Black Bean Quinoa Casserole with corn, cheese, and layers upon layers of fresh Mexican flavors. This vegetarian dinner is so easy to assemble and makes great leftovers that even carnivores will fight for!
You might also like this Mexican casserole.
Delicious Quinoa Casserole
A hybrid of modern Mexican and Thai cuisines, this black bean quinoa casserole has layers upon layers of flavours that scream “fresh”. Black beans are one of my favorite additions to all kinds of Mexican-inspired dishes including quinoa and black bean salad, black bean salsa, and mango black bean salad! I recently even made black bean nachos!
Combining sauteed vegetables, black beans, cooked quinoa, coconut milk, cheese, cilantro and onion creates delicious black bean casserole that really stands out from any traditional casseroles you are used to. And it’s healthy too!
As all the ingredients are already cooked, you just need to put the assembled casserole in the oven for everything to “marry” each other for 30 minutes. Quinoa makes for a delicious addition to casseroles and one-pot dishes too, like this one-pot quinoa and chicken or ground turkey quinoa casserole.
It tastes even better the next day and is great to freeze and make ahead.
Ingredients for Black Bean Quinoa Casserole
- White or tri-color quinoa: A staple in most healthy pantries. Quinoa is great for using in casseroles because unlike brown rice it is ready in 10 minutes and offers 8 grams of protein and 5 grams of fiber per 1 cup of cooked quinoa.
- Regular or low-fat canned coconut milk: Instead of canned soup, we use canned coconut milk to make casserole saucy. Milk from a carton will not work.
- Black beans, corn, bell pepper: A bulk of flavorful frozen, canned and fresh veggies and legumes for protein and fiber. Here is detailed tutorial how to cook dried beans from scratch.
- Fresh herbs and jalapeno: Lots of cilantro, green onion, and spicy pepper add flavor with little calories.
- Cheese: Gooey melted cheddar, Tex Mex or Colby cheese is a must for this black bean casserole.
How to Make Black Bean Casserole
There is detailed recipe card below.
- Prep: Preheat oven to 350 F degrees and spray 8×11 baking dish with oil.
- Cook quinoa as per package instructions: Or cook 1 1/2 cup of dry quinoa with 3 cups of water for 12 minutes on low heat after boiling. Don’t forget to fluff with a fork. Follow my step by step how to cook quinoa on stove instructions for troubleshooting or use Instant Pot quinoa. If you have leftover cooked quinoa you can use about 4 cups.
- Saute veggies and beans with spices: First cook garlic. Then corn, bell peppers, jalapenos and cumin. DO not stir often to allow veggies to roast becoming more flavorful.
- Combine: In a large mixing bowl, combine cooked quinoa, black beans, herbs, half the cheese, coconut milk and salt. Mix, flatten in baking dish and sprinkle with other half cheese.
- Bake for 30 minutes uncovered: This is when magic happens and flavors “marry each other”.
- Garnish: Sprinkle with remaining 1/4 cup cilantro and 1/4 cup green onions.
Variations and Serving
- Use mixed beans: Instead of black beans, use equal amount of white beans, mixed beans or even chickpeas.
- Substitute for coconut milk: A can of low sodium or no salt added tomato sauce, passata or crushed tomatoes. Casserole will lose its Thai flavor but will stay along the Mexican line. Or use salsa but then reduce salt significantly.
- Other veggies: Feel free to use mushrooms instead of bell pepper. They are very flavorful once sauteed.
- Add protein: If you would like to add meat, add shredded chicken cooked in Instant Pot or pre-browned ground turkey, beef or chicken.
- Do I have to thaw frozen corn? No. Just add it to the skillet and it will defrost quickly.
- Make it vegan and dairy free: Use vegan cheese. Otherwise, all ingredients are plant-based in this quinoa casserole. Woohoo!
- Make burritos: Place about 1 cup of the bean casserole in the center of a flour tortilla, wrap and enjoy!
- Make vegetarian tacos: Serve as filling for tacos with some salsa, sour cream, and avocado or guacamole!
- Side dish: For easy chicken tostadas!
How to Store, Make Ahead and Reheat
Store: Refrigerate in an airtight container or in baking dish covered with wrap for up to 3 days. Or freeze leftovers for up to 3 months. Use leftovers to make veggie quesadillas!
Freeze uncooked: Assemble, tightly wrap with plastic and then foil, and freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw in the fridge overnight and bake as per instructions + 15 minutes.
Make Ahead: Assemble, cover and refrigerate for up to 48 hours. Bake as per instructions.
More Healthy Casseroles and Black Bean Recipes
- Spinach artichoke quinoa casserole
- Healthy Mexican casserole
- Chicken zucchini casserole
- Healthy black bean burgers
- Instant Pot black bean soup
You might also enjoy browsing through this list of 30 quinoa recipes!
Black Bean Quinoa Casserole
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups quinoa dry
- 2 tbsp oil
- 2 garlic cloves crushed
- 1 1/2 cups corn canned or frozen
- 3 large bell peppers chopped
- 1/2 medium jalapeño pepper seeded and minced
- 1 tbsp cumin
- 15 oz can of black beans rinsed and drained
- 1 cup cilantro finely chopped and divided
- 1/2 cup green onions finely chopped and divided
- 2 cups Tex Mex cheese shredded and divided
- 3/4 cup canned coconut milk light or regular
- 1/4 tsp salt
Instructions
- Cook quinoa as per package instructions and set aside. Or cook 1 1/2 cups of dry quinoa with 3 cups of water for 12 minutes on low heat after boiling. Don't forget to fluff with a fork. See a step by step how to cook quinoa on stove or follow Instant Pot quinoa instructions. Preheat oven to 350 F degrees.
