These are delicious and easy to make. It makes tacos enough for four people, and since we are only two over here, I make a full recipe of beans but only assemble and bake half of them. I refrigerate the rest of the beans and assemble the other half later in the week.

I buy a package of fresh, small, soft Mission tortillas, and put a piece of waxed paper between every six of them to freeze them immediately. Then when I want to assemble this I can separate out just the frozen tortillas I want to thaw.

If you don’t buy your black beans in 25 oz cans like I do, two 15oz will work just fine.

This recipe is Jess Larson’s and you can watch her make them here on YouTube.

Crispy Black Bean Taco Recipe

3 tablespoons olive oil, divided
1 medium yellow onion, diced
4 cloves garlic, finely chopped or grated
1 chipotle pepper (from a can, packed in adobo sauce), finely chopped
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1 ½ teaspoons chili powder
1 ½ teaspoons ground cumin
1 ½ teaspoons smoked paprika
one 25 oz can black beans, drained and rinsed
½ cup vegetable broth or stock
1 lime, juiced
10 soft corn tortillas
6 ounces Pepper Jack, shredded, or shredded Mexican cheese blend
kosher salt and ground black pepper, to season
for serving: guacamole, sour cream or  chopped cilantro, salsa of choice, lime wedges, etc

Preheat the oven to 450º F, ensuring a rack is positioned in the center of the oven.

Gather and prep all ingredients according to Ingredients List, above – once you begin cooking, these black bean tacos come together very quickly so it’s helpful to get any chopping and measuring done ahead of time.

Sauté the onion: Add 1 tablespoon of the olive oil to a medium skillet over medium heat. Once hot and shimmering, add the onion. Season with 1 teaspoon kosher salt. Cook, stirring occasionally, until translucent and fragrant, 3-4 minutes.

Stir in the garlic and chipotle. Cook just until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add in the chili powder, ground cumin, smoked paprika, and tomato paste. Stir, coating the onion. Cook 1-2 minutes longer, until very fragrant.

Add the black beans to the skillet, stirring to combine with the aromatics. Cook, stirring occasionally, until warm, 1-2 minutes. Add the vegetable stock, increasing heat to bring the mixture to a simmer. Use a spatula or wooden spoon to mash the black beans slightly, binding everything together. If needed, cook 1-2 minutes longer to thicken slightly. Squeeze the lime juice over the black bean mixture. Taste and season with additional kosher salt and ground black pepper as desired. Remove from the heat and set aside for taco assembly.

Meanwhile, as the black bean filling cooks, prep the tortillas. Wrap the corn tortillas in a damp paper towel. Microwave 30 seconds to steam the tortillas, making them pliable enough for taco assembly. Remove from the microwave and set aside. If you don’t have a microwave, warm each tortilla up individually on both sides in a dry pan on low.

Time to assemble the tacos! Brush the remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil across the surface of a large rimmed baking sheet. Place the warmed tortillas on the baking sheet, flipping them one or two times to get a nice light coating of oil on both sides. Spread the black been mixture over half of each tortilla, then sprinkle the cheese over top. Fold the tortillas, creating a taco around the black bean and cheese filling. I like to carefully flip the tacos at this point, so the cheese side is facing down.

Bake the black bean tacos: Transfer the sheet pan to the oven and bake the tacos 8-10 minutes. Remove from the oven. Working quickly and carefully, use a spatula to flip the tacos. Return to the oven and bake 8-10 minutes longer, until golden and crisp. Remove from the oven and allow to cool 2-3 minutes – the tacos will get even crispier as they cool.

Serve the crispy black bean tacos warm, finishing with toppings of choice!

Yum! Enjoy!