Featured comment
I just made these tonight and they are wonderful! My husband, who is a meat loving man, couldn’t get enough. Thank you so much for sharing!
Sharon
The good news is that I ADORE THESE.
The bad news is that grocery shopping in the Philippines has become un-fun.
It started out being kind of fun because everything was new and exciting. Every time I saw something familiar, like Corn Flakes or PB&Co Peanut Butter or Laughing Cow Cheese (seriously, who is deciding on the imported foods list here?), I would do a happy dance and take a picture and buy all of it.
It was also fun to buy new and exotic things, like real coconuts and Milo cereal and milk in a box.
But then it wasn’t fun because
1. It was superrrr slowwwww,
2. I couldn’t find things like cilantro. ANYWHERE.
I almost gave up.
But to make a long story short, I found some! It has a sneaky name here in the Philippines: Yansoy. Except sometimes, at some stores, it’s called Wansoy. Who knows.
I bought every package in the store. I pureed it all into a sauce and downed it with a few tostadas on the side.
And it was so good. So fresh tasting and cooling and good, because that’s what cilantro is like.
You guys? Let’s be healthy and bake these black bean tostadas. I’ve done enough frying lately. And as long as we’re going down this road, let’s make these vegetarian because it’s easier + deliciouser.
And now that they’ve gotten so healthy, let’s eat all of them. Today.
Update! For all my blended stuff, I always have the best results with my new Blendtec Designer Series Blender. If you’re in the market for a new grown up blender, this has your name all over it.
Print
Healthy Black Bean Tostadas with Cilantro Sauce
- Total Time: 25 minutes
- Yield: 4 1x
Description
These healthy black bean tostadas are built on baked tortillas and drizzled with a homemade healthy cilantro sauce. Super fresh and yummy!
Ingredients
- 2 cans black beans, rinsed and drained
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper (more for spicy)
- salt and olive oil
- 3–4 tomatoes, chopped
- 1 medium avocado, cubed
- 2 cups shredded lettuce
- 2/3 cup plain yogurt, Greek yogurt, or sour cream
- 1/2 cup packed cilantro leaves (more to taste)
- 3 cloves garlic
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 4–6 flour tortillas
Instructions
- Preheat the broiler. Puree the black beans, chili powder, cumin, and cayenne in a blender or food processor, adding a tablespoon of oil (or water) at a time to help the mixture move. I pureed for a minute or two but still left some texture.
- In a food processor or blender, puree the cilantro, yogurt, garlic, and salt, adjusting the seasoning with more cilantro/salt/yogurt to your tastes.
- Place tortillas in the oven directly on the rack, taking care that the edges are supported (otherwise they will bend through the cracks and it will be bent in a funny shape). Let the tortillas bake for 3-5 minutes on both sides until they are browned and crispy.
- Top the crispy tortillas with black beans, tomatoes, avocados, and lettuce. Drizzle with cilantro sauce.
Notes
Holding the tostadas while you spread the bean mixture helps them not to break apart.
Other topping ideas: Cotija cheese, lime wedges, salsa, ranch dressing (just sayin), or roasted corn or peppers.
Nutrition information does not include any oil.
- Prep Time: 20 mins
- Cook Time: 5 mins
- Category: Appetizer
- Cuisine: Mexican
Keywords: healthy tostadas, black bean tostadas, cilantro sauce
Oh what I wouldn’t give for some salty, crumbly, white Cotija cheese. Maybe my mom could send me some in a refrigerated box. Right, mom? Right.
Disclaimer: this post contains affiliate links.
This recipe is easy and pretty tasty, but the instructions say to broil the tortillas for 3-5 minutes per side ?! The tortillas were on fire.. I thought I was about to burn my house down. Revise instructions, please.
Delicious dish! Even my husband enjoyed it (getting him to eat veggies is a constant struggle). I added a bit more garlic to the sauce (since we adore garlic) and it had a magnificent “kick.” I also came to the realization that the bean recipe came out leagues above any canned refried beans anyone can purchase. Fantastic recipe the whole family can enjoy or to meal prep for multiple meals throughout the week!
Great recipe! I’ve made this three times in the last few weeks. Currently my wife’s favorite. I add a jalapeno to the beans with the juice of half a lime and the juice from the other half to the cilantro sauce. Cotija cheese is perfect with the tostadas.
Glad to hear that, Kyle! š
These were so good!! The cilantro sauce put them over the top. Yummy! Now I need to put it on everything!
Ooh, I almost forgot about this old recipe. Thanks for reminding me Stacy! Glad you liked it!
ćÆćććÆć¹ ć¹ćć·ć£ćŖć¹ć
I saw this featured on tasty Kitchen and I was so drawn to that cilantro sauce. I’m wondering… how ling can a jar of that sit in the fridge seeing the cilantro is fresh. That would affect how much I would make in a sitting. Though, anything drowned in that would be just awesome.
I would say just a day or two, with the fresh cilantro and yogurt you probably don’t want to give it more than that. š usually mines gone by then anyways!
This look delish!! Kinda like my mom use to make, minus the meat which will be good for the vegetarian boyfriend and healthy which will be good for me š
super excited to try these!
thannks!
Huliee Hoops at weightedhulahoopworkout.com
Cilantro troubles — I can relate! We moved to Australia 10months ago and could not find cilantro anywhere! A little google search (“Cilantro in Australia”) came up “Corriander Leaf” and my crisis was adverted š
I just made these tonight and they are wonderful! My husband, who is a meat loving man, couldn’t get enough. Thank you so much for sharing!
THat’s great! Thanks Sharon!
So delicious and so easy! I make A Lot of vegetarian meals and this happens to be one of my new favorites. The ingredients sound so simple, but they come together beautifully. I highly recommend.
I had a few extra ingredients on hand that I thought I’d use: added juice of 1 lime to cilantro dressing (used sour cream), chopped green chiles to black bean mixture, used some frozen corn, melted queso quesadilla cheese on top of beans.
Yum. I’ve been eating black bean tostadas recently (baked tortillas too!) and your cilantro sauce sounds like something I need to have. Like now. Or maybe tomorrow. Glad you found the code word for cilantro!
i don’t know if i could go on without cilantro. i love this creation–great job!
im surprised by the no cilantro as well. it could be because the rainy season has been messing with the herbs.
basil is also a bit hard to find at the moment which is surprising since local super markets normally carry it. even the basil plants in our house did not take to kindly to the rains.
happy hunting!
That’s great that you have your own plants… I should really just get my own, too. I use those herbs so frequently and both the basil and the cilantro that I’ve bought last for about one day before shriveling up and turning brown. š
I love cilantro. The cilantro sauce looks really good and refreshing with the black beans. Nice picture by the way.
can the cilantro sauce be frozen & successfully thawed for later use?Thx,looks good:0P
No, I wouldn’t recommend it. It lasted a few days in the fridge before it got a little weird. Could have been my yogurt, though… the yogurt quality in the Philippines is a bit… different. š
These look wonderful. I just found your blog and am so excited about it.
Thanks Jenna!