Healthy Pinto Bean Recipes

Find healthy, delicious pinto bean recipes, from the food and nutrition experts at EatingWell.

Staff Picks

Two-Bean Enchilada Casserole

Rating: 4.67 stars
2
This classic and comforting Mexican dish is easy to make on a busy weeknight.
By Diabetic Living Magazine

Chipotle Chicken Quinoa Burrito Bowl

Rating: 4.9 stars
25
This chipotle-flavored burrito bowl recipe is even better than takeout and just as fast. Loading it with vegetables and using quinoa in place of rice adds nutrition for a healthy dinner.
By Breana Killeen

Vegetarian Enchilada Casserole

Rating: 4.67 stars
7
Think of this vegetarian enchilada casserole as a veggie-packed Mexican lasagna with corn tortillas standing in for the noodles! If your peppers are mild and you like heat, opt for spicy pico de gallo. This easy vegetarian dinner recipe is sure to become a new family favorite.
By Robin Bashinsky

25-Minute Sweet Potato & Bean Enchiladas

These quick sweet potato and bean enchiladas are diabetes-friendly thanks to egg wraps that are lower in carbs than traditional tortillas. The vegetarian filling is both sweet and savory, while the topping adds texture and freshness.
By Julia Levy

 Spicy Weight-Loss Cabbage Soup

Rating: 4.78 stars
25
Based on a popular weight-loss plan, this healthy cabbage soup recipe gets tons of flavor and a metabolism-boosting kick from spicy chiles.
By Breana Killeen

Vegetarian Taco Salad

Rating: 4.63 stars
23
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.
By EatingWell Test Kitchen

Stuffed Potatoes with Salsa & Beans

Rating: 4.5 stars
2
Taco night meets baked potato night with this simple recipe for loaded baked potatoes with salsa, beans and avocado. This easy, healthy family dinner comes together with just 10 minutes of active time, so you can make it on even the busiest of weeknights. This recipe is just as delicious with sweet potatoes in place of russets.
By Devon O'Brien

Vegetarian Gumbo

Rating: 5 stars
2
This flavorful vegan dinner is a veggie version of the Louisiana classic. It's chock-full of butternut squash, tomatoes, poblano peppers and okra, to name just a few. This vegetarian gumbo is a quick dinner packed with flavor and spice that's done in only 30 minutes. To make it a meal, serve it with cornbread drizzled with olive oil.
By Robin Bashinsky

Freezer Bean & Cheese Burritos

Rating: 4.86 stars
6
This copycat version of store-bought frozen burritos is perfect for meal prepping. Make a big batch to store in the freezer for healthy packable lunches or a quick campsite meal.
By Carolyn Casner

Chicken Chili Verde

Rating: 5 stars
4
Prepared salsa verde adds tang to this fast weeknight chili recipe and pairs beautifully with the rich caramelized chicken and creamy beans. Don't shy away from the poblano peppers. They offer a mild heat but deliver a depth of flavor you can't find in regular green bell peppers.
By Robin Bashinsky

Butternut Squash & Black Bean Tostadas

Rating: 4.91 stars
10
The butternut squash-and-black bean base in these healthy vegetarian tostadas has a mild, sweet-spicy flavor thanks to ancho chile powder. If you can't find ancho chile powder, other mildly spicy chili powder can be used. Serve with your favorite hot sauce.
By EatingWell Test Kitchen

Veggistrone

Rating: 4.49 stars
20
This vegetable-packed minestrone soup recipe is inspired by a popular Weight Watchers vegetable soup recipe. It makes a big pot of soup, so keep some in the refrigerator for up to 5 days and freeze the rest in single-serve portions. That way you always have an easy, delicious vegetable soup to start your meal or to eat for lunch. Think of this vegetable minestrone recipe as a starting point for other healthy soup variations, too: toss in leftover chopped cooked chicken or whole-wheat pasta or brown rice to make it more satisfying.
By Joyce Hendley
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Inspiration and Ideas

11 Vegan Pinto Bean Recipes

11 Vegan Pinto Bean Recipes
It’s easy to eat a plant-based diet with these vegan pinto bean recipes. Pinto beans are a great source of protein and can be used in soups or on top of potatoes or tacos. Recipes like Slow Cooker Vegan Chili and Bean Burgers with Spicy Guacamole are so nutritious and filling you won’t even miss the meat!
Chipotle Chicken Burrito Bowl with Cauliflower Rice

