfast burritos that I make in bulk and take to new moms with babies and limited time to fix food in the morning.
I’ve just got onto the freezer burrito bandwagon and I have to say it’s been a freaking lifesaver!! I live alone, but am very very busy and it’s been amazing to get home after a long day and still have a hot, nutritious meal without any hassle. Didn’t put rice in though; great idea!
I only had about 3/4 cup of brown rice, so I roasted a sweet potato with the veggies to fill it out a bit. Turned out not bad! Thanks.
I rarely cook but I followed this recipe to make dinner for me and my mother today. We both loved it!
Eating one of these right now and thinking “OMG, I CAN’T BELIEVE I MADE THIS!”
This is so good – I think I’m spoiled life – never buying frozen burritos again. The quantities were perfect – made it to 10 and had no leftovers at all. I got a little OCD with the wrapping though (haha, first time) and it took me all night (not really, but felt like it). So funny – the inside looked like sushi when I cut it in half to eat it! :D Thanks, Beth!
Oh, when I warmed it, I zapped it for 2 minutes in the microwave, then finished it off in the toaster oven (mine felt a little damp)…but it wasn’t quite rock-hard frozen yet when I took it out of the freezer, so YMMV.
This is slightly off topic, but I get rid of my sweet flavored vodkas by putting them in my coffee with a little milk.
Anyway, these burritos look delicious. I’m going to have to try them out after payday.
i love the sound of these burritos! my husband loves frozen egg & cheese burritos for breakfast but i haven’t made any ahead to freeze for lunch. this would be a great recipe for that. :)
That’s a completely reasonable question! It was frozen solid when I microwaved it. That being said, every microwave is different so you might have to experiment with the reheating time. I often have to cut large objects like this in half when microwaving them to make sure the center gets hot (I cut it after microwaving for 2-3 minutes so that it’s soft enough to cut), but this time I didn’t find that I needed to cut it.
Just to make sure I understand — was it totally frozen when you reheated it for 3.5 minutes?? (Sorry for being so dense!)
Anon – Hahah, yes, that flavored vodka was an impulse buy… it’s been in there about a year now :P I’m a wine girl!
Kmeyer – Yes, some burritos do get soggy when reheated, but this one turned out especially well! I reheated one from frozen today while I was at work and it held up really great. No sogginess what so ever :) 3.5 minutes on high and it was great!
Fellow gluten freer: look for brown rice tortillas, they hold together much better than corn and taste better than flour
Marshmallow and whip cream vodka spotted
I’m sure this is somewhere on your blog, but what are your steps for reheating your frozen burritos? I always imagine them being all soggy once frozen and reheated.
Dear person who didn’t buy the $1 tortillas: They do freeze well (I don’t do anything to them… Throw sealed package in freezer… Just defrost in the fridge the day before using). However, if they are a brand that sticks together, freezing will not improve that.
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This is very nice shout out!
Must make these. Burritos for lunch are so great! I bought a pack of frozen burritos for about $3 at Walmart. At least a third of the size and I’m sure not as tasty as those. For a little more I could make huge, healthy, tasty burritos!
Must make these. Burritos for lunch are so great! I bought a pack of frozen burritos for about $3 at Walmart. At least a third of the size and I’m sure not as tasty as those. For a little more I could make huge, healthy, tasty burritos!
Freezer burritos are such a perfect idea! The lat time I made a batch, we went through them in no time at all. Thanks for the kick in the pants–it’s definitely time for another batch!
I love this idea, unfortunately I try to eat as gluten-free as possible and have yet to come across wheat flour-less tortillas that actually hold together. If anyone knows of a good brand, please, let me know! :(
Christina – Yeah, the one that I didn’t freeze (because I couldn’t wait to eat) I crisped up in the skillet :D
I wish I had seen this recipe before I hit the store this morning, I need these in my life NOW! Did you warm yours up in a pan at all? I noticed that delicious brown color on the tortilla of your finished product :)
Mandy – Hahah, I keep thinking it’s swamp soup when I see it too, but it’s actually the spinach tortellini soup from last week :) They are quite similar, though!
Can’t wait to make these!
By any chance is that swamp soup on the bottom shelves of your freezer? That’s one of my all time favorite recipes from you. It’s become a staple to have in my household ;)
I love a good burrito! And this sounds awesome :)
I checked out Aldi today, where I never shop, and they had 10 flour tortillas for $1! I didn’t buy them, because I already have tortillas at home, but this would be so affordable with them. Love your blog, I’ve been following it forever.
Your super-clean freezer makes me sad, but also marks a fun start! :D Glad you ended up totally ok.