Do you want evidence that this recipe is good? How about the fact that I’ve been eating it for lunch AND dinner for the past three days straight, and I still wanted a piece for breakfast this morning. Seriously.
There are a million and two ways to make tamale pie, some being more like actual tamales than others. This one is not so much like a real tamale, but it’s amazing all the same. I decided to go with a cornbread crust instead of polenta because A) I’m in love with corn bread and B) I wanted something that could soak up yumminess from the bottom of the pan. It definitely worked.
I originally intended to make this a beef tamale pie, but I bullied myself into doing a vegetarian mix because I felt like I needed more beans and vegetables in my life. If you did want to do beef (or chicken or pork), simply switch it out for the sweet potatoes, beans, and peppers… or add them all in there together! It’s very flexible.
P.S. I know the ingredients list looks long, but it’s really quite simple to make. Promise!
Vegetable Tamale Pie
Servings 8Ingredients
- 2 Tbsp olive oil ($0.32)
- 1 yellow onion ($0.48)
- 2 cloves garlic ( $0.16)
- 1 sweet potato ($0.69)
- 1 15oz. black beans ($0.56)
- 1/2 bunch green onions ($0.25)
- 1 poblano pepper ($0.84)
- 1 jalapeño ($0.12)
- 1 10z. can red enchilada sauce ($1.53)
- 1/2 Tbsp chili powder ($0.07)
- 1/2 tsp ground cumin ($0.03)
- 1/2 tsp salt ($0.02)
CORNBREAD TOPPING
- 1 cup yellow cornmeal ($0.24)
- 1 cup all-purpose flour ($0.15)
- 1/4 cup sugar ($0.04)
- 4 tsp baking powder ($0.12)
- 1/2 tsp salt ($0.02)
- 1 cup milk ($0.62)
- 1 large egg ($0.25)
- 1/4 cup cooking oil ($0.21)
- 1 cup shredded cheddar, optional ($1.00)
- 1/2 bunch fresh cilantro (optional) ($0.43)
Instructions
- Chop the onion and mince the garlic. Cook in a large skillet with olive oil over medium heat. While onion and garlic are cooking, peel and dice the sweet potato. Add the diced sweet potato to the skillet and continue cooking.
- Remove the seeds from the poblano and jalapeno peppers, dice both, and add to the skillet. Also add the black beans (drained and rinsed), enchilada sauce, and sliced green onions. Stir and heat through. Taste the mixture and add the chili powder, cumin, and salt. Adjust to your liking.
- Preheat the oven to 425ºF. To make the cornbread topping, combine the dry ingredients in a large bowl (flour, cornmeal, sugar, salt, and baking powder). Stir until evenly combined. Next, add the wet ingredients (milk, egg, oil, shredded cheese, and roughly chopped cilantro leaves). Stir these ingredients into the dry ingredients just until everything has become wet and the mixture looks even. Slightly beating the egg before adding it helps make this easier.
- To build the tamale pie, pour the vegetable mixture into a deep pie dish, cast iron skillet, or 8×8 inch casserole dish. Next, pour the cornbread mixture over top and smooth it out evenly. Bake the pie in the preheated 425 degree oven for about 25 minutes or until the top of the cornbread is golden brown.
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Nutrition
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Step By Step Photos
Start by cooking those onions and garlic in olive oil.
While those are cooking, peel and dice your sweet potato. Add it to the skillet.
For those who are unfamiliar with poblano peppers, this is what they look like. Large, dark green, and a kind of like a deflated balloon. They have a very unique flavor. If they’re not available in your area, you can substitute with other vegetables or beans to make up for the volume.
Remove the seeds from the poblano and chop it up. Do the same with the jalapeno. Add both to the skillet, along with sliced green onions and black beans (drained and rinsed). I used black beans that I had cooked from dry, which is why they’re so inexpensive on the ingredient list. Freezing them after cooking makes them just as convenient as canned beans!
Next add the enchilada sauce and then heat everything through.
