OMG the sun is out!!! I spent ALL of last week outside in the sun and it was absolutely amazing.After a crazy long winter and pouring rain spring it was a much needed breath of fresh air. I went to the beach twice, hit the zoo, and a few parks here and there. It's been fantastic. SO looking forward to some back porch time with a favorite beverage, watching lazy evenings go by. Aaaanyhoo, Cinco de Mayo is quickly approaching, ergo necessary celebratory food post. This year, I decided to nix the tacos and do something a little different. Vegetarian black bean tostadas anyone??
Complete with homemade shells, cabbage slaw AND mango salsa! For reals, all the fixins' and it's the best. Let's start at the beginning.
The shells. Literally just throw them in some vegetable oil in a skillet and cook each side for a minute or so. I like mine suuuper crispy in case you can't tell from the photos ????. Nice and brown! If you prefer a little give in your tostada shells, you can totally fry them up for shorter amount of time, around 30 seconds per side. Once done, sprinkle with a pinch of salt and chili powder for extra flavor.
On to the black bean filling. We can't have vegetarian black bean tostadas without it! It's also awesomely easy. Mash up the beans a little bit with some melted butter in a pot and then dump the rest of the ingredients in. Stir until warmed aaaand done.
Told you.
Bet you can guess what happens with the mango salsa and the cabbage slaw...Yup! Combine all ingredients for each one in their own bowl and that's it.
Tostadas are stupidly simple. Who knew right?? Honestly, the thing that takes the most time for the recipe is just dicing everything up! Easy peezy.
And with that, I think we're almost ready for Cinco de Mayo. Grab some vegetarian black bean tostadas, an ice cold margarita, and enjoy!
Vegetarian Black Bean Tostadas with Cabbage Slaw and Mango Salsa
- Total Time: 20 minutes
- Yield: 2 1x
Description
Quick and easy vegetarian black bean tostadas! Homemade tortillas, fresh mango salsa, and cabbage slaw. Vegan if you don't garnish with cheese!
Ingredients
For the Shells
- 6-8 Corn tortillas
- Vegetable oil, enough to fill a large skillet ¼ full
- Coarse salt
- Chili powder
For the Black Bean Filling
- 28 ounces canned black beans, drained
- 2 roma tomatoes, diced (about 1 cup)
- 1 cup fire roasted corn, drained or thawed
- ½ teaspoon ground cumin
- ½ teaspoon chili powder
- ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
- ¼ teaspoon paprika
- ¼ teaspoon ground Mexican oregano
- Pinch of cayenne or more as desired
- Salt and pepper, to taste
- 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
For the Cabbage Slaw
- 3 cups cabbage, shredded
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- 1 teaspoon red wine vinegar
For the Mango Salsa
- 1 mango, peeled and diced
- ½ jalapeño, seeded and minced
- ½ red onion, diced
- 1 tablespoon cilantro, roughly chopped
- Juice of ½ a lime
- Jalapeño slices, crumbled queso fresco, avocado slices, cilantro, for garnish
Get Recipe Ingredients
Instructions
Make the Tostada Shells
- Heat vegetable oil over medium heat in a large skillet, preferably with tall sides. Tear off a tiny piece of tortilla and add it to the skillet. If the oil starts to bubble around the tortilla piece, it's ready to go!
- Fry up tortillas one at a time, about 30 seconds to 1 minute each side, depending on how dark and crispy you like them. I prefer mine very crispy and quite dark so did a full minute on each side.
- When done to your liking, remove the tortillas from the skillet to a wire rack or a plate covered in paper towels to absorb the excess oil. Sprinkle each shell with a pinch of salt and chili powder as soon as you place it on the rack. Let cool.
Make the Fillings
- Combine all the ingredients for the mango salsa, except the garnishes, in a small bowl. Set aside.
- Toss together all the ingredients for the cabbage slaw in a medium bowl. Set aside.
- In a medium pot, melt butter over medium high heat. Pour in black beans and gently mash about half of them. Stir in the rest of the ingredients for the black bean filling and mix until combined. Cook until heated through.
Assemble the Tostadas
- Spread a layer of the bean filling on each tostada shell.
- Top with bean layer with a few spoonfuls of cabbage slaw.
- Sprinkle with mango salsa. Garnish with crumbled queso fresco, jalapeño slices, avocado and fresh cilantro leaves.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 10 minutes
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