It’s also fun to stack layers of spicy rice and beans between freshly fried tostados. Depending on your hunger you can stack as high as you want!

Yum.

I’ve made various versions of rice and beans before and I’m always experimenting with new ways to do it. For this one I used whole spices which added a great flavor to the dish. I think I’ll probably start doing that from now on.

Tostado Stack

Yield: Serves 4.

Prep Time: 30 minutes

Total Time: 45 minutes

Ingredients:

Rice and Beans:

1 1/2 Cups long grain rice (not instant)
1 (15 ounce) can black beans (or any bean that you want)
1 (15 ounce) can diced tomatoes
1 medium onion, diced
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 Tablespoon cumin seeds
1 Tablespoon coriander seeds
1 Teaspoon crushed red peppers
2 Teaspoons paprika
3 Tablespoons olive oil or butter
Salt and pepper

12 corn tortillas (or as many as you want to stack I guess)
Canola oil for frying
8 ounces cheddar cheese, grated
Sour Cream (optional)
2 Avocados, for guacamole
Hot sauce (optional)

Helpful Equipment:
Spice Grinder
Deep fry thermometer

Directions:

1) Add spices to the pan and toast them for 5 minutes over medium-high heat until they start to smell really good. They should turn slightly tan, but don’t let them burn!

2) Give them a quick whirl in spice grinder. If you wanted it really spicy, you could up the red pepper a bit and also add some cayenne.

3) Heat oil over medium-high heat in a large pan with a lid. Add onions and garlic and cook for just a few minutes until they are translucent. Then add all spices and stir well to combine.

4) Stir in rice. Stir everything together for about 30 seconds.

5) Add canned tomatoes and about 3 to 3 1/2 Cups water. Bring this mixture to a simmer and cook it covered over low heat for about 20 minutes.

6) To make tostados, add canola oil (or peanut oil) to a large frying pan until it comes about 1/2 inch up the side. Heat it until the oil is 350 degrees.

7) Once oil is hot, toss in one or two tortillas at a time depending on the size of your pan.

8) With some tongs, gently turn the tortilla over every few seconds to keep it as flat as possible.

9) Move the tortillas to a paper towel or a paper bag to drain off the oil and add some salt to them right away.

10) After 20 minutes or so, check rice and beans. Add beans near the end (drain them from the can) and also add a good pinch of salt and pepper.

11) Stack! Start with a layer of rice and beans. The basic layer is tostado, cheese, rice and beans, hot sauce (optional), and another tostado. Top the whole thing with sour cream and guacamole.

Making the rice and beans

You could add some sort of meat to this if you want, but honestly, I think it’s so flavorful from the spices that I don’t really miss the meat at all. Plus it would add time onto your prep so for me this is a great vegetarian meal.

Good stuff.

If you are using whole spices, add them to a pan and toast them for 5 minutes over medium-high heat until they start to smell really good. They should turn slightly tan, but don’t let them burn!

This will make your house smell good.

Then give them a quick whirl in your spice grinder. The spices that I used for this version don’t make the rice and beans really spicy, but they do make it flavorful! If you wanted it really spicy, you could up the red pepper a bit and also add some cayenne to the party.

Lots of flavor in this bowl.

To get your rice and beans started, heat your oil over medium-high heat in a large pan with a lid. Add your onions and garlic and cook for just a few minutes until they are translucent. Then add all your spices and stir well to combine.

Next stir in you rice. Sort of like making a risotto, you want the rice to absorb some of the spices and get hot before you add your liquids. Just stir everything together for about 30 seconds. It will smell good and it should look like this.

Kind of like a risotto!

Next add your canned tomatoes and about 3 to 3 1/2 Cups water. Depending on what kind of rice you use exactly, you’ll have to adjust the amount of water. Just remember that there’s some liquid in your canned tomatoes also.

Beautiful color.

