This Mexican vegan rice and black beans is spicy, aromatic and incredibly satisfying. This one pot meal is easy to make, and require minimal prep work. Makes a great meal prep recipe as it stores well and is freezer-friendly, too.
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💚Why you will love this recipe
- A family-friendly pantry staple - You will never go wrong with this vegan rice and black beans! It is super flavorful, and will feed both vegans and omnivores.
- Easy to make one pot meal - Everything can be made in a pot, and this recipe only calls for easily accessible pantry staples.
- Minimal chopping and prepping required - No need to spend hours hovering around your chopping board, which is definitely a win!
- Versatile and pairs beautifully with anything - You can use this vegan Mexican rice and beans as a filling for burritos or tacos, make burrito bowls with it or serve it with other complementary side dishes.
- Great for meal prep and easily portable - It stores really well in the fridge, and can be frozen too. Plus, it makes a great lunchbox meal to be taken with you to work or school.
🍚What you will need
📃Notes / substitutions
- Brown rice - It is highly recommended to use the long grain variety. You can definitely use long grain white rice in place, but cut the cooking time in half (about 15-20 minutes.)
- Diced tomatoes - Can be substituted with 1 ½ - 2 cups of tomato-based salsa.
- Chili powder - Reduce or omit it completely if sensitive to heat.
- Black beans - Both canned ones or beans cooked from scratch will work. Other cooked beans like kidney beans, pinto beans and chickpeas can be used in place.
👩🍳Cooking black beans from scratch
Although canned black beans is convenient to have on hand, homemade ones taste better and tends to be much cheaper, too!
You can either choose to cook them on stove, in an Instant pot or in a slow cooker / crockpot. There is no need to presoak them.
- Stovetop - Place dried black beans into a pot and cover with several inches of water. Bring mixture to a boil, then reduce heat to a gentle simmer. Cook, uncovered for 1-2 hours, until they are tender, stirring every once in a while.
- Instant pot - Place beans into pot along with enough water to cover them by 1-2 inches. Cook at high pressure for 30 minutes, and let the pressure release naturally.
- Slow cooker / Crockpot - Cover beans with a few inches of water and cook at high for 6-8 hours, checking after the 6 hour mark.
🔪How to make
Instructions for cooking on stovetop and in Instant pot is both included.
On stovetop
Heat up a tablespoon of neutral tasting oil in a large pot or Dutch oven over medium heat. Once pot is heated, add in onion and saute for 3-4 minutes, or until translucent. Next, add in garlic and cook for another 1-2 minutes until fragrant.
Now, add in rinsed rice and toast until grains turn slightly browned, about 6-8 minutes. Add in broth, diced tomato, chili powder, cumin, paprika and salt. Give it a good stir and bring mixture to a boil, then lower heat to a gentle simmer.
Place the lid on and cook on low heat for 35-45 minutes, or until rice is tender and most of the broth has been absorbed. Do not stir or lift the lid while cooking.
After rice is done cooking, stir in rinsed black beans before serving.
In Instant pot
Set pot to saute mode and heat up a tablespoon of neutral tasting oil. Once pot is heated, toss in onion and cook for 3-4 minutes until softened. Add in garlic and saute for another 1-2 minutes.
Now, add in rice and toast them for 6-8 minutes, or until they are lightly browned. You can now add in broth, chili powder, cumin, paprika and salt. Give it a good stir. Lastly, add in diced tomatoes and do not mix it!
Cancel saute mode and place the lid on. Set it to cook at high pressure for 24 minutes. Once the timer goes off, let the gas release naturally for 10 minutes, before manually releasing the remaining pressure.
Stir in drained black beans, serve and enjoy!
✔Helpful tips
- Rinse rice thoroughly - This helps remove excess starch on the grains, hence preventing mushy and sticky rice.
- Cook at low heat - If you are cooking on stove, it is important that you cook vegan rice and black beans on low. You will risk burning it at the bottom if you adjust the heat too high!
- Do not stir or uncover lid multiple times while cooking - This might cause undercooked rice. You can opt for a glass lid so you will know when it is done without opening the lid frequently.
- If cooking in Instant pot, do not mix once tomato is added in - This is to prevent tomatoes from burning at the bottom.
- Adjust spices according to your liking - Feel free to omit or add in complementary spices to suit you and your family taste's buds!
🌯How to serve
Wondering what you can do with this vegan Mexican rice and beans? Here are some serving ideas -
- Use it as a filling or tacos or burritos. I especially love pairing it with my tempeh taco meat!
- Serve it alongside some refried beans, salsa, lettuce, guacamole and tortilla chips to make burrito bowls.
- For extra protein, toss in some seitan or seitan chicken slices and this will bump up the protein content significantly.
- You can even serve vegan rice and black beans for breakfast along with tofu scramble egg and breakfast sausage (recipe coming soon!)
❔Commonly asked questions
If your vegan Mexican rice and beans turn out to be mushy, it is most likely that you had added to much broth or water. Keep this in mind and reduce the amount of liquid used next time.
Other than that, also make sure to use long-grain rice as they tend to hold their shape better. Do rinse grains thoroughly before cooking to remove excess starch on the surface that might cause your rice to clump together.
