These Rice and Bean Quesadillas are so easy to make and you only need a few ingredients! They’re great for lunch or dinner!

Hi friends! How are you all doing? It is crazy and scary times we’re living in right now and I’ve needed to take a mental health break this past week. I’m not sure what posting schedule I’ll be able to stick to right now, with limited food supply, but I will try to share as many easy, pantry recipes as I can!

These Rice and Bean Quesadillas are so easy to make and use mostly pantry ingredients. My pantry is usually pretty full of beans and rice but I made sure to stock up on extra cheese and tortillas because I knew they would come in handy.

What You’ll Need For These Rice and Bean Quesadillas

Rice – I usually buy white basmati rice because it’s my favorite and my kids enjoy it, but you can use any kind of rice you like. Brown rice or even cauliflower rice would work well. You could also use quinoa or a different grain of choice.
Beans – I decided to use black beans because they’re my favorite and they go so well with rice, but you can use any kind of bean you have on hand.
Cheese – I usually like to buy a block of cheese and grate my own but right now I just bought a few big bags of grated cheese that I’m storing in the freezer. I used cheddar cheese but any other cheese would work well, even vegan cheese.
Tortillas – I bought a huge bag of large flour tortillas and have just been using those but any kind of tortillas would work, even small corn tortillas.
Spices – I pretty much always have salt, pepper, paprika, cumin and garlic powder on hand so that is what I used to season the rice and beans and they were perfect!

How To Make A Quesadilla

Quesadillas are SO easy to make! We make them a ton around here, both for the kids and my husband and I. We usually just do plain cheese quesadillas but I thought that adding the rice and beans would make them more of a meal. Here is how I made them:

I made a big pot of rice at the beginning of the week so I just had some leftovers that I was able to use for this recipe, but if you don’t, you can just cook your rice according to package directions.
You then heat the rice, beans and spices for just a few minutes, until warmed through. You then lay your tortilla out and place a handful of cheese on half of it and then top it with an equal amount of rice and bean mixture. Fold tortilla over and cook in a pan until cheese is melted and tortilla is golden brown.

Quesadillas are great because you can make them with whatever ingredients you have on hand. You could add frozen veggies, canned veggies, salsa or anything else you like! Kids also love quesadillas so they’re a great option for an easy family dinner 🙂

Enjoy more quesadilla recipes here:

Pumpkin Quesadillas with Black Beans and Green Chile

Avocado Pesto Quesadillas

Brie Cheese Quesadillas with Strawberry Salsa

Easy Rice and Bean Quesadillas

Author: She Likes Food
Prep Time: 10 mins
Cook Time: 10 mins
Total Time: 20 minutes
Yield: 4-6 1x
Category: Lunch, Dinner, Vegetarian
Method: Stovetop
Cuisine: Mexican
Diet: Vegetarian

Print Recipe

Description

These Rice and Bean Quesadillas are so easy to make and use mostly pantry ingredients!

Ingredients

1 teaspoon olive oil-
1 cup cooked rice, I used basmati rice
1 (15 oz) can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon paprika
3/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon onion powder
4–6 tortillas
Shredded cheese, I used sharp cheddar

Instructions

Heat a large pan over medium heat and add olive oil, rice, beans and spices. Cook until heated through, about 3 minutes.
Lay your tortilla on a cutting board and and sprinkle one half with a small handful of cheese 1/4 – 1/3 cup and then top with an equal amount of rice and bean mixture. Fold tortilla over and place in a lightly greased pan. Cook quesadilla until cheese is melted and each side of the tortilla is golden brown, flipping once.
Let quesadillas cool for a few minutes before slicing.