Bring this mixture to a simmer and cook it covered over low heat for about 20 minutes. Again, check your rice package as the cooking time will vary a lot based on what kind of rice you are using. I usually check mine at about 20 minutes and give it a quick stir just to make sure the rice isn’t sticking. You can also add a bit more liquid at this point if you need to.

Making the tostados

I think you can buy tostados already made, but I think they are better fresh (as with most fried things). They are easy to make than tortilla chips even. Just add canola oil (or peanut oil) to a large frying pan until it comes about 1/2 inch up the side. Heat it until the oil is 350 degrees. It helps to have a thermometer for this, but if you don’t have one, just rip off a tiny piece of tortilla and toss it in as a sacrifice.

Once your oil is hot, toss in one or two tortillas at a time depending on the size of your pan.

When the tortillas hit the oil, they’ll have a tendency to form a bubble. With some tongs, gently turn the tortilla over every few seconds to keep it as flat as possible. Eventually then will start to brown nicely and stop bubbling. This means that most of the moisture is out of the tortilla and therefore it’s super-crispy!

Move the tortillas to a paper towel or a paper bag to drain off the oil and add some salt to them right away.

Nice and crispy.

After 20 minutes or so, as I mentioned, check your rice and beans. Add your beans near the end (drain them from the can) and also add a good pinch of salt and pepper. Depending on your tomatoes and spices you might need more or less salt so just taste it and adjust.

When tasting it, notice how amazing it tastes.

Good just like this.

Making the stack

This is pretty self-explanatory. The only tip I would give is to start with a layer of rice and beans so that your stack doesn’t slide around on the plate. The basic layer is tostado, cheese, rice and beans, hot sauce (optional), and another tostado. Top the whole thing with sour cream and guacamole.

If you’re a visual person, here ya go:

Get it?

Betsy usually does just one layer, but I like two. If you want to be all crazy, you could try three or four. Three tostados packed with the rice and beans and cheese and topped with guacamole and sour cream (or Greek yogurt if you want) is a pretty hearty meal.

Oh and for those people on a diet, maybe don’t slather sour cream all over the top like I did.

Go as high as you want.

Start to finish I would say this meal takes an hour. Totally doable on a week night and the good news is that it makes a lot of food. Betsy and I eat it for days. It’s fantastic for lunch or a quick dinner later in the week.

If you wanted to change it up you could also use the extra rice and beans for a burrito.

You have to love Tex-Mex.

Sometimes a sandwich isn’t enough.

And so let me introduce my new favorite friend: The one pound rice and bean burrito.

Not my best photo.

I’ve made breakfast burritos before that are much smaller and filled with egg and cheese, but these guys are for lunch purposes. Super cheap to make, easy to transport and reheat, and very filling.

The base for these burritos is a spicy rice and bean mixture with three different kinds of beans plus some onions and peppers. Layer that together with some simple guacamole, cheese, and hot sauce and you are ready to rock.

One Pound Burritos

Yield: Makes 8 burritos.

Prep Time: 1 hour

Total Time: 1 hour 30 minutes

Ingredients:

8 large tortillas. I used the biggest I could find.
12-16 ounces cheese, grated
2 avocados
1/4 Cup sour cream

Rice and Beans:
1.5 cups uncooked long grain rice (no instant stuff)
3 cans of beans.
1 onion, diced
1 green pepper, diced
2-3 jalapenos, de-seeded and diced.
2 Teaspoons paprika
2 Tablespoons olive oil
1 Teaspoon Cayenne pepper (optional)
Large pinch of salt and pepper

Directions:

1) Heat oil in a 4 or 5 quart pan. Once oil is hot, add the onions and peppers and sauté for a few minutes.

2) Add the rice and stir for another minute. Once the rice is hot, add about 3 – 4 cups of water. Check the instructions on the rice for exact amounts of water. You can also use chicken stock or veggie stock if you want.

3) Drain the beans and add each can to the mix. No need to rinse the beans really, just try to drain off some of the extra liquid.

4) Stir everything together, add the spices, cover and let simmer on low for 20 minutes or so.

