The filling for these vegan burritos is ULTRA flavorful, satisfying and easy to make. The mixture can be made on the stove top or using an Instant Pot. No one will miss the meat and dairy!
These are truly my favorite burrito recipe to make at home. The filling is anything but boring, and the ingredients are super simple and mostly pantry staples. Plus, they are freezer friendly! So make a double batch and have delicious burritos ready any time you get a burrito craving.
No one will miss the meat in these mouthwatering vegetarian burritos. Serve with the toppings of your choice, like vegan sour cream, shreddable vegan cheese (make your own or use something like daiya shreds), lettuce, chopped tomato and more.
How to make them
The burrito filling is made in 1 pot, either on the stovetop or Instant Pot. I’ve included instructions for both. Scroll to the bottom for the full recipe and/or to print.
In a pot on the stove, saute the onion, red bell pepper and garlic for a few minutes.
Now add all the other ingredients: drained and rinsed black beans, brown rice, corn, kale, salsa, water, spices and salt. Stir, then bring to a boil. Lower heat to a simmer, cover, and cook for about 45 minutes, until the rice is cooked.
Let the mixture sit in the pot for an additional 10 minutes, covered.
Instant Pot Tips
Some people have reported getting a burn message when they make this recipe in the Instant Pot. To avoid it, after you saute the onion, pepper and garlic, add a few tablespoons of water and scrape the bottom to get off any stuck pieces of vegetables.
Then add the rest of the ingredients, stir and cook for 24 minutes. I have never had trouble with a burn message, but if you do, you might just want to stick with the stovetop version.
What to serve with vegan burritos
- Instant Pot Refried Beans
- Instant Pot Spanish Rice
- Vegan Queso
- Vegan Nacho Cheese
- Restaurant Style Salsa
Vegan Burritos
Ingredients
For the burrito filling:
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 medium red onion, chopped
- 1 red bell pepper, chopped small
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- (1) 15-ounce can black beans, drained and rinsed
- 1 1/2 cups uncooked short grain brown rice
- 1 1/2 cups corn (frozen, fresh or canned)
- 1 cup finely chopped kale
- 12 oz medium style salsa
- 2 cups water
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 2 teaspoons chili powder
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1 teaspoon salt, or more to taste
For serving:
- 8 burrito sized flour tortillas *use gluten free if needed
- 2-3 cups chopped lettuce
- Vegan Sour Cream
- vegan cheese shreds
- chopped avocado or guacamole
- chopped cilantro, diced tomatoes, chopped green onions, jalapeno slices
- hot sauce
Instructions
Stove top instructions
- In a large pot with a lid, add the olive oil and warm over medium heat. Add the chopped onion, red pepper and garlic and saute for 2-3 minutes, stirring constantly.
- Now add the beans, rice, corn, kale, salsa, water, spices and salt. Stir, then turn the heat to high and bring to a boil. Lower the heat, place the lid on and simmer for about 45 minutes until the rice is cooked. Remove from heat and let the mixture sit for an additional 10 minutes. Now stir the mixture and serve.
To make using an Instant Pot
- Press the saute function on the Instant Pot and warm the olive oil in the inner pot. Add the onion, red pepper and garlic and saute for 2-3 minutes. Turn off the Instant Pot for a moment. Add a few tablespoons of water and scrape any stuck pieces of vegetables to de-glaze the pot and prevent a burn message.
- Now add all the remaining burrito filling ingredients to Instant Pot, give it a little stir, place the lid on, turn valve to seal and set to high pressure for 24 minutes. Let pressure release naturally (usually this takes about 10 minutes). Carefully remove the lid and stir.
Assemble the burritos
- Spoon some of the mixture into the centers of the tortillas. Add whatever additional toppings you'd like such as vegan sour cream, vegan cheese shreds, lettuce, etc. Fold two sides over the filling and roll up. Enjoy!
Freezer burritos
- Simply roll burritos with only the mixture and no additional toppings. Wrap each burrito in foil, then place them in a large freezer safe bag. Reheat in the microwave for about 2 minutes until warm.
Notes
- The mixture also make a great burrito bowl, without a tortilla but with lots of toppings.
- Feel free to leave out a vegetable if you don't like it or don't have it on hand, such as the red bell pepper or kale. Baby spinach could also be subbed for kale.
- The kind of salsa you use will greatly affect the flavor, so use one you like! I almost always use Trader Joe's salsa authentica.
- Nutrition is an estimate only and was calculated for the bean/rice filling only. Vegan sour cream, avocado, and tortillas are not included, as the amount and brand vary greatly.
Nutrition
This recipe was originally posted in March 2018 and has been republished with new photos and writing March 2020. I’m always working to improve my recipes, thank you!
This turned out really delicious but I used short grain brown rice and there was still a lot of watery ingredients in the pan after 45 minutes and even an hour. I simmered for about an hour and a half. If I cook the rice separately as someone else mentioned, how would you do that? Would you still cook everything else (except the water) for 45 minuted and just add the cooked rice for a few minutes to heat it up when done? Just trying to figure out something that works for next time because when I simmer everything for an hour and a half, its a little too long for the other ingredients in the pan.
