Healthy Pinto Bean Recipes

Featured Recipes

Shredded Turkey & Pinto Bean Burritos

We created this with leftover turkey in mind. Leftover or rotisserie chicken can also be used. Make it a Meal: Serve with guacamole and chopped jalapeno peppers and/or hot sauce - and a cold cerveza.

» Shredded Turkey & Pinto Bean Burritos

Beef & Bean Chile Verde

Chile Verde, usually a slow-cooked stew of pork, jalapeños and tomatillos, becomes an easy weeknight meal with quick-cooking ground beef and store-bought green salsa. Make it a Meal: Serve with fresh cilantro, red onion and Monterey Jack. Add your favorite hot sauce.

» Beef & Bean Chile Verde

Vegetarian Taco Salad

Nobody will miss the meat in this colorful, zesty vegetarian taco salad. The rice and bean mixture can be made ahead and the salad quickly assembled at mealtime. Recipe by Nancy Baggett for EatingWell.

» Vegetarian Taco Salad

Cheese Enchiladas with Red Chile Sauce

Intense, earthy and absolutely addictive, New Mexico’s cheese enchiladas showcase red chile sauce at its most elemental, thickly blanketing tortillas and melted Cheddar. We’ve added some extra creaminess and body with locally popular pinto beans, to cut down on the classic’s load of saturated fat. Top with shredded lettuce and minced onion.

» Cheese Enchiladas with Red Chile Sauce

Sweet Potato Fritters with Smoky Pinto Beans

These easy sweet potato fritters have a crispy crust and a tender middle. The beans are flavored with smoked paprika, but sweet or hot would work well too. To give it a Mexican-inspired twist, use chili powder as the spice instead of the paprika.

» Sweet Potato Fritters with Smoky Pinto Beans

Homemade Chorizo Tortas

A torta is the Mexican version of a panini—a pressed sandwich made with crusty bread that can have an endless array of fillings. For this one, we make our own chorizo-inspired filling by spicing up ground pork or turkey. Use a panini maker if you have one (and skip Step 4) or use our technique for making pressed sandwiches without any special equipment. Serve with a mixed green salad.

» Homemade Chorizo Tortas

Butternut Squash & Tomato Posole

Posole is a traditional Mexican stew most often made with pork and hominy (dried corn kernels that have been treated to soften the hull) cooked in a fragrant chile-based sauce. In this quick vegetarian recipe, we rely on the meatiness of pinto beans and butternut squash combined with hand-crushed whole tomatoes to make a satisfying stew.

» Butternut Squash & Tomato Posole

Add more protein to your diet with our healthy pinto bean recipes.

Popular in Tex-Mex cuisine, pinto beans are a versatile and healthy addition to many Mexican dinner recipes and side-dish recipes. Our healthy pinto bean recipes, including chili recipes, pinto bean salad recipes, pinto bean burger recipes and more, make protein-packed Tex-Mex meals that are healthier than takeout. Try our Bean & Butternut Tacos with Green Salsa for a flavorful Tex-Mex dinner recipe or Vegetarian Taco Salad for a filling pinto bean salad recipe.