Black Bean Enchilada Pie
Layers of flour tortillas, black beans, and sauce is a fun twist on traditional enchiladas. Serve it with all of your favorite toppings for an easy-to-make weeknight dinner.
Black Bean Enchilada Pie
It’s been a while since I’ve shared an Instant Pot recipe and it’s not because I haven’t been using mine but over the last few months it’s been more of of a secondary support to other dishes instead of being the star of the show.
Lately, I’ve used it mostly to cook dried beans to use in all kinds of easy dishes. And as someone who gets excited about mundane things like beans, it’s been a fun time in my kitchen. A bag of beans goes from rock-hard to tender in about an hour and a half in a pressure cooker (a serious time reduction compared to the old-fashioned way) but the dishes I use them in are mostly cobbled-together fast weekday recipes and nothing to write home about. I have them with eggs for breakfast, toss them in salads for lunch, and add them to simple soups. But then I made this easy black bean enchilada pie and it totally deserves its own headline.
How to Make Instant Pot Black Beans
- It starts with black beans that cook in a 3-quart Instant Pot with jalapeno, red onion, salt, and some water. After some experimenting, I like to cook the beans on high pressure for an hour and let the steam naturally release for about 15 to 20 minutes. If you don’t have a pressure cooker I’ve included simple stove top instructions in the recipe notes, but instead of dried beans you can use canned ones.
- Once the beans are cooked I like to mash them a few times to break some of them up. This helps thicken the liquid. I also add a squeeze of fresh lime juice.
- You can make the beans ahead of time and keep them in the refrigerator until you’re ready to make the enchilada pie.
How to Make the Enchilada Pie
- To make the pie, start with the sauce. All you need is canned tomato sauce and your favorite chili/taco seasoning mix. You don’t need to precook the sauce, just mix it and then it cooks in the oven.
- I use a 9-inch pie dish and cover the bottom of it with sauce. From there it’s a simple as layering 8-inch flour tortillas with the black beans (four layers total) and topping the last tortilla with the rest of the sauce and shredded pepper jack cheese.
- Bake the enchilada pie for about 20 to 30 minutes at 375°F. Serve the slices with sour cream, sliced green onions, and chopped fresh cilantro.
This black bean enchilada pie is a stick-to-your ribs hearty dinner that’s super simple to make with or without an Instant Pot.
Happy pie-making,
More Instant Pot Recipes
Looking for more delicious ways to use your Instant Pot or pressure cooker? Here are three more of my favorite recipes…
- Instant Pot Braised Beef Tacos | An Instant Pot makes these tender and savory braised beef tacos totally doable on a weeknight. The beef tastes like it simmered for hours in the oven but all of it comes together in less than an hour.
- Instant Pot Black Bean Soup | “I have made this soup several times for my husband and me. We LOVE it!” – GGG reader comment
- Spicy Chicken Ragu | This spicy chicken ragu for two cooks in an Instant Pot making it an easy dinner for busy weeknights. There’s no browning or pre-cooking steps required – everything goes into the Instant Pot and in less than 30 minutes dinner is ready to go.
Black Bean Enchilada Pie
This enchilada pie is a fun twist on traditional enchiladas. Flour tortillas are layered with black beans and topped with a super simple sauce and shredded cheese. I use my pressure cooker to cook the beans, but I’ve also included stovetop instructions in the recipe notes.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 80 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour 35 minutes
- Yield: 4 servings 1x
- Category: Dinner
- Method: Oven
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
For the Black Beans
- 1 cup dried black beans
- 1 jalapeno, seeds removed and diced (see note)
- 1/2 cup chopped red onion
- 3 large garlic cloves, chopped
- 1 1/2 cups water (see note)
- 1/2 tsp kosher salt
- Juice of half a lime
Everything Else
- 16 oz canned tomato sauce
- 1 tablespoon chili or taco seasoning
- Juice of half a lime
- 5 (8-inch) flour tortillas
- 4 oz shredded pepper jack cheese
- Chopped cilantro, for garnish
- Sour cream, for garnish
- Slice green onions, for garnish
Instructions
How to Make the Beans (see note)
- Place the beans, jalapeno, onion, garlic, water, and salt in a 3-quart Instant Pot (see note) and stir. Secure the lid, close the steam vent, and choose the pressure cook setting. Set the timer for 60 minutes.
- It will take some time for the Instant Pot to get to pressure and once it does cook the beans for one hour. Once the timer goes off let the steam naturally release for about 15 to 20 minutes. Carefully open the steam vent and release the rest of the pressure. Remove the lid.
- Using a potato masher, mash the beans a few times to break some of them up. This will help thicken the liquid the beans cooked in. Add the lime juice and stir.
Assemble the Taco Pie
- Preheat oven to 375°F.
- In a bowl, combine the tomato sauce with the chili seasoning and lime juice until smooth. Spoon a generous amount sauce onto the bottom of a 9-inch pie dish. The bottom of the dish should be completely covered with sauce.
- Place one tortilla in the pie dish and spoon some black beans over the top using your spoon to smooth them into an even layer. Drizzle a spoonful of sauce over the black beans. Repeat with the rest of the tortillas, layers black beans and a little sauce in between each, finishing with the last tortilla on top.
- Pour the rest of the sauce over the top of the taco pie. Sprinkle the shredded cheese over the top of the sauce. Bake the pie for 20 to 30 minutes or until the cheese has melted and the sauce is bubbling hot. Let the pie stand for a few minutes before slicing and serving. Garnish each serving with the cilantro, sour cream, and green onions if using.
Notes
- Depending on the size of the jalapeno, and your heat tolerance, you may want to reduce the amount of jalapeno. I like this dish with a bit of heat, so adjust accordingly based on your taste.
- I’ve made this recipe using water and chicken stock and I like both, so if you have some chicken stock on hand use it to add a little boost in flavor.
- Depending on the kind (and size) of pressure cooker you have you may need to adjust the cook time for the beans. I use a small 3-quart Instant Pot and haven’t tested this recipe with other sizes or models.
- Stovetop Instructions: If you don’t have a pressure cooker follow these instructions for making the beans on the stovetop:
- Ingredients: Use the same ingredients and include 2 teaspoons of olive oil, reduce the amount of water to 1/2 a cup total, and substitute 1 can of black beans instead of dried.
- Instructions: In a 10-inch skillet, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the jalapeno, onion, and garlic and cook them for five minutes or until they’ve softened. Add the water or chicken stock to the pan. Bring it to a simmer and add the salt and beans. Stir it all together and cook it until the beans are warmed through. Using a potato masher, mash the beans a few times to break them up a bit. At this point, you can take them off the heat and assemble the enchilada pie as detailed in the recipe.
- The nutrition estimate does not include the garnishes.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 slice
- Calories: 396
- Sugar: 5.5g
- Fat: 4.5g
- Carbohydrates: 52.3g
- Fiber: 6.6g
- Protein: 18.1g
My girlfriend made this the other day and it was delicious. Thanks April for this great recipe.