The enchilada sauce didn’t quite provide enough flavor for me, so I also added a little chili powder, cumin, and salt.
Next it’s time to make the cornbread topping. In a large bowl combine the flour, cornmeal, sugar, salt, and baking powder. Stir until they’re well combined. Oh, also begin preheating your oven at this point – 425 degrees.
Then add the wet ingredients (milk, oil, egg, cheddar, roughly chopped cilantro). I like to slightly beat the egg before adding it because it helps it incorporate easier. The cheese and cilantro are completely optional.
When stirring the wet ingredients into the dry, only stir just until all of the mixture has moistened and everything looks even (about ten stirs). You want to try to avoid over stirring.
Next, pour the vegetable mixture into the bottom of your baking dish. I used my cast iron skillet because I knew it would make for some nice pictures, but you can also use a deep pie dish or an 8×8 inch casserole dish. My skillet is about 10 inches across.
Pour the cornbread topping over the vegetables and smooth it out. Make sure the oven has finished preheating, and then bake for about 25 minutes or until the top is golden brown. Begin checking it at 18-20 minutes because every oven is a little different.
And then it looks, smells, and tastes absolutely delicious! I cut mine into 8 pieces and had 8 very satisfying meals.
I can’t believe this recipe only has 16 reviews. I’ve been making it, unaltered, for…a decade? It’s perfection, one of the best dishes on this site. Make it now.
This is so cozy and satisfying in the winter! I was getting tired of soup and wanted something a little heartier, and this was perfect. I added a zucchini and some corn, and made the BB enchilada sauce instead of using a can. Topped with some diced avocado and I had six very delicious meals.
Absolutely delicious! I didn’t read the notes to put it in a larger dish until it was a bit too late (not a huge deal, I put my 8×8 dish on a baking sheet to catch the sauce that bubbled out) and I used cayenne instead of chili powder so it was a bit spicier and I loved it!
Made this in a 9-inch cake pan and the liquid from the filling escaped! Will try a larger pan in the future.
Skipped the recommended peppers but added two small carrots, a few stalks of celery, and some leftover frozen corn, just for additional veggies. Used most of a budget bytes batch of homemade enchilada sauce for this — saved the rest for a future use. Would definitely consider bell pepper instead of the poblano in the future.
I used a half batch of the red enchilada sauce recipe instead of canned, and didn’t add cheese to the cornbread, but otherwise followed the recipe exactly. So good!
I used a 12 inch cast iron skillet which was VERY full when sautéing the veggies, so I wouldn’t recommend going smaller. This was my main dish so I cut into six servings.
Do you think this dish can be frozen?
Yes, this one will probably freeze well. :)
I forgot to buy a sweet potato for this, but I made it anyways, and it was still really good. Though the cornbread has to be cooked for 15 minutes longer. That could be because I used a Dutch oven, though.
Made it with 2 tsp baking powder and 2 tsp of sugar and it came out fine. I also used frozen peppers and frozen corn to bulk it up a bit because I didn’t have fresh peppers or much onion. Super tasty and very easy!
I could taste the baking soda, but I liked it otherwise.
Recipe calls for baking powder, not soda. Soda is MUCH more concentrated.
I had a problem with this recipe. When it finished baking it looked perfectly done on the outside, but when I cut into it, the cornbread batter was still liquid under the surface in the center.
I had the same issue when baking in an 8×8 casserole pan. I put it back in for 5 more minutes, did not help. I then lowered the oven to 375 and let it sit in the oven at 5 minute intervals until the cornbread cooked through.
Next time, for this size casserole dish, I’m going to cook it at 375 for about 40 minutes.
After getting it cooked through, it was very very delicious!!
Very tasty! However, I found there was too much cornbread to everything else. But that’s just my preference.
Does the jalapeño in this make it pretty spicy?
Not extremely spicy, in my opinion, but spiciness is extremely subjective, so I’m not sure how you might feel about it.
