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These Crispy Black Bean Tacos are cheesy, packed with flavor, and come together with just 15 minutes of active work! The oven does the rest, giving you crunchy, melty tacos without a single fried tortilla in sight.
Why you’ll love these simple black bean tacos
Growing up, taco night meant a packet of seasoning and a pound of ground beef, every single time. These days we’ve cut back on meat and this is one of the recipes that made the switch easy – well, easy might be generous, but it’s DEFINITELY one of our most-requested dinners now.
Why You’ll Love These Crispy Tacos
- Super easy – just 15 minutes of chopping and sautéing, then the oven takes over.
- Crispy and crunchy – the cheese on the outside gets crispy too, which is genuinely the best part.
- Meal-preppable – sauce the filling ahead of time and dinner comes together in 5 minutes.
- Customizable – swap the veggies, beans, or spices for whatever you have on hand.
Ingredients for Black Bean Tacos
The full list of ingredients for this recipe are listed fully down in the recipe card but let’s briefly go over the pantry staples needed including a few substitutions you can make as desired!
- Poblano pepper – deseeded and diced. Jalapeño pepper works too if you want more heat or even bell pepper.
- Onion and garlic – the aromatic base for the filling. I prefer white onions but red onion also works well.
- Black beans – canned, drained and rinsed. Any bean works here – chickpeas, white beans, or butter beans are all great swaps.
- Chili powder and cumin – your basic taco seasoning blend. Add some cayenne pepper.
- Cilantro – stirred in fresh at the end.
- Cheese – I used Pepper Jack, but a Mexican blend or plain cheddar work well too. To make these vegan, vegan cheese shreds work great!
- Tortillas – corn tortillas or flour tortillas both work here, whatever size you like but I love the fajita sized ones.
How to Make Black Bean Tacos
Just a reminder that you can find the FULL written crispy black bean tacos recipe down in the recipe card, but I want to quickly go over how to make them with visuals for you :)
- Cook the aromatics – Toss your diced poblano, onion, and garlic into a large non-stick skillet over medium-high heat with a little olive oil and sauté for about 5 minutes, until everything’s softened and fragrant.
- Add the beans and spices – Stir in the black beans, chili powder, cumin, and salt, then let everything simmer together for a few more minutes so the flavors meld and the beans are warmed through. Stir in the cilantro right at the end.
- Prep and fill your tortillas – place tortillas on a baking sheet and give your tortillas a quick 2-3 minute trip in the oven first so they’re pliable and won’t crack when folded. Then layer cheese down first on half of each tortilla, followed by a scoop of the black bean mixture.
- Fold and top with more cheese – Fold the tortilla over the filling and press gently to seal, then add a sprinkle of cheese right on top – this is what gives you that crispy, golden edge once it bakes.
Pop the whole sheet pan back in the oven for 15-17 minutes, until the cheese is melted and the tortillas are crispy and golden brown. Add your toppings of choice!
Tips for Making Crispy Black Bean Tacos
- Prep the filling ahead – it keeps well in the fridge, so dinner is just assembly and baking on a busy night.
- Don’t skip pre-baking the tortillas – it’s what keeps them from cracking when you fold them.
- Use any melty cheese – Pepper Jack, a Mexican blend, or cheddar all work well.
Ways to Customize this Vegetarian Taco Recipe
- Swap the beans – chickpeas, white beans, or butter beans all work in place of black beans if that’s what you have on hand.
- Add tofu – stir in some shredded or crumbled tofu to bulk up the filling. I haven’t tested it in this exact recipe, but it works beautifully in my Easy Tofu Tacos, so I’d expect the same success here.
- Turn up the heat – swap the poblano for a jalapeño, or add a diced jalapeño in addition to the poblano if you want more spice.
- Change the cheese – Pepper Jack, a Mexican blend, or plain cheddar all melt well here. Cotija would also be a nice finishing touch.
- Add your favorite toppings – sour cream, fresh Pico de Gallo and homemade guacamole both take these over the top.
- Make it a bowl – skip the folding and serve the filling over rice with all your favorite taco toppings instead.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yep! The black bean filling keeps well in the fridge for 3-4 days, so you can make it ahead and just assemble and bake when you’re ready for dinner. This is honestly my favorite way to do it on a busy week – all the chopping and sautéing happens once, and the “cooking” the night of is basically just folding and baking.
I’d freeze the bean filling rather than the fully assembled tacos – it keeps in an airtight container in the freezer for up to 3 months. Thaw it in the fridge overnight, then assemble and bake fresh so the tortillas actually get crispy instead of soggy.
Definitely – this recipe is pretty forgiving. Chickpeas, white beans, or butter beans would all work well in place of the black beans if that’s what you have on hand.
Love vegetarian tacos!? We do too – try our Easy Tofu Tacos, Chickpea Tacos, or Breakfast Tacos next!
Sheet Pan Black Bean Tacos
Ingredients
- ½ tablespoon olive oil
- 1 medium poblano pepper, deseeded & diced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- ½ white onion, diced
- 15 oz can black beans, drained and rinsed
- 2 tablespoons fresh cilantro, finely chopped
- 2 teaspoons chili powder
- ½ teaspoon cumin
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 2 cups shredded cheese, I used Pepper Jack but really any melty cheese would work well
- 6 medium Corn or flour tortillas*
Instructions
- Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Once hot, add in the poblano pepper, garlic, and onion and sauté for 5 minutes.
- Next, add in the black beans, chili powder, salt, cumin, and salt. Sauté for 5 more minutes so that everything is heated through. Stir in your cilantro and remove from the heat.
- Preheat the oven to 425 degrees and spray a large baking sheet with cooking spray.
- Lay your tortillas out on the pan and spray them with cooking spray. Flip them over and bake them for 2-3 minutes to make them pliable so they don’t crack.
- Take the pan out of the oven and layer each tortilla on one side with cheese, your bean mixture and a little more cheese on top. Fold the other side of the tortilla over your filling and press down gently so that it sticks together. Top each taco with a sprinkle of cheese on the top.
- Once they’re all assembled, place the pan back in the oven and bake for 15-17 minutes or until the cheese has melted and your tortillas are crispy.
- Serve and ENJOY!
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
An I use a bell pepper instead of poblano?
absolutely!
We loved this! Replaced the black beans with half a can of cannelini beans and half a large sweet potato and mashed all the veg together to make the filling. Also reduced the chili powder a bit. SOO good! Will make again! Thank you!
This was so easy and soooo good!! Tossed an avocado, a lime, some hatch chilis, garlic and onion in a tiny blender with some raw cashews I soaked for a bit. Perfect!!
These are great and go together quickly. They will become a part of our regular meal plan.
What is the green sauce you squirted in the tacos in the photo?
I saw this on your weekly meal planning email and immediately had to make it! So easy and delicious–my family LOVED it! Thank you!
These were so good! I used homemade black beans and adobe chile powder because we didn’t have a poblano. The crunchiness of the folded tortillas is so delightful.
I also made your Instant Pot Mexican Rice.
This recipe is a keeper–thank you!
Made this last night and it was a hit. So tasty and easy to make. Will be making this one all the time.
Made these last night and they were so good. My husband loved them so much I will definitely be making these on repeat.
Well, I don’t eat or cook with cheese, so guess I’ll never know how tasty these are! I generally substitute nutritional yeast in some dishes that call for cheese. But I’m avoiding all cows milk and cheese, and I don’t need the extra fats even from vegan cheeses.
VioLife makes a great shredded cheddar. I’ll be making this soon completely vegan. I’m sure it’s going to be awesome!