Let's not beat
around the bush, here. These Burrito Bowls with Black Beans and Fajita
Vegetables are my homemade version of Chipotle's Burrito Bowls, and they've been a standard in our meal rotation for a good two years. Are they fancy?
Not even a little. Do they make a fantastic weeknight meal? Hell to the yes.
One night of cooking - a Sunday, perhaps - will give you a filling, flavorful
meal that can be quickly reheated for easy dinners (or lunches!) the rest of
the week.
Here's the breakdown. On cooking night, you'll make a pot of rich, saucy black beans, cook up some fluffy rice, and
saute peppers and onions in a savory cumin-and-lime-spiked glaze. I put the
beans on first, since they take the longest, then make the rice and fajita vegetables
towards the end of the beans' cooking time. If you're strapped for time, canned
black beans will work too, but I highly recommend cooking a fresh batch from
scratch - the improved flavor and texture are worth it.
Once the beans,
rice, and veggies are done, you can portion out individual servings of the
burrito bowls to stash in the refrigerator for the week. A few simple additions
round out the meal - sweet corn kernels (frozen is totally fine), salsa, and
shredded lettuce. I'm a fan of whipping up a quick Simple Guacamole to add a
bit of richness, but cubes of avocado will do the trick, too. I use a
two-pronged tupperware technique for assembling the individual servings, using
a medium container for the ingredients that need to be reheated (rice, beans,
fajita vegetables, and corn) and a small container for the cold ingredients
(salsa, lettuce, and guacamole/avocado). When you're ready to enjoy a burrito
bowl, simply grab the two containers from your fridge, reheat the warm
ingredients and top with the cool ingredients. It's about as far from rocket
science as you can get. And let's be honest, that level of ease is exactly what
you need on a busy weeknight.
Burrito Bowl with Black Beans & Fajita Vegetables
serves 4
I like to prepare
the rice, beans, and fajita vegetables on a Sunday evening so I can easily put
together fast lunches and dinners throughout the work week. Cook your preferred
type of rice as directed on the packaging. For the beans, you can either cook
up a batch from dried black beans or use canned back beans.
4 cups cooked rice
(I use a long grain white rice)
2 cups Saucy Black
Beans (recipe below)
1 batch Fajita
Vegetables (recipe below)
1 cup corn, cooked (frozen corn works great here)
1 cup salsa
2 cups shredded
romaine lettuce
1 batch Simple Guacamole or 1 large avocado, cubed (optional)
To assemble each
Burrito Bowl: Combine 1 cup of rice, 1/2 cup beans, 1/4 of the fajita
vegetables, 1/4 cup corn, 1/4 cup salsa, 1/2 cup shredded lettuce, and a big
ol' scoop of guacamole (if desired). I like to mix everything up before I dig in, but eat yours
however you'd like. There's no wrong way to eat a burrito bowl.
Saucy Black Beans
makes 2-3 cups
cooked beans
Cooking beans is
kind of a "by feel" process, but this is a breakdown of my standard
procedure for turning out a pot of rich, saucy black beans perfect for most
Central or South American fare. Cooking dried beans is ideal here, but I've included directions for using canned black beans in a pinch as well.
1 cup dried black
beans, as fresh as you can find, rinsed
Cold water
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground
cumin
1/4 teaspoon chili
powder
1/4 teaspoon onion
powder
1 tablespoon olive
oil
Place 1 cup dried
beans into a medium or large pot and add enough cold water to cover the beans
by a good inch or so. Place the pot over medium-high heat and cover. Bring to a
boil, then reduce heat to low to maintain a constant but gentle simmer. Simmer the
beans, covered, for 30-40 minutes, then taste a bean to see how things are
going. When the beans are soft enough to bite into (but still underdone), add 1/2 teaspoon of salt and your desired
seasonings - I like to use a 1/4 teaspoon each of cumin, chili powder, and
onion powder, but feel free to mix it up.
Re-cover pot and
continue to simmer beans for an additional 30-60 minutes, or until the beans
are perfectly soft on the inside, but still maintain their shape with skins
intact. Taste the beans every 10 minutes after you hit the hour mark - they can
to go from "done" to "overdone" quickly. Note the cooking
time for dried beans varies widely depending on the freshness of your beans -
older beans will require significantly longer cooking time.
After the beans are
done, you'll season the cooking water to create a tasty sauce for the black
beans. If necessary, discard a ladle or two of the liquid - the bean-to-liquid
ratio should be saucy, not soupy - then stir a tablespoon of olive oil into the
beans. The olive oil will thicken the sauce and add a welcome richness to the
beans. Taste the beans with a bit of the sauce and adjust seasoning as needed,
then remove from heat.
What if you don’t
have time to cook your own beans?
You can substitute
canned black beans and use those instead. It won't be as great - sorry, it's
true - but you can dress up canned black beans in just a few minutes on the
stovetop. You'll need 2 cans of black beans. Pour the beans - sauce and all - from one can into a
saucepan. Drain and rinse the second can of black beans, then add to the
saucepan. Heat the beans over medium-low heat with 1 tablespoon of olive oil
and 1/4 teaspoon each of cumin, chili powder, and onion powder. Depending on
how salty your canned beans are, you may need to add some salt as well. If the
beans are tasting "flat", add a pinch of sugar and/or a squeeze of
lemon juice to brighten the flavors. Remove from heat once beans are heated
through.
Fajita Vegetables
serves 4
2 sweet bell
peppers, sliced into 1/4-inch strips
1 medium onion
(yellow, white, or red will work), halved and thinly sliced (1/4-inch
thick)
1 tablespoon olive
oil
1 tablespoon lime
juice
2 tablespoons water
2 teaspoons vegan
Worcestershire sauce (I like Annie's)
1/4 teaspoon ground
cumin
1/4 teaspoon chili
powder
1/4 teaspoon garlic
powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon black
pepper
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