Have made several of your recipes–thanks so much! I love that you have the cost-per-serving figured out… My husband was out of work for nearly 2 years–during the birth of our first child, no less–so I learned to get REALLY creative while not sacrificing nutrition (was pregnant and then exclusively breastfeeding). Your website was my go-to place for inspiration and recipes! Made this for the family because it was easy to adjust for my toddler’s limited chewing ability–I just mashed the sweet potato instead of sauteing it and mixed it together with the beans (also smashed). A dinner everyone in our family can enjoy is a huge blessing to this Mama!
This was a hit with my vegetarian friends, as well as with those of us who eat meat. I used canned chilies, including chipotles in adobo source, and some spicy salsa.. I also added frozen corn; olives; bell peppers; raisins; and vegetarian sausage and pizza burgers because I had them in the house. I made the “meat” part the day before and reheated it and then topped it with a Trader Joe’s cornbread mix. I baked it in a 9 x 13 inch pan at 375 for about 1/2 hour. Delicious
Thanks for chipoltes in adobo sauce. Made us love it more! We used frozen, canned and fresh veggies. We like it better with butternut squash but sweet potatoes are fine. Don’t like skipping fresh peppers because I miss the flavor!
What size cast iron pan did you use? I’m looking to buy one soon and trying to decide on the size.
Mine is a 10″ and I love it. Not too big/heavy, but holds a lot. :)
Great, thanks!
I just made this last night, and my husband and I absolutely loved it!! Finally, a recipe where we will actually eat the leftovers! We have made several of your recipes and each one has been delicious. Thank you for providing them! :)
This was a hit in my household which says a lot, since my husband loves meat. He asked me to make it again but to try it with butternut squash. I used my own, homemade enchilada sauce instead of canned. Thanks for this great recipe!
Following the cornbread vs. vegetable ratio comments I used two sweet potatoes instead of one, added a 14oz. bag of southwestern vegetables and threw in a diced red bell pepper as well as everything listed in the recipe. End result was pretty good and not overly saucy or spicey, though it was (strangely) a little sweet.
Okay, addendum. This was pretty good the first night but by night two the ingredients had mellowed and gotten happy with each other and it was sooo much better. Making this again soon!
Big hit at my house!!! Everyone (including kids) asked for seconds!!! It has always been hard to get my family to eat vegetarian meals (I’ve been a vegetarian for years now… Kids & hubby are not…unless I cook, lol) Thanks Beth for another hit recipe at my house!!!
Fab u lous! This recipe was out of the ballpark for me. I didn’t use any of the cayenne or jalapeno pepper because I am a pansy. I used half the problano. I made your red enchilada sauce. I never new vegetarian could be this good! Thank you ma’am!
I think this is the first recipe I’ve made of yours, but I’ve been following a while. Husband and daughter loved it, but I will be adding more veggies next time. Thanks for sharing!
I made this but I omitted the green onions and added two big tablespoons of chipotles in adobo sauce. It. Was. Awesome.
Do you think this would freeze well? I want to take it to a friend that’s a new Mom. If I did freeze it, should I bake it first and the freeze? Or just freeze as is and include directions for baking? Thanks a lot Beth!!
I think it would freeze very well. I’d bake it first, allow it to cool completely in the fridge, then divide into single portions and freeze. That way you can reheat it in the microwave. If you leave it whole you’d have to bake it to reheat and I’m not sure if the cornbread topping would over cook.
I love this recipe! I’ve taken to adding chorizo to it (sweet potato and chorizo is one of my new favorite combinations, thanks to Budget Bytes!)
We liked it a lot! We used Jiffy and added a can of yellow corn to the mixture which we thought it was a nice addition to the recipe.
Made this a few nights ago… pretty good overall! If you use wheat flour instead of white, be prepared for your tamale to take OVER the pie. I could barely find any of the filling after I baked it. Otherwise, it’s a decent cheap dish.