Hi there. If the rice was not cooked and the mixture was still watery, it sounds like your heat was too low to cook it. You want a gentle simmer. It does not sound like the heat was too high, or else all the liquid would burn off too quickly and the rice wouldn’t cook. But if it’s very watery, that tells me the heat wasn’t high enough. If you want to use pre-cooked rice, that’s totally fine. What you would do is sauté the onion/red pepper/garlic, then add the rest of the ingredients through the salt. Add the cooked rice as well and cook until heat through, and until the kale is softened (probably only for around 10 minutes). I would use 3 cups of cooked rice if you do this. Hope that helps!
I tried this in the instant pot with white rice. I reduced the water like she recommended in the comments and just have to say, DO NOT attempt. I used a little more than 1 cup of water, but as I should have known would happen just by looking at it, it gave me the burn warning. So I scraped the bottom, added probably 3/4 cup more water, and tried again. But alas, I got the burn warning a second time. I repeated the scraping and the adding water, reset the instant pot, and STILL got the burn warning! By then the rice was cooked so I gave up on trying to get it to come to pressure, but I don’t think the flavors had a chance to meld together because it did not taste great. I will have to try again on the stovetop.
Unbelievably delicious! I didn’t miss the meat at all. I’m very new to eating vegan so thank you Nora!
You are welcome, Mary! Sounds like you may be new to my site, so welcome! Thanks for your wonderful review and feedback! Please reach out with any recipe questions you have. Happy cooking!
This recipe is amazing! I precooked the rice and left out the water, and it tasted fantastic! 🙂 thanks for the great recipe!
You are welcome, Julie! Thank you for your wonderful review! I’m glad you loved the burritos!
Delicious! Entire family of 5 loved this meal. Even the picky eaters.
That’s so great! Thank you for sharing your terrific review and feedback!
This was good. So easy to prepare and tasted great.I will be using this recipe from now on to make burritos . My husband enjoyed your recipe as a Mexican rice side dish. A real time saver. Thanks Nora
Hi Kaye. You are welcome! I’m glad you and your husband enjoyed the recipe! I appreciate your wonderful review and feedback!
Delicious & easy to make variations! This is now going to be a staple at our house. Thanks again, Nora!
You are welcome, Katie! We love these as well at our home! Thanks for your fabulous review!
Great recipe! First time we made it we ate leftovers for three days without getting tired of them. The effort to taste ratio is outstanding! Lol only one pot and minimal prep.
I love minimal prep! I’m thrilled you loved the burritos! Thank you for taking time to share you wonderful review and comments!
Awesome! Once again amazing flavour.
I omit the corn and cook the rice separately and then use a hand immersion blender to make the sauce smooth for the family that doesn’t like texture or many vegetables and it’s perfect! Thank you!!
Hi CJ. I’m thrilled you loved the burritos! Thanks for sharing your ideas and and great review! Happy cooking!
Yummy! I made this for lunch and halved the recipe, though I accidently added too much water so it wasn’t as flavorful as it should have been. I’ll make this again and do it right next time! Simple, healthy, and great!
So glad you loved the burritos! Thanks for sharing your feedback and review! Happy cooking!
Made the recipe as written and it was delicious! Glad I made extra for freezing. Will make a quick and nutritious dinner during the week!
It’s fantastic you loved the recipe, and had leftovers for the week! Thanks for you fabulous feedback and review!
I was craving a burrito BIGTIME and know you’d have the perfect recipe. I was right!! Your recipes always come though Nora 🙌
I boosted the protein by adding 1 cup of Noble Plate Meatless Grounds and used a Joseph’s lavash as the wrap.
Hi Karen. I am so glad you are enjoying my recipes! You burrito sounds so good! Thanks for sharing your wonderful feedback and review!
These burritos are so delicious and satisfying! I made the instant pot version, and I love how quickly and easily everything came together. These are definitely going into my regular rotation!
Hi Coby. I’m glad you liked these so much, and that they are going on your meal rotation! Thanks for sharing your fantastic feedback!
Hi Nora! Is it possible to make this with white rice? Would that change the cook time?
Yes you can use white rice, simply only cook for 15 minutes instead of 45. Thanks, and hope you enjoy!
Made this tonight and added finely cubed sweet potato. My mom was here for dinner and doesn’t tolerate spice very well, so I subbed the salsa with a can of fire roasted tomato. LOVE this recipe any way we end up making it!!!
Thank you for you wonderful review and ideas! I’m glad you guys are loving the burritos! I love the flexibility of the recipe as well! Happy cooking!
Made this tonight and Hubby and I both loved it. He said “that’s a keeper. Don’t lose it.” Thank you for sharing this recipe with us.
That’s wonderful to hear, Barbara! I’m so glad you and your husband loved the burritos!
Does the Short Grain brown rice have any significance to the recipe as my local supermarkets only stock the long grain variety?
No, it’s just my preference, but long grain rice is totally fine. Enjoy!
This recipe is perfect as written. Thank you for sharing this super easy, delicious meal. It is a go-to for my family on those nights when Mom’s too tired to cook. ? Its great left over too!
Thank you for your great feedback, Deborah! I’m so glad you love it! Easy and delicious is the best! Happy cooking!
This recipe is a winner. My picky omnivore kids gobbled them up. Looking forward to leftovers tomorrow for lunch. Thank you!
Thank you for sharing your wonderful feedback! I’m so glad you guys loved the burritos!
I have made this several times. I really enjoy it. Thank you.
This was so easy and so delicious! Very hearty and satisfying.