Chipotle Chicken Burrito Bowl with Cauliflower Rice
Rating: Unrated
5
This easy-to-make and meal-prep burrito bowl is even better than takeout! You'll never miss the carbs in this protein-packed, super-flavorful meal that replaces the cilantro-lime rice with cauliflower rice. We love this with chicken but it would be just as delicious with shrimp.
Bean & Beef Taco Soup

Bean & Beef Taco Soup
Rating: Unrated
2
Bean & Hominy Potpie

Bean & Hominy Potpie
Rating: Unrated
4
8-Layer Taco Salad

8-Layer Taco Salad
Rating: Unrated
3
Grilled Taco Pizza

Grilled Taco Pizza
Rating: Unrated
1

Cauliflower Nachos

Rating: 5 stars
2

Indulge your nacho cravings with this healthy vegetarian nacho recipe that's loaded with vegetables (thanks in part to roasted cauliflower standing in for chips) and protein-packed beans, and has a lot more fiber than traditional nachos. These baked cauliflower nachos, piled with guacamole, melty cheese, fresh pico de gallo and avocado, are great as an appetizer or could be eaten as a light dinner.

All Healthy Pinto Bean Recipes

Slow-Cooker Vegan Chili

Rating: 5 stars
2
Grab your crock pot for this hearty and easy vegan chili, which is chock-full of great-tasting and good-for-you ingredients, including pinto and black beans, red pepper, tomatoes and butternut squash. Once a little chopping is done, all you have to do is dump the ingredients in the slow cooker, making this colorful veggie chili the perfect weeknight dinner. A garnish of fresh avocado and chopped cilantro is a nice touch.
By Carolyn Casner

Super-Green Edamame Salad

Rating: 4.67 stars
2
Avocado, fresh chives and spinach are blended right into the creamy, bright-green dressing in this healthy edamame salad recipe. Pink beans are popular in the Caribbean, but you can substitute pinto beans or light red kidney beans if you can't find them.
By Katie Webster

Vegetarian Pinto Bean Sloppy Joes

Rating: 4.18 stars
7
This vegetarian Sloppy Joe recipe uses pinto beans and a heap of veggies tossed in a sweet, tangy sauce for the filling of a tad messy kid-friendly sandwich you can make in your slow cooker.
By Carolyn Malcoun

Rice & Bean Freezer Burritos

Save money and sodium when you make a batch of homemade frozen burritos. Mashing the beans and mixing them with tomatoes, cheese and jalapeños before filling the healthy burritos means you get all the ingredients in each bite. Serve with your favorite toppings--we like sour cream, salsa and hot sauce.
By Breana Killeen

Chipotle Cauliflower & Turkey Chili

Lean ground turkey and cauliflower soak up the bold flavors in this easy chili. Using cauliflower stems along with the florets adds a meatier texture—just be sure to leave off the tough bottom inch or so of the stem. Make a double batch and eat it for lunch the next day, or freeze the extras for another night. We love the smoky heat from the chipotle peppers, but use less if you prefer a milder chili.
By Hilary Meyer

Homemade Chorizo Tortas

Rating: 3.5 stars
2
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.
By EatingWell Test Kitchen

Huevos Rancheros Tacos

When you combine these two Tex-Mex favorites, the delicious question becomes whether to enjoy them at breakfast, brunch, lunch or dinner!
By Diabetic Living Magazine

Bean Burgers with Spicy Guacamole

Rating: 3.62 stars
4
These bean burgers will even please carnivores. The cornmeal coating gives a pleasant crunch and smoked paprika, cumin, cilantro and guacamole add Southwestern flavor.
By Vanessa Barrington

Sweet Potato Fritters with Smoky Pinto Beans

Rating: 3.63 stars
10
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.
By EatingWell Test Kitchen

Toasted Pita & Bean Salad

Rating: 4.5 stars
9
Beans add protein to this tasty riff on the classic Middle Eastern salad fattoush, made with lettuce, cucumbers, tomato, mint and pita bread.
By Vanessa Barrington

Sopa Tarasca

This famous soup from the state of Michoacán in Western Mexico is often made with a base of pureed beans along with tomatoes and dried chiles, which bring a lot of the character to the dish. Here we use ancho chiles, which are sweet, earthy and relatively mild. You could also use pasillas, which have a heat level similar to anchos--or, if you like it hot, gaujillos, which also bring some smoky notes to the pot.
By Lisa Holderness Brown