I tried this tonight and it was so good! I even got my roommate who hates enchilada sauce with a passion to try a bite (and that bite turned into two servings). I used jiffy mix with almond milk for the cornbread because that’s what I had on hand. I added red, orange, and yellow bell pepper because I love them and it makes the dish nice and colorful! I also added chipotle spice and it really added a nice flavor to the dish.
I made this yesterday and I had way too much cornbread and not enough filling. Next time I’m going to have to double the filling or reduce the cornbread by half. I’m not sure why. I came back to look at the pictures today to see if I did something wrong.
I love this recipe, I make it all the time now- thanks! I bake it in a 9×13 casserole dish, and add other vegetables I have in the fridge and need to use up (zucchinis and red bell peppers taste really good with the rest of the vegetables in the recipe) I also really like it with pepper jack cheese.
Beth, I just wanted to let you know that I made this for an old friend right after she had her first baby (I figured a free home cooked meal might be a good gift for a new exhausted mom). I chose this because I thought it sounded yummy and she is vegetarian. She sounded skeptical, but when she tried it she LOVED it (so did I!) Thanks for this awesome recipe, that was a couple months ago and I’m gonna make it again tonight-for myself :)
Just made it, and it’s in the oven! I accidentally put in the whole can of enchilada sauce and it was pretty soupy, so I reduced it until it was spreadable. I couldn’t stop eating the mixture while it was cooking so I know that’s good, can’t wait to try it with the cornbread! From peeking in the oven the cornbread has risen nicely. One thing though, I don’t think this would have worked in a 8×8 pan, I spread it into a 9×13 because that’s all I had, but it seems to be just fine.
So freakin amazing! Thanks for the recipe. Yummmmy :)
I made this tonight (eating it now!) I even accidentally left out the enchilada sauce–still AMAZING.
I thought this was delicious but the cornbread to veggies ratio wasn’t right for me. Next time, I’ll be sure to add in more vegetables (spinach, red pepper, carrot, corn). Thanks for the great base recipe though – I will definitely make it again!
I just made this tonight and it is fantastic. Believe it or not I left out the enchilada sauce (oops) but the cumin + chilli powder was enough to carry a fantastic dish :)
This was amazing. I ate it for lunch for the next few days. I switched sweet potato for carrot and used a sweet red pepper rather than poblano because England is bad at ingredients for Mexican. I also made my own enchilada sauce as I make it all the time for… enchiladas. I cooked everything in my cast iron skillet and just poured my batter on top, baked in the skillet. It was amazing. Thank you for this as I will make it forever.
This was super good, made it in my 8×8 and the cornbread was sort of ridiculously thick, but you can never have too much cornbread!! I think if I did it again, I’d make another layer w/1/2 chorizo/1/2 ground turkey on the bottom, the same amount of veggies & cornbread on top, in a cake sized pan. So good of course!!
Made this the other night in four 2-cup round Pyrex containers – the proportions came out just right and I had a ready-to-go container for a hearty lunch the next day.
Wow, this was really tremendous.
Added in some Cream Soda Pulled Pork (slight alteration to your Root Beer Pulled Pork recipe) and it was incredible!
Just made it but I added a handful of frozen corn and a small diced red pepper. Also use your recipe for enchilada sauce… Smell so good!!! Can’t wait until tomorrow night to eat it!
I will make the corn bread topping tomorrow right before supper.
thank you again for all your great ideas!
So awesome, in fact, that I’m making it again. I’d never eaten cornbread before, totally a convert after this :-)
This. Was. Awesome.
I made it with the jiffy mix as another poster suggested, and it is amazing! Very tasty and easy to make . Love the blog, please keep the awesome recipes coming.
Mary Jo – Yes, I think that would work great! Wonderful Idea :)
Made this tonight with the homemade enchilada sauce, and it was delicious! Thank you SO MUCH for your blog! I have a question… We’re expecting a new baby in November, and I’m trying to thing of things to freeze for easy quick meals. I was thinking of making a double batch of the filling and freezing it next time. Do you think that would work? I use cooked from dry beans that I freeze, too. Do you think those would hold up and be OK if cooked in the filling and refrozen? Thanks!