- Preheat large ceramic non-stick skillet on medium heat and swirl oil to coat. Add garlic and cook for 30 seconds, stirring frequently.
- Add corn, bell peppers, jalapenos and cumin. Stir and sauté undisturbed for 3 minutes, stir again and sauté for another 3 minutes.
- Transfer to a large mixing bowl along with cooked quinoa, black beans, 3/4 cup cilantro, 1/4 cup green onions, 1 1/2 cups cheese, coconut milk and salt.
- Mix well, transfer to 8 x 11 baking dish, sprinkle with remaining 1/2 cup cheese and bake for 30 minutes uncovered.
- Remove from the oven, sprinkle with remaining 1/4 cup cilantro and 1/4 cup green onions. Serve warm.
Notes
- Store: Refrigerate in an airtight container or in baking dish covered with wrap for up to 3 days.
- Freeze: Up to 3 months.
- Freeze uncooked: Assemble, tightly wrap with plastic and then foil, and freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw in the fridge overnight and bake as per instructions + 15 minutes.
- Make Ahead: Assemble, cover and refrigerate for up to 48 hours. Bake as per instructions.
- White or tri-color quinoa: If you have leftover cooked quinoa, you can use about 4-5 cups and skip cooking fresh.
- Substitute for coconut milk: A can of low sodium or no salt added tomato sauce, passata or crushed tomatoes. Casserole will lose its Thai flavor but will stay along the Mexican line. Or use salsa but then reduce salt significantly.
- Use mixed beans: Instead of black beans, use equal amount of white beans, mixed beans or even chickpeas.
- Other veggies: Feel free to use mushrooms instead of bell pepper.
- Add protein: If you would like to add meat, add Instant Pot shredded chicken breast or pre-browned ground turkey, beef or chicken.
- Do I have to thaw frozen corn? No. Just add it to the skillet and it will defrost quickly.
Very good, with a strong comfort food vibe. I reduced the quinoa to 1 c. dry; used 2 bell peppers plus some jarred green chilies; used a whole jalapeno, plus a seeded serrano; subbed a package of Costco’s Mexican street corn for the plain; and used the whole can of coconut milk. With the saute step done in my 3 quart Le Creuset, I could finish — and bake — the dish in that. I finished it with some lime juice before baking.
Sounds like you made some delicious additions, so glad it turned out well!
When I read this recipe, I wasn’t sure that it would have much flavor. It was excellent!
I chose the version with mushrooms and did 1/2 mushrooms and 1/2 green pepper. I also didn’t cook the quinoa ahead of time. I threw everything in a 9×12 at 350 with an added 1.5 cups of water. After 45 minutes I stirred it and added the cheese.
For those that are lactose intolerant or choose not to use dairy, you don’t need any substitute for the cheese. I could have left it off and it would have been just as good.
So glad you enjoyed it and thank you for sharing how you made it!
This was excellent! Added avocados at the end for serving for some extra fattiness (need those calories for nursing an infant!). It was even a hit with my husband, who was skeptical at the lack of meat! He has requested it as a regular dinner rotation now.
Yeah! So glad that you and the hubby enjoyed it! Avocados are an excellent addition.
Made this tonight, however found it a bit bland. Next time I think I would add some Chipotle peppers in Adobe sauce. I did add some Chipotle chili powder but it didn’t give it enough flavour. Otherwise great for a weeknight with left overs too.
Of course adjust to taste!
Looking forward to trying this. Would you just clarify what size casserole? It says 9×13 in the blog descript & 8×11 on the recipe card. Or does it even matter which I use?
Thanks for noticing that :). You can use either size, 9×13 just won’t be quite as thick of casserole and may cook faster.
Will definitely make again! The only thing I changed was adding more salt and a dollop of sour cream when serving.
So glad you liked it Ashlyn!
Great recipe! Was looking for a casserole recipe with ingredients I already had (mostly). Love the creaminess while being dairy free (I left off the cheese). I used adobo chipotle peppers instead of jalapeños for a lovely smokey flavor. They also gave a nice color and I didn’t miss the cheese at all. Thank you!
Yum! Adding adobo chipotle peppers sounds so good!
Very delicious, easy to make. Thank you!
I’m so glad you enjoyed it! Thank you for the wonderful review!
I love this recipe! I enjoy anything with mexican flavors but this was an easy way to mix up a new dish.
I didn’t have coconut milk on hand so I used canned diced tomatoes. I love vegetarian but added shredded chicken for my husband 🙂
That’s awesome Clara! Thanks for sharing 🙂
We very much like the flavor of this; however, quite dry. How can we make it moister? Add more coconut milk, water, plain milk? We followed the recipe except for the jalepeno peppers. thank you.
Hi Marilyn! Sorry to hear that you found the casserole dry. You could add more coconut milk, water, tomato sauce or even salsa.
I made this today, and it was a hit with my family. I added chayote squash to it because it was already in my fridge and needed to be used up soon. I can’t wait to try this again in the future.
Thanks for sharing Tatiana!