Black Bean Quesadillas

Try these black bean and cheese quesadillas for a quick, light dinner, lunch or snack. Swap out the black beans for pinto, kidney or any other beans you’d like. I love these quesadillas because they’re quick and easy with lots of options for loading up on veggies!

Read more: Taco Seasoning, Taco Salad, Easy Freezer Taquitos, Shredded Chicken, Avocado Sauce with Lime.

Quesadillas are made by placing grated cheese and a filling of beans/meat/veggies & spices between two soft tortillas and heating it until the cheese melts, resulting in a crispy exterior and a gooey, flavorful interior. Depending on how much filling you pack into these delicious little wedges, quesadillas can be served as a snack, appetizer, or a main course. I serve mine with salsa, guacamole, sour cream, & pickled condiments like pickled red onions or spicy hot pepper rings.

Why Use Black Beans in your Quesadillas?

The black bean and corn combination means you get a complete protein in your quesadillas. Beans are such an affordable, tasty and easy to come by source of plant protein. They’re rich in protein, fiber, and various vitamins and minerals like folate, manganese, magnesium, and iron. Their high fiber content is particularly beneficial for digestive health and can help in managing blood sugar levels. Black beans have a rich, earthy flavor and go so well with the taco seasoning in this recipe.

Add more Veggies to your Quesadillas

Corn and black beans are pretty kid friendly ingredients – especially if you squish the beans. I used to make these quesadillas for my kids during their picky eating years. Eventually, we were able to add more veggies.

Heads Up: To ensure your quesadillas stick together limit your total filling per tortilla to about 3 Tbsp of non-cheese ingredients. Here are some vegetables that work well in quesadillas.

• bell peppers – green, red, yellow, orange
• hot peppers – fresh or canned
• cilantro
• green onions
• roasted garlic
• sautéed onions or pickled onions
• diced tomatoes
• sundried tomatoes
• roasted red peppers
• chopped red onions

Other Ingredients to add to Quesadillas

Depending on the flavor you’re aiming for, you can always add a little more to your fillings. Quesadillas can be the perfect way to use up just a little bit of leftovers in a new, crispy way! Try these fillings out for new flavor combinations.

• white/brown rice
• hot sauce
• flavored ground beef/ground round (vegetarian option)
• sliced or shredded pork or chicken

What to Serve with Bean Quesadillas

Even if you’re serving them as a simple snack or small appetizer, just a little dip of salsa, sour cream or guacamole on the side is a delicious addition to quesadillas – add a little tang to these crispy, cheesy triangles. You’ll be glad you did.

• Guacamole
• Sour cream/Greek yogurt (extra delicious with a squeeze of lime & salt)
• Fresh Salsa or Pico de Gallo
• Corn Salas/Salsa
• Black Bean & Sweet Pepper Salad/Salsa
• Soup or Salad

Tips for Making Crispy Black Bean Quesadillas

• Use a cheese that melts easily – like swiss, monterey jack, colby, gouda, havarti, grueyere, provolone, pizza mozzarella, buffalo mozzarella
• Use flour tortillas. Corn tortillas are drier in texture and won’t hold together for a quesadilla.
• No more than 2-3 Tbsp of filling per tortilla. Too much filling won’t heat through quickly and the cheese won’t be able to hold it all together. If you have extra veggies & beans you’d like to include, use them in a side salad or salsa and add to the top of your finished quesadillas when serving.
• Squish half or all of the beans if someone around the table hesitates at the sight of whole beans
• Use pinto beans for a lighter color or kidney beans for a different flavor.
• Use a light coating of canola oil to prevent burning – no need to use a lot – you’re not deep frying them!
• Cook over medium heat to ensure the filling gets hot and melty without having the outside char or burn.
• Pro Flipping Tip: spread cheese over entire tortilla, but spread the filling only on one half of the tortilla. This way you don’t have to try flipping the entire quesadilla – once the cheese has melted on both sides, simply fold the empty side on top of the full side – the melty cheese will help it to stay together.
• Add green herbs just before folding over to keep them looking fresh.

Recipe for Easy Black Bean Quesadillas

How to Freeze Quesadillas

You can freeze the filling and the tortillas separately and assemble when ready to eat. Or you can fill the tortillas and place them on a baking sheet until frozen. Then transfer the frozen quesadillas to a ziplock bag. Thaw and cook as described in recipe.

Note: The mashed beans, cheese and corn will freeze and thaw well. Don’t freeze fresh, high moisture veggies like tomatoes, peppers, onion and herbs – add those when reheating.

Cook with the seasons, effortlessly! I’m Getty, a food educator and Professional Home Economist, helping you select, store, and serve seasonal ingredients in delicious, simple, everyday meals. Sign up for seasonal tips and recipes delivered straight to your inbox, and dive deeper with my books, guides, or YouTube content.