11 by 9 actually…..
this is awesome. thanks! it’s now an official member of my dinner rotation. i just tried it for the second time and it came out great. one suggestion. first time i tried it i used an 8 by 8 pyrex dish. no good – the corn bread didn’t cook thru. this time i used 11 by 8 and had much better results.
i like how i can clean out my fridge with this recipe. can throw anything almost in it.
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Beth, I love your recipes because I can customize it to what I have on hand. Instead of an enchilada bottom, I made a veggie chili. Replace enchilada sauce with a can of diced tomatoes, add more chili powder and cumin, and there you go: vegetable chili pie! I also just cooked everything in the cast iron and spread the cornbread mixture on top. One pan meal to boot!
Made this last night… it’s SOOOO good!!! I couldn’t find my deep pie dish (I woke up remembering where I put it… ugh) and I only had an 8 inch which didn’t look like it would fit everything, so I went with my big 8×14 baking dish. I definitely wouldn’t recommend such a big dish! With the filling layer being so shallow a lot of it was soaked up into the cornbread, so there wasn’t much left. It was still amazing and I’m already drooling thinking about leftovers for lunch!!
Eating this right now…YUUUMMM!!! Reminded me of chili, so I added some “Beefless Strips” from Trader Joe’s (1/2 the package, cut into smaller pieces – vegetarian) and went a little heavier with the sauce (99¢ for a whopping 28 oz can from Grocery Outlet; used half, half for next time). Safeway had “Pasilla Peppers,” which I was assured by the veggie guy there was the same thing as Poblanos. Went a little further with the decadence and buttered the top too! :p Used my Calphalon 12″ Everyday pan.
Boy, am I full. But I don’t care, I’m eating this whole slice! Thanks, Beth! :)
I did use almond milk and it turned out amazing!!! This can be a dairy free dinner!!! I used Rick Bayless’ Red Chile Enchilada Sauce and also added the spices you suggested and it was SOO YUMMY! Next time I will add more onion, sweet pot, pablano, and jalepeno to beef it up a little. My cornbread to filling ratio was a little off. Thanks for the great recipe!
I made this tonight. Because the poblanos looked terrible at the store, I used Anaheim peppers that I had roasted. It was very good, but I would like a bit more heat and probably use more jalapenos next time.
Anon – I have not tried baking with almond milk, so I can’t say for sure if it will work, but I suspect it will. If you try it out, please let us know how it turns out!
Angela – Yep, you can freeze peppers :) I would deseed and chop them first, though. Then it will be just like the peppers that come in stir fry mixes or onion and pepper seasoning mixes that you can buy in the freezer section! Convenient :)
I’m verrryyy excited to get home from work and cook this tonight!!
Odd question… is it possible to freeze peppers? My grocery store only sold poblano peppers in 3-packs… and for $1.48 I decided it was worth it just to get them all rather than go search at another store. …now I’m at a loss of what to do with the other 2!
If they won’t freeze… what other types of dishes would they be good in? This is my first time cooking with this type of pepper!
This looks great and I plan on making it tonight! I do have a question, I am dairy free and was wondering if I replaced the milk with almond milk…would it work? I of course would leave out the cheese (even though it looks sooo good). Just wanted to know your thoughts even though I will be attempting it anyways!
I made this this weekend and am eating it for lunch as we speak. Yummy…I did leave out the peppers and put in meat. I already know what I would add moreof next time and there will be a next time as my whole family loved it (even my 2 year old and 4 year old)..Thanks again for another recipe going into my classic section.
It’s in the oven – so far, so good. First time I used any peppers other than Bell and my fingers are still kind of burning. I remember they used to say to wear gloves and maybe I should have cause I must be a wimp. It looks and smells great, but I’m almost afraid to taste it lol.
(PS: I tossed a few seeds from both the poblano and the jalapeno to give it an added kick – tasted great!)