5) Pull it off the heat and let it cool which will probably take at least an hour. It needs to be room temperature before you start filling the burritos.

6) Mix together the crushed avocados and sour cream.

7) Grate the cheese and get any other toppings you want to add ready to go.

8) Take a tortilla and stick it in the microwave for literally 5 seconds to soften it up. Or you can warm them up in a low heat oven if you want.

9) Spread on a tablespoon or two of guac, followed by about 3/4 of a cup to a cup of rice and beans. You want to leave about an inch of room on two sides and about three inches of room on the other sides. This will make it easy to roll later.

10) Pile on the cheese and hot sauce.

11) To properly fold the burrito, fold the short ends up and then roll it over so that the short ends are tucked under the long ends.

12) To store the burritos, double wrap them in foil then wrap in plastic wrap, then once more in foil. Pop them into some gallon bags (2 per bag is all that will fit due to their largeness) and stick them in the freezer until you're hungry!

13) To re-heat microwave on high for about 3 minutes and then flip it over and nuke it for another 3 minutes. That should get the cheese properly and evenly melted.

Making the Rice and Beans

Start off by heating your oil in a large pan with lid. I would say you need at least a 4 or 5 quart pan for this. When your oil is hot, add your onions and peppers and saute for a few minutes.

Then add your rice and stir for another minute. Once the rice is hot, add about 3 – 4 cups of water. Check the instructions on your rice for exact amounts of water. You can also use chicken stock or veggie stock if you want. Then drain your beans and add each can to the mix. No need to rinse the beans really, just try to drain off some of the extra liquid.

Stir everything together, add your spices, cover and let simmer on low for 20 minutes or so.

A solid rice and bean base

After that 20 minutes, my rice needed to cook a bit longer, but it had absorbed all the water, so I added about another cup, gave it another stir and covered it again for 10 minutes. Your rice should have a small bite to it but still be pretty soft. If there is one thing I don’t like in a burrito it is mushy rice so try not to over cook this stuff.

Once it’s done, pull it off the heat and let it cool which will probably take at least an hour. It needs to be room temperature before you start filling your burritos.

In the meantime…

While your rice and beans are cooling down, you can do some other prep work like mixing together your crushed avocados and sour cream.

Good guac.

Some people might be inclined to make a more substantial guacamole. For burritos, I like my guacamole to be pretty creamy and smooth. Almost like mayo on a sandwich. It’s personal preference though so if you prefer the full deal then go for it by all means.

You may also want to grate your cheese and get any other toppings you want to add ready to go.

Making the burritos

Making the burritos is really easy once you have your rice and beans done. Take a tortilla and stick it in the microwave for literally 5 seconds to soften it up. Or you can warm them up in a low heat oven if you want. If you don’t warm your tortilla a bit it will be prone to tears when you are rolling it. That’s why all the good burrito shops have the heated press things that they put your tortilla on before filling.

The great thing about these burritos is how customized they can get. I started by spreading on a tablespoon or two of my guac, followed by about 3/4 of a cup to a cup of rice and beans. You want to leave about an inch of room on two sides and about three inches of room on the other sides. This will make it easy to roll later.

The base.

Then pile on your cheese and hot sauce. I love experimenting with different combinations. For this batch I used two different kinds of cheese and four different kinds of hot sauce that I had laying around. This means that every burrito has a completely different taste to it and it is always a bit of a surprise when I bite into my lunch.

The extras.

Folding the Burrito

To properly fold the burrito, fold the short ends up and then roll it over so that the short ends are tucked under the long ends. That will keep your burrito from busting open. If that was hard to envision, check out this video and this one. Either can give you the basic rolling technique I like to use. The trick is to have a warm, soft tortilla. If you have that and leave yourself some room around the edges, you’ll be just fine.

Storing the Burritos

Because we are going to freeze these, I like to double wrap them in foil. This should keep out any freezer burn without a problem for a month or so. If you want to go crazy, you can wrap once in foil, then wrap in plastic wrap, then once more in foil. They would keep like that for a long time.

