One Pot Cheesy Mexican Lentils, Black Beans and Rice
on Dec 05, 2016, Updated Aug 23, 2024
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A healthy, vegetarian, gluten free dinner the whole family will love! You won’t miss the meat in this easy to make, One Pot Cheesy Mexican Lentils, Black Beans and Rice!
Is it really already Monday again? I never feel like I have enough time on the weekends during the holiday season to get everything done that I need to. Between shopping, decorating, baking and get togethers it doesn’t leave much time for relaxing or meal planning.
Luckily I have slew of easy recipes, many of which can be made in a single skillet or pot, like this One Pot Cheese Mexican Lentil, Black Beans and Rice. Along with being a one pot meal it’s also vegetarian and perfect for meatless Monday!
I’ll be honest, we don’t follow meatless Monday very often in our house. My husband almost always wants meat with his dinner, unless he’s having a big plate of pasta. Pasta is fine every once in a while, but I don’t eat it often because I usually feel super bloated afterwards.
When I eat meatless I prefer to not just do straight carbs, but rather a mix of protein and carbs. Pulses just happen to be the perfect solution!
Many people have no idea what pulses are and up until a year ago I wasn’t familiar with the term either. Pulses are delicious, protein-packed, sustainable foods known as dry peas, chickpeas, lentils and beans.
They are a great source of protein and fiber as well as being lower in fat than many types of meat. I chose to use lentils and black beans in this one pot meal for a couple reasons.
Both are full of iron. One serving of black beans actually has more iron that a 3 ounce serving of flank steak! Iron is important, especially for women and even more so for female athletes. Not having enough iron in your diet can leave you feeling tired and low on energy.
Along with the nutritional aspects of using pulses in this recipe I also love the flavor and texture they add. Black beans have a nice creaminess to them and paired with the chewy and heartier lentils it makes for a great meat substitute.
When I served this One Pot Cheese Mexican Lentils, Black Beans and Rice to my husband I was skeptical if he would like it. Turns out he loved it! I can’t tell you how glad I am that I now have a few meatless, pulse filled meals that we can both enjoy.
2016 has been declared by the United Nations as the International Year of Pulses (“IYP”). The goal has been to increase awareness of the many benefits of pulses, including their nutritional profile, environmental and sustainability benefits, affordability and potential to address global food security.
I encourage you all to take the Pulse Pledge if you haven’t already. It’s simple! Just commit to eating pulses once a week for 10 weeks. Check back next week for another awesome pulse recipe and learn about how versatile and sustainable they are as well!
One Pot Cheesy Mexican Lentils, Black Beans and Rice
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup diced yellow onion
- 1 clove of garlic, grated or minced
- 1/2 cup uncooked long grain brown rice
- 1/2 cup uncooked green lentils, rinsed (brown or red lentils may also be used)
- 2-3 cups low sodium vegetable broth
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1/4 teaspoon ground chipotle powder (optional)
- Kosher salt and fresh ground black pepper to taste
- 15 ounce can black beans, drained and rinsed
- 1/2 cup fire roasted tomatoes, drained
- 4 ounce can diced green chiles
- 1 small zucchini, shredded
- 1/2 cup defrosted frozen corn
- 1 cup red enchilada sauce
- 3/4 cup shredded cheese, I used sharp cheddar and part skim mozzarella
- Cilantro for garnish (optional)
Instructions
- Heat a large pot or saucepan over medium high heat. When the pot is heated spray with cooking oil and add in the onion and garlic. Sauté for 2-3 minutes then add in the brown rice and lentils.
- Add in the vegetable stock, stir and bring to a boil. Once boiling, cover and reduce the heat to low. Simmer for 35-45 minutes, or until the lentils and rice are tender. If there's any excess liquid drain it.
- Season the rice and lentils with salt, pepper, chili powder, cumin and chipotle powder. Add in the remaining ingredients except 1/4 cup of the cheese and stir together.
- Heat the mixture until the cheese is melted. Top with the remaining cheese and cover with a lid. Heat on low until the cheese is melted and the mixture is bubbly.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Thanks to USA Pulses & Pulse Canada for sponsoring this post. As always all opinions are my own.
mine was more wet looking than your too. The cup of enchilada sauce seems to be the reason for this. any tips for next time. Yes I drained very well through a sieve before adding the other ingredients.
Absolutely delicious and so easy to make! The combination of lentils, black beans, and rice with cheesy goodness is simply irresistible.
This looks delicious, but I do not have much time after work for cooking. Could this be done in a crockpot and left for a few hours? Any edits that could make this work? Thanks!
Can this be made and frozen?
Yes, it can be frozen.
I made this tonight and the whole family had seconds! I didn’t have zucchini, but wanted another veggie, so added cubed sweet potatoes. What’s funny is hubby and the kids don’t like sweet potato, but didn’t even know it was in there. Haha!! This was delicious and so easy to make. Thank you!!
This recipe sounds great but I’m appalled at how much salt it includes! As I Googled the ingredients it seems like the red enchilada sauce may be the worst culprit. Not finding any low sodium versions online but I did find a few recipes for low sodium red enchilada sauce, but I barely cook. So as delicious as it sounds I think I’ll have to pass unless you have any great ideas to cut the sodium at least in half. Thanks!
I used low sodium black beans and broth, no salt added tomatoes and added no salt.
YUM!!I made this last night. A few tweaks: in the UK I can’t seem to get chipotle powder so bought paste, I omitted courgettes as no-one likes them unless fried to a crisp. For enchillada sauce, I used a large jar of bolognese sauce. It went down very well. There was enough for three portions last night and three for lunch today. Delicious served with tortilla chips. We said it would be good layered with tortillas and cheese, a sort of lasagne.
Where, oh where, has your recipe for One Pot Cheesy Mexican lentils, black beans and Rice gone??? Every link takes me to the reviews and not the actual recipe. It sounds so delicious and I would love to try it.
Hi Jan. I’m sorry you’re having an issue seeing the recipe. An adjustment was just made to hopefully fix the issue. Would you mind looking again and letting me know if you still can see it. Thanks!
I’m having the same issue as Jan. Would love to check it out – it sounds delicious!
Hi Anna, I’m sorry you’re having an issue seeing the recipe. I’ve checked with different browsers and it’s showing up fine on my end. Are you using Chrome? If you’re still having issues getting the recipe please email me and I will send it to you directly.
Fabulous recipe as is or you can use as a base with other additions like colorful chopped bell peppers, jalapeño, salsa or whatever along that vein. I like the hominy suggestion but I had fresh corn from last summer I wanted to use out of my freezer. You can amp up the spices if you want more kick. Really such a versatile recipe! And healthy! Love it! Thanks so much for posting it!
Healthy, delicious and easy to make. Thanks for sharing this recipe!
Happy to hear you liked it Anna!
Wow, was this delicious and there is enough for leftovers. Easy to make with clear concise directions. I made it exactly as written but with one small change. I added less chili powder and I put a dollop of sour cream on top. Just the right amount of heat for me and my daughter. This is a keeper. Thank you for the recipe.
Thanks for the kind comment Elaine and I’m glad you enjoyed the lentils!
Does this recipe freeze? I’m working on stocking the freezer. Looks terrific and I’ll be making it either way!
Yes you can definitely freeze this one!
I am so glad this can be frozen. I am part of a community group that cook for the homeless. we try for nutritious food and this sounds like it’s definitely going to be added to my selection.