I made this last night and it got rave reviews! My only problem was that I was too nervous to put it in a #8 skillet (was afraid it would go over and spill out), so I used a #12, which worked great, just a little “thinner” than in your pictures. Can you tell me what size cast iron skillet you used? I may keep an eye out for a #10. But seriously, this recipe was fantastic and I can see making it again in the future :)
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My first time here. This looks really good!
Thank you so much for this. It has everything I’ve been trying to eat more of (haha, except the cornbread, but I love it and don’t care!), and for once I’m not salivating over your wonderful pictures of MEAT! (newbie vegetarian)
This one makes up for the Taco Chicken Rice Bowl that I haven’t figured out how to “vegify” yet. :D
…although I did notice a price tag and empty shelf for “chickenless shreds” at Trader Joe’s, so that one may be getting close!
Wow this looks fantastic come and post some of your awesome recipes on this weeks recipe swap!
http://abpetite.blogspot.com/2012/08/blog-recipe-swap.html
Anon – It’s not a stupid question :) That’s actually just the reflection from the sun coming in the window in my kitchen. I didn’t bother roasting the poblano, but you certainly could if you wanted – it would really kick up the flavor! Roasted poblanos are one of my favorites!
Maybe this is a stupid question, but your poblano pepper looks like it has a silver sheen on the skin… is this just my computer screen or funky lighting int the picture? Did you roast the pepper over a flame or something before chopping it up, or are they supposed to look like that?
I made this last night, and it was so good! My boyfriend loved it too. I was nervous about making the cornbread topping, but it turned out perfectly. I will definitely be making this again and again.
Made this last night (but I cheated and used Mexican cornbread mix). Soooooooooo gooooooooodddddddddah. >____________< Having some for breakfast.
Katie – Hmm, I don’t know. I’ve never tried to make cornbread with WW flour! If you try it, please let us know how it works.
Ashlee – I forget how much one box makes, but I think one box will do… or maybe two? Just mix up the box according to its directions and pour it over top of the vegetable mix :) I almost used JIF myself (because I secretly love it), but I decided to give homemade one more try. All of my past attempts have been failures, but it finally worked for me this time!
Think this would work okay with whole wheat flour?
I never have cornmeal, but I always seem to have 6 boxes of Jiffy mix (since my mother buys the stuff in bulk, literally, and gives me tons)…could I use that, instead? The box calls for 1/3 cup milk and 1 large egg. How would I alter your recipe to fit it?
This I have to try–but maybe I’ll add about 1/2 lb of ground beef or some seasoned pork sausage to it. But–we’re trying to go with more meatless meals so I think I’ll start off just the way you’ve presented it. Thanks.
Amber – Try this one: http://budgetbytes.blogspot.com/2011/12/shredded-taco-beef-1248-recipe-104.html
:D
Looove the look of this! Yum!
Wow, that looks great! I’ve been making chicken pot pie with a cornbread topping for years and it’s by far my favorite way to make pot pie. I’ll definitely be trying this recipe. Thank you!
This looks heavenly. Will be making it very soon! Thanks!
This is getting made this weekend, especially since it’s been a bit cooler this week and turning on the oven won’t melt us. Love that this can become a one-dish meal, too, courtesy of my cast iron pan. Yum!
Oh my goodness, this is JUST the recipe I needed to see! I know what dinner’s gonna be…
I am very excited to try this! We have recently gotten some cast iron for wedding gifts and I love new ways to use them! Question: any good recipes for shredded beef? I suppose you could do this with ground…but that’s one thing I like about tamales is the shredded beef they serve in restaurants? Any other thoughts on proteins that would work well in this(not a big bean eater myself) Thanks!
And now I am hungry for dinner at 8:23 AM. Looks fabulous. I am definitely trying your recipe. And did I mention I am loving your pictures. Thanks for posting.
Wow, this looks so good. I’m going to try and make it without the spicy. I’m a wimp.
I’m going to be making this tonight! This and your recipe for stuffed poblano peppers! Yum!