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Doing a little Mexican today with these Chipotle Black Bean, Brown Rice, and Mango Quesadillas.
Which also happen to be the easiest, quickest, and most delicious vegetarian quesadilla I have personally ever made…or eaten for that matter.
These quesadillas are filled with black beans, brown rice, mangos, and chipotle peppers. They’re extra cheesy and served up with the quickest homemade salsa verde. The meal is slightly spicy, balanced with a little sweetness, healthy…ish, and possibly one of my new favorite go-to weeknight dinners.
And you guys…want know the very best part? Aside from these being delicious and all made on one sheet pan, these quesadillas are a panty staples recipe. Meaning that I found all the ingredients used to make this recipe in my pantry. I’m not sure if that’s appealing or not to you guys, but I think it’s pretty cool. It’s especially cool when Friday night rolls in and you realize you have zero groceries to make dinner with, and the thought of going to the grocery store…that’s crowded with out-of-town skiers (reality when living in a ski town), sounds miserable.
That wasn’t me this past Friday or anything…Dad please come home (just kidding, but I can’t wait until you do)!
Here’s the deal, my mom has taught me a lot of things: She’s taught me that breakfast for dinner should be a once a week thing, how to sweet talk my way into just about anything, how to make the best oatmeal chocolate chip cookies, and how to keep a well stocked pantry.
All very, very, very important things to know. And I am being very serious right now.
Growing up, my mom was insane with her pantry upkeep. If there is one women that knows a thing or two about food backups, it’s Jenny, aka mom. She’d have backups for backups of all the pantry items she used most. The moment her stock piles got low, she’d replenish. And because of her, there was never a night we couldn’t bake up a batch of chocolate chip cookies.
Obviously, my mom is a very, very smart woman…or cookie? Sorry that’s cheesy, but I had to.
Anyway, she passed the skill on down to me. Granted, I am nowhere near as good as she is, but I try. And because of it I have a pretty well stocked pantry. Therefore, I was able to avoid the crowded grocery store and make these quesadillas.
YESSSS.
Here is what you’ll need to do. Mix up some cooked brown rice with a can of black beans, mango chunks (which I always have on hand, both fresh and frozen), and chipotle peppers. Layer that mix inside a tortilla (corn or flour, I like both, but flour is my favorite), add plenty of cheese (which I always have in the fridge). Arrange everything on a baking sheet and bake your quesadillas until the cheese has melted and the quesadillas are golden and crisp.
While the quesadillas are baking, mix up some salsa using canned green chiles with lime juice, cilantro, and salt.
Put everything together and eat while warm.
Oh my gosh. SO GOOD. Cheesy, spicy, a little sweet from the mango, crunchy, and all kinds of perfection.
A couple of recipe notes/things.
Traditionally, quesadillas are pan-fried, but I love baking them for three reasons.
- it’s easy, and there’s VERY LITTLE MESS
- it’s healthier
- it creates the perfect, extra crispy quesadilla
Don’t be afraid to play around with this recipe depending on what you have in your pantry. No brown rice? Try using quinoa, white rice, barley, or whatever grain you do have on hand. Have some pinto beans but not black beans? Use the pinto! Have fun, use what you have, and don’t skimp on the cheese!
I mean, these are quesadillas after all.
Chipotle Black Bean, Brown Rice, and Mango Quesadillas
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups cooked brown rice
- 1 cup fresh spinach, chopped
- 1 can (14 ounces) black beans, drained
- 1/2 cup mango chunks, fresh or frozen
- 1-2 chipotle peppers in adobo, chopped
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- 1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
- kosher salt
- 8 small corn or flour tortillas
- 1/2 cup shredded pepper jack cheese
- 1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese
- plain greek yogurt, limes, avocado, and cilantro for serving
Quick Salsa Verde
- 2 cans (4 ounces) diced green chiles
- juice from 1 lime
- 2 tablespoons toasted pepitas
- 1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
- kosher salt
Instructions
- 1. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F. 2. In a bowl, combine the rice, spinach black beans, mangos, chipotle peppers, cumin, cilantro, and a large pinch of salt. 4. On a baking sheet, rub the tortillas with olive oil. Lay 4 tortillas flat and then layer evenly with rice and beans mix plus cheese. Add the top tortilla. Transfer to the oven and cook for 5-8 minutes, then flip and cook another 5 minutes more, or until the cheese has melted and the tortillas are crisp. 5. Meanwhile, make the salsa. Stir together the green chiles, lime juice, pepitas, and cilantro. Season to taste with salt.6. Serve the quesadillas topped with salsa and drizzled with yogurt. EAT!