If your Mexican rice is undercooked and still hard in the middle, add in ¼ cup of water and cook at low heat, covered for another 5-6 minutes. Repeat this process until your rice is soft and tender.
You can store vegan rice and black beans in the fridge for up to a week. This recipe is freezable too and will keep in the freezer for 3 months. Remember to portion it up accordingly before freezing.
To reheat frozen Mexican rice, let it thaw completely in the fridge overnight, or on countertop for a few hours. You can also choose to thaw it in the microwave using the 'defrost' setting. Now, you can either heat it up in a pan, or in the microwave for 2-3 minutes. Add a splash of water if the mixture appears to be dry.
🍽More vegan rice dishes
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📖 Recipe
Spicy Vegan Mexican Rice and Black Beans
Ingredients
- 1 medium red onion diced
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 2 cups long grain brown rice rinsed and drained*
- 3 cups vegetable broth
- 1 14 oz can diced tomatoes **
- 1 teaspoon chili powder reduce or omit if sensitive to heat
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- ½ teaspoon salt or to taste
- 1 15 oz can black beans drained and rinsed*** (or 1 ½ cups cooked , 270g)
Instructions
On stovetop
- Heat up a tablespoon of neutral tasting oil in a large pot or Dutch oven over medium heat. Once pot is heated, add in onion and saute for 3-4 minutes, or until translucent. Next, add in garlic and cook for another 1-2 minutes until fragrant.
- Now, add in rinsed rice and toast until grains turn slightly browned, about 6-8 minutes. Add in broth, diced tomato, chili powder, cumin, paprika and salt. Give it a good stir and bring mixture to a boil, then lower heat to a gentle simmer.
- Place the lid on and cook on low heat for 35-45 minutes, or until rice is tender and most of the broth has been absorbed. Do not stir or lift the lid while cooking.
- After rice is done cooking, stir in rinsed black beans before serving.
In Instant pot
- Set pot to saute mode and heat up a tablespoon of neutral tasting oil. Once pot is heated, toss in onion and cook for 3-4 minutes until softened. Add in garlic and saute for another 1-2 minutes.
- Now, add in rice and toast them for 6-8 minutes, or until they are lightly browned. You can now add in broth, chili powder, cumin, paprika and salt. Give it a good stir. Lastly, add in diced tomatoes and do not mix it!
- Cancel saute mode and place the lid on. Set it to cook at high pressure for 24 minutes. Once the timer goes off, let the gas release naturally for 10 minutes, before manually releasing the remaining pressure.
Notes
Reheat - To reheat frozen Mexican rice, let it thaw completely in the fridge overnight, or on countertop for a few hours. You can also choose to thaw it in the microwave using the 'defrost' setting. Now, you can either heat it up in a pan, or in the microwave for 2-3 minutes. Add a splash of water if the mixture appears to be dry.
Nutrition
Nutrition info calculated is just a rough estimate and is provided as a courtesy. Bear in mind that value will vary based on variables like specific brand or type of product used. To obtain the most accurate representation, it is highly recommended that you calculate it on your own with the actual amount and type of ingredient used.
ACC
I only have medium grain rice; what happens if I use that?
Meesha
Yes, that will work as well!
Linda
This dish had no flavor. Any suggestions on how to spice it up and make it more flavorful?
Meesha
If that's the case, I highly recommend adding more salt to this dish to enhance the flavor!😁 Feel free to add other herbs and spices like chili powder, smoked paprika, or dried thyme leaves.
Amanda S
This recipe is now a staple in my house. It’s super delicious! Thank you!
Meesha
Happy to hear that! 😊
Cindy
I love this! I use salsa and add corn, beans, sliced black olives, and finely chopped kale. It’s so good!
Meesha
Glad to hear that! Yum, your combo sounds amazing.😁
Tanaya
My favorite combo- easy and quick. Came out great. I may try the salsa next time or add some peppers but it's good as is. Thank you!
Meesha
Yay, I am happy you like it!
Colleen
How much broth? Enough for rice liquid I am guessing? Recipe doesn’t include.
Meesha
You will need 3 cups! It is actually stated in the recipe card above 😁
Colleen
Thanks! I must have been blind but so much text and working from phone probably why.
Lathiya
The rice and beans look so easy to with make with minimal ingredients. Am sure it is delicious.
meesha
It is really yum, do give it a try !
Noelle
What a great staple dish! Simple and delicious
meesha
Thanks ! I totally agree with you, it is one of my fav things to make !
Irina
I cannot imagine how I was missing this black bean and rice combination. These ingredients differ in color, taste, and texture. I love your recipe:)
meesha
Aww thanks ! I am really happy that you like it !
Sharon
This easy vegan rice and black bean recipe is the perfect side dish! Great for next-day leftovers too.
admin2
Agreed ! I always make more than needed so I will have leftovers for the next day !
Janelle
What an amazing rice meal. I love the combination of bean and rice. Always a winner when stuck on ideas of what to cook
meesha
Yes ! They are really great to have when you just want something quick and easy !
Annissa
I love this version of a vegan staple. The spices make it a dish I can never get enough of. Thanks for the recipe.
meesha
Its my pleasure ! Glad you like it !
Mama Maggie's Kitchen
This looks insanely good. Yum!
meesha
Thanks ! Do give it a try !