Almost one pound exactly!

Once i have all of my burritos rolled up and ready to go, I pop them into some gallon bags (2 per bag is all that will fit due to their largeness) and stick them in the freezer until I get hungry!

Ready for the deep freeze.

Then all I have to do is microwave them at work or wherever and I have a spicy, cheesy burrito that can power me through the day. I microwave mine on hi for about 3 minutes and then flip it over and nuke it for another 3 minutes. That should get the cheese properly and evenly melted.

Needless to say, my lunches are no longer boring!

So I’ve been trying to find creative ways to eat reasonably healthy things in the morning that are also fast to make. It doesn’t help my little problem that I really dislike cereal.

What I do like though, is breakfast burritos! A few weekends ago, I made enough burritos to last me a week and had some for dinner also.

Nothing fancy about it.

Since I’ve been trying to eat less meat these days, I decided to use spicy rice and beans as my base for the burritos. This is my quick take on rice and beans. It is far from the traditional variety, but produces a pretty solid result and is also relatively fast.

Quick and Easy Rice and Beans

- 1/2 onion, chopped
- 1 Cup long grain rice
- 2 cans black beans (Feel free to use dried if you want)
- Salt and Pepper
- Spice options: Cumin, Paprika, Chili powder, Cayenne, go crazy!

Start by sauteing your onions in a few tablespoons of olive oil. Once they are sweating a bit, add in your rice and stir, kind of like making a risotto. As you can see, I added a knob of butter because why not?

Almost risotto.

After that cooks for a second, add your two cans of beans (drained!) and 3 cups of water and whatever spices you want to start with. You can always add more later remember. Stir to combine everything, cover with a lid and let simmer for 20-30 minutes depending on your rice.

You’ll end up with this lovely dish that honestly I can eat by itself. You could definitely add some tomato or peppers to this if that is your thing.

Rice and beans isn't hard.

Even with this lovely rice and bean mixture, a breakfast burrito is not a breakfast burrito without eggs!

Runny eggs are what you want for frozen burritos.

Knowing that I’m going to microwave these guys ultimately, I undercooked my eggs. They will finish cooking in the microwave without a problem.

I tried these with wheat tortillas which honestly aren’t my favorite because they are more difficult to roll up. That’s me trying to be all healthy… If you throw them in the microwave (or in a warm oven) for a few seconds they will soften up and be easier to roll.

Then stack them high with the goods!

Breakfast variety

I kept these pretty plain: rice and beans, eggs, cheese. That said, I encourage creativity. I’m pretty sure anything under the sun can be good in a burrito. Go wild.

I use the double-ended method of rolling burritos which locks in both sides. Fold two ends over and then turn the burrito 90 degrees and roll it up!

Get it?

When freezing stuff like this, I like to double wrap them. That means wrapping them once in plastic wrap or sandwich sized bags…

One down. A bunch to go.

And then wrapping all the individual ones together in a larger bag. Try to get out as much air as you can. If you have one of those nifty vacuum-pack things, more power to ya.

Ready to freeze.

What’s nice about using the sandwich bags is that you can re-use all of them. A little easier on your pocket book and on Mother Earth.

Making breakfast for a week made me hungry. I made four burritos for dinner and replaced the eggs with salsa. I put them on a baking sheet and covered them with cheese because I had to counter-act the health gain from the wheat tortilla.

The dinner variety.

Baked them for a few minutes just to melt the cheese and served them with more salsa, guacamole, and Greek yogurt. It’s a fantastic substitute for sour cream.

Gotta love easy Tex-Mex!

I think I can get on board with this breakfast thing if I keep making stuff like this. I must admit I felt a lot more energized in the morning hours which isn’t surprising. This was just a test run. Next time I think I’m going to make like 40 because I have an empty freezer. I might as well fill it up with something delicious.

Anybody else have any fast breakfast tips that aren’t cereal related?