Nutrition
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Did you make this recipe? Please rate & comment below.
Carbs and cheese…the best.
PS. two bean recipes in one week means one thing…I’m feeding myself and not the family.
Hi! My husband and I love your blog. We were hooked after we tried your recipe for simple coconut quinoa and lentil curry with lime mango. It’s SO GOOD and it’s now my favorite, to the point where instead of going out to eat on my birthday, I ask my husband to make it. (It takes us SO much longer to make than your estimate, though.)
Now, to my question: this recipe’s ingredient list shows yogurt at the end, but it doesn’t say what kind to use. Is it plain Greek yogurt? That’s my first assumption because it seems to be the kind you use the most, but I don’t want to accidentally use that if that’s not the right kind. I have no sense when it comes to cooking, so I’m not good at improvising.
Please let me know.
Thank you!
Hi Veronica!! Thank you so much, you are so kind!! 🙂 I like to use plain greek yogurt. Recipe is adjusted. Please let me know if you have other questions. Hope you love this recipe! Thanks! 🙂
These were so delicious! The smokey heat of the chipotle peppers in adobo paired with the cool heat of the green chilies was delightful. Huge hit in my house. Thanks for sharing!
I am really glad you enjoyed them! Thank you Maggie!
These quesadillas look so delicious, I love the flavors! 🙂
Thank you!
Pretty please do a post on your pantry! Teach ya what your mother taught you!
Thanks Leslie! ?
hey girl- these look oh so yummy! Y’all have a great weekend!
Thank you!!
This recipe looks delicious! Chipotle chilies don’t really exist where I live 🙁 is there a good substitution that won’t affect the outcome of this recipe too much ?
HI! I would use 2 teaspoons chili powder. Does that work? Please let me know if you have other questions. Hope you love this recipe! Thanks! 🙂
You could try using smoked chili powder. Also, you could probably purchase chipotles from Amazon.
I cannot wait to try, this looks really great..going to give it a try. Something warming and delicious.
Yes! I hope you love this Paulina! Thank you!
Hey Tieghan,
I like these quesadillas and how they’re baked on one pan. My mom also always has a well stocked pantry and that’s something I miss while moving to college. It’s such a treat to visit and have supplies on hand for baking or something different. Haha groceries aren’t the best but I don’t trust delivery groceries (I need to pick my produce).
How is it feeding yourself and not the family? Maybe you could freeze all of your leftovers for lunch later in the week? These quesadillas seem like a nice thing to have on hand.
I hope all is well and you’re staying warm!
I bet it is the best to go home and have everything you want to cook! I hope you love these quesadillas, and yes I will probably be freezing a lot of the stuff! Thanks Kristin!
Oh my goodness! The addition of mango in this sounds amazing! I can’t wait to try it out for myself.
By the way, I would love if you did a pantry staples tour / guide. I don’t cook nearly as much as I did when I lived at home with my parents, so I’ve been struggling a bit on deciding what to upkeep in my pantry based on my eclectic food cravings. And if you already have a post like that, I’ll take a gander.
Thanks for sharing, Tieghan!
Thank you so much Chelsea!
Oh yum, you sure make vegetarian food look healthy AND good. I have all the ingredients in my pantry and I can’t wait to try these. Like many we try to eat less meat and fish, but we love food it’s not always easy to make the right choices. Recipes like these are inspiring, and as long as there is cheese…
Haha so glad you like this and hope it turns out amazing for you! Thank you!
Sounds amazing! Going on my meal plan for next week! But is rice supposed to be in the ingredients twice?
So sorry, that was a typo. All fixed. Please let me know if you have other questions. Hope you love this recipe! Thanks! 🙂
This sounds amazing! My husband requested more vegetarian meals during the week and this recipe would be perfect! I’ve made a similar version of these before with sweet potatoes and black beans paired with a side of homemade guacamole. I’ll be trying this out for sure!
I am so glad you enjoyed this! Thank you so much Shannon!
those quesadillas look soooo good and crisp!
Thank you Ruth!
I wish I could reach throught the screen and grab one of these! So delicious!
I so wish I could have shared these with you!! But so glad you’re liking these! Thanks Patricia!
This looks delicious, I’m looking forward to making it. Some of these ingredients aren’t available around here so I’ll be making substitutions. With the Chiles in the salsa, are they a specific type canned?
I just used canned diced green chilies. they are pretty standard. Linked below! Please let me know if you have other questions. Hope you love this recipe! Thanks! 🙂
https://rstyle.me/n/cynirbb9wzf