Taco Soup

Rating: 5 stars
1
We gave the plain old taco an easy, one-bowl makeover by turning it into soup! We garnish this zippy dish with pickled jalapeños, Cheddar cheese and tortilla chips, but feel free to mix it up with any of your favorite taco toppers.
By Hilary Meyer

Pinto Bean & Andouille Sausage Stew

Rating: 3.92 stars
3
An adaptation of the Andalusian dish fabada, this pinto bean stew is seasoned with andouille sausage, bacon, tomatoes, onions, peppers and smoked paprika. Fans of spicy beans should use the full amount of minced chile pepper (or more). Serve with brown rice and sour cream.
By Perla Meyers

Slow-Cooker Pork Posole

Mexican pork posole is the perfect dish to serve to a crowd. It's hearty, comforting and full of well-loved ingredients. Mashing some of the beans and hominy thickens the slow-cooker posole and releases more of their earthy flavor. For a twist, substitute thinly sliced jalapeño chiles, finely shredded green cabbage and fresh thyme or cilantro leaves for the radishes, scallions, and oregano.
By Cooking Light

Turkey & Bean Enchiladas

Rating: 4.5 stars
2
A lively salsa made from fresh or canned tomatillos tops this simple casserole. You can substitute tomatoes for tomatillos, but they don't have the same tangy bite.
By EatingWell Test Kitchen

Slow-Cooked Beans

Rating: 3.73 stars
4
By cooking your own dried beans, you save money, reduce sodium and get better flavor along with, surprisingly, more vitamins and minerals. If you can't use the whole batch, freeze surplus cooked beans for later use in soups, salads and dips. The range of time for cooking beans is wide and varies with the age and the type of beans selected.
By Jerry Anne Di Vecchio

Texas Beef and Beans

A hearty beef and beans dish has Texas-sized flavor. Just put the ingredients in your slow cooker, press the button, and you're done until dinner time.
By Diabetic Living Magazine

Slow-Cooker Pinto Bean Stew with Jalapeno-Corn Dumplings

Rating: 3 stars
8
This healthy slow-cooker pinto bean stew recipe is bursting with veggies--onion, bell pepper, celery and corn--and topped with crunchy bits of radish and chile- and lime-flecked cornbread dumplings. If you're pressed for time, skip the dumplings and serve this pinto bean stew straight out of the crock pot, topped with crushed tortilla chips and a sprinkling of Monterey Jack cheese. Make sure to soak your dried beans before using them in the slow cooker to ensure even cooking.
By Carolyn Malcoun

Roasted Vegetable Enchiladas

Rating: 4.55 stars
6
Filled with bell peppers, pinto beans, mushrooms and onions, these colorful enchiladas can be mostly made ahead--perfect for entertaining. Pass some crumbled queso fresco, chopped fresh cilantro and diced avocado at the table.
By EatingWell Test Kitchen

Pork, Farro, Bean, and Sweet Potato Stew

Rating: 5 stars
1
This stew recipe is a great choice for a warming fall or winter dinner. Because it uses shredded, cooked pork it's a relatively quick slow-cooker meal, ready in under 3 hours.
By Diabetic Living Magazine

Amazon Bean Soup with Winter Squash & Greens

Rating: 4.42 stars
6
Shaped like a flattened drum, buttercup squash most closely resembles the local squash used in this comforting hearty soup from northern Brazil. It has a dark green peel, a grayish turban-shaped top and dense orange flesh. Hubbard, butternut or delicata squashes could also be used. Instead of the lip-numbing Brazilian green jambu, we have used spinach. For a more festive look, serve in a roasted squash half (see Tip).
By Victoria Abbott Riccardi

Easy Fiesta Beans

Rating: 4.17 stars
2
An easy, tasty way to jazz up canned refried and pinto beans for the perfect side to accompany any Tex-Mex meal. Opt for fat-free refried beans and no-salt-added pinto beans to keep this dish as healthy as possible.
By EatingWell Test Kitchen

Hot Chile Grilled Cheese

Rating: 4.52 stars
9
This deconstructed version of a chile relleno turned sandwich packs some heat and an ooey-gooey filling. We like the flavor of sourdough, but any kind of bread will work well. Serve with: Coleslaw and sliced pineapple.
By EatingWell Test Kitchen

Pressure-Cooker Chili

Rating: 4.5 stars
2
Chili cooks in just 15 minutes when it's made in a multicooker. The beef gets infused with the flavors of chili powder and cumin. Shredded cheese, scallion and sour cream round out the meal, but feel free to garnish with whatever toppings you choose.
By Hilary Meyer
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