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Oven-baked tortillas topped with creamy refried black beans, spicy nopalitos and caramelized onions, salsa verde, sliced avocado, and crumbled cotija... Vegetarian Tostadas with Black Beans and Nopalitos are a favorite easy and nutritious meal any time of day!
Nopalitos?
Here I am with another obscure, less-than-common ingredient featured in my recipe/post. I have covered nopalitos before in my Nopalitos and Red Chile Rice Bowls, and my High Protein Vegan Breakfast Burritos. Perhaps I'm on a crusade?
Nopalitos is the word for a dish that uses nopales - the prepared pads of the Opuntia (aka prickly pear) cactus - and primarily come from Mexico, central America, and border states. They are widely available canned or bottled, and less commonly, dried. I buy the fresh nopales with spines removed, already sliced, in the produce section of my local market. They are so fresh, and I've gotten to where I regularly include them in our weekend breakfasts. The slightly tart taste and firm texture works really well with eggs or tofu in a breakfast burrito. I would say they taste like a cross between a bell pepper and green beans.
Nopalitos are nutrient and fiber rich. They're a great source of riboflavin, vitamin B6, copper, iron, vitamins A and C, calcium, potassium, manganese, and magnesium. You don't need to remember all of these nutrients, just remember they're nutrient and fiber rich, and give them a try! 😆 What do you say? Yay or nay? For more information, see 11 Impressive Benefits of Nopales.
Mark and I do our best to keep #MeatlessMonday. Depending on my blogging schedule, sometimes it waits a day or two. I knew I wanted this nopalitos recipe to be #MeatlessMonday compatible. If you've followed my blog any length of time, you know I'm a stickler for adequate protein in vegetarian main dishes. Unfortunately, I see a lot of lovely recipes in the blogosphere (vegetarian and non) that really don't have adequate protein.
Ever looking for ways to cut down on fats, I opted to bake the corn tortillas. I have a mister, and lightly sprayed both sides of the tortillas with olive oil. Bake them in a 350° F oven for about 15 minutes total, turning once. While I love to make my own refried beans, I keep canned ones (lard-free) in my well-stocked pantry for quick meals. The caramelized onions and nopalitos come together quickly, making this an easy weeknight meal. Actually, I would eat one of these vegetarian tostadas breakfast, lunch, or dinner!
Have I sold you on nopales yet? I'd love to hear your thoughts!
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Vegetarian Tostadas with Black Beans and Nopalitos
Oven-baked tortillas topped with creamy refried black beans, spicy nopalitos and caramelized onions, salsa verde, sliced avocado, and crumbled cotija... Vegetarian Black Bean and Nopalitos Tostadas are a favorite easy and nutritious meal any time of day!
Ingredients
Nopalitos
- 1 tablespoon coconut or olive oil
- 1 medium onion, sliced thin
- 12 ounces fresh nopales, (see notes)
- 1 teaspoon garlic, minced
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon Mexican oregano leaves
- sea salt and fresh ground pepper, to taste
Tostadas
- 8 corn tortillas, brushed or misted with olive oil
- 1 15.5 ounce can refried black beans, heated (stove or microwave)
- prepared nopalitos
- ¼ cup salsa verde, (see notes)
- 1 avocado, sliced thin
- 2 ounces cotija, crumbled
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees fahrenheit.
Nopalitos
- Add coconut oil to a large, heavy saute pan over medium-high heat. I love my cast iron for this task.
- On one side of the pan, add the onion, and on the other, add the nopales. (Of course you can use 2 pans if you prefer). Cook, stirring (separately) occasionally until the onions begin to caramelize, and the nopales have given up their mucilage (gooey substance) if present. (About 10-15 minutes).
- Add the minced garlic, cumin, and oregano. Cook until fragrant and spices have a chance to brown a bit (about 5 minutes). Keep warm.
Tostadas
- While nopales cook, spritz the corn tortillas with olive oil on both sides. Place on a baking sheet in preheated oven. Turn once at 7-8 minutes, and cook until brown on the edges and firm
- Spread a thin layer of black beans on the tortilla. Top with nopalitos/onion mixture, salsa, avocado, a bit of crumbled cotija, and chopped cilantro.
- Enjoy!
Notes
My preference is the nopales that I find in a plastic bag at the local markets - already de-spined, and sliced. Jarred and canned nopalitos packed in water are widely available (rinse and drain). If you find cactus pads and want to prepare your own, see How-To: Preparing Nopales. The fresh are a bit of work if you have to break them down, but the fresh are worth a bit of extra effort!
I love to make Roasted Tomatillo and Hatch Green Chile Salsa Verde. I make a batch, and freeze it in 3 or 4 zip bags. It's awesome! I also love Herdez Salsa Verde when I can't do homemade. Feel free to use your favorite salsa...
Macronutrients (approximation from MyFitnessPal): 330 calories; 11 g protein; 38 g carbohydrates; 17 g fat. Serving size based on 2 tostadas - perfect for lunch. A dinner portion would probably be 3.
Nutrition Information:
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 330
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mjskitchen says
Brave woman to cook up nopales. It's always been on my list, but it keeps moving further and further toward the bottom. However, bet it's great with these tacos!!!! These looks so very good! An inspiring taco.
Tamara says
Haha MJ! It's funny how we do that, right? This is actually my third post featuring nopales, and we cook with them a couple of times a month. I love to add their flavor and texture with eggs and turkey sausage to a breakfast burrito... I hope you try them. Eventually 😉
Cindy says
Wow, this looks fantastic. My dad loves nopalitos and he would always order these with eggs. I have tried to work with them in the past, but they turn out rubbery. Undoubtedly, that is user error, but I would love to give this another go with this great recipe. Thanks for sharing.
Tamara says
I was a little off-put initially when cooking the fresh nopales. The slime. I found that cooking them just until the slime disappears is about right. I hope you'll give them another try!