Simple Kale and Black Bean Burritos
This simple burrito recipe is filled with cooked black beans and lime-marinated greens. It's healthy and packed with flavor! You're going to love it.
Updated by Kathryne Taylor on August 29, 2024
This week has been a doozy. I’ve been running around like a chicken with its head cut off, scrambling to get caught up with work before I jet off to New York City (New York City?!) for the next few days. By the time this post goes live tomorrow morning, I should be well on my way! Footloose and fancy-free we’ll be tonight once we find authentic New York pizza and a bar with many taps. That’s all we have on the itinerary so far—I haven’t had time to research where to go, what to do and perhaps most importantly, where to eat in NYC! Please, tell me what I can’t miss. I know you all will know just what I should do!
If one of my raw kale salads got with my black bean tostadas, we’d get these baby burritos. Stuffed full of beans ‘n greens and brightened with lime and feta cheese, they’re a little spicy and entirely delicious. By my fourth burrito, I had my method down to a science; I can roll up one of these babies in less than 10 minutes flat. They’re just the right size for me, but if you’re feeding a hungry boy, you might want to buy bigger tortillas and double the amounts listed below. Enjoy!
Kale and Black Bean Burritos
This simple burrito recipe is filled with cooked black beans and lime-marinated greens. It’s healthy and packed with flavor! You’re going to love it.
Ingredients
- 2 medium leaves of kale, washed and dried, stems removed and roughly chopped into bite-sized pieces
- 1 tablespoon cilantro, roughly chopped
- 2 teaspoons seeded and finely chopped fresh jalapeño (optional)
- Big squeeze of fresh lime juice
- Splash of olive oil
- Pinch of ground cumin
- Dash of chili powder
- Dash of sea salt
- ½ cup cooked or canned black beans, rinsed and drained
- 1 clove garlic, minced or pressed
- 1 small (8 inch) whole wheat tortilla
- ½ small avocado, pitted and sliced into strips lengthwise
- 1 tablespoon chopped red onion
- 1 to 2 tablespoons crumbled feta cheese
- Sour cream or plain Greek yogurt to serve on the side (optional, not shown)
Instructions
- In a bowl, combine the kale, cilantro, jalapeño, lime juice, olive oil, cumin, chili powder and sea salt. Mix well and set the bowl aside to marinate.
- Warm the beans and minced garlic with a couple of tablespoons of water. You can do this in your smallest sauce pan on the stove over medium-low heat (sauté the garlic in a drizzle of olive oil before adding the beans) or in a bowl in the microwave. Add little splashes of water as necessary. Use a fork to mash up the beans a little and add salt to taste, if necessary.
- Warm the tortilla in a skillet or in the microwave for a few seconds. Top the tortilla with the black bean mixture, sliced avocado and marinated kale (you may end up with more kale than will fit in your burrito, which you can serve on the side as a salad). Top with red onion and feta.
- Roll up the burrito by first folding the tortilla over from the bottom to partially cover the beans and greens, then fold in the 2 sides; finish rolling and put the burrito seam side down on a plate. Slice in half, if desired, and serve with sour cream or plain Greek yogurt on the side if you’d like.
Notes
Recipe adapted from Mark Bittman’s beans ‘n greens burrito in The Food Matters Cookbook and Ashley’s jalapeno and lime marinated kale tostada.
Make it vegan: Omit the feta.
Make it gluten free: Use a gluten-free tortilla.
Nutrition
The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice. See our full nutrition disclosure here.
Hey! Just made this dish! It was DELISH! I used what I had, so here are my alterations:
I used refried beans instead of plain black beans
I used Cayenne pepper instead of chili powder (is that the same thing? ha!)
I used garlic powder instead of minced garlic
Goat cheese instead of feta (which was the best substitute!)
Arugula instead of Cilantro
And it tasted AMAZING! Thank you so much for sharing your recipe.
xx
Christine
Thanks, Christine! Your burritos sound awesome! Now I want to try your version.
I found your blog searching for meatless recipes on pinterest and I’ve been having so much fun trying your recipes. I made these for my family last night and they were so good that we made them again tonight! I had mine as a salad and enjoyed every bite. Definitely a keeper recipe! Thank you!
Thank you, Kate! I’m glad you found my blog! Yay!
Eating this now on New Year’s Day 2016. Delicious and healthy. This is definitely going to be in the lunch rotation for this year.
Thank you, Joy! Happy New Year!
These look amazing! Do you think they would freeze well for a quick breakfast to go? I’ve never tried freezing a recipe with kale before.
Hmmm, I’m not sure! I would lean towards no, at least not if you want the kale to retain its raw texture.
Another recipe that’s right up my street, looking forward to giving it a try! Thank you!
Thanks for sharing this idea; I can’t wait to try.
I just had to comment in case anyone finds this recipe since it’s been several years now since it’s been posted. You have to make this!! I’ve been making this for about 2 years and it’s so good! My husband and myself both love it and during the summer when we’re getting a lot of kale from our csa we usually rotate between 3 different dishes to use it up, this dish being one of them.
Hi Kate….these look amazing, but wondering what side dishes you can recommend serving with it. My boys are BIG eaters ;)
Love this, but how would you increase the ingredients to serve a group, say 6 people? I’m unsure of exact measurements. Thanks!
Just made and ate this yummy recipe. It took about 15 minutes, pretty easy and super tasty. I love all the flavor! Keep ’em coming. I can’t wait until I’m hungry again to have another one.
Happy to hear this, Deb!
OMG I can’t believe I have had this recipe in my to make now folder for 5 years – mourning all of the incredibly delicious boldly flavored burritos I could have enjoyed in that time not to mention the ahem few bunches of unused kale that I could have rescued from the compost pile. Kate you always provide the most yummy boldly flavored health-full recipes (if i say healthy my adorable mother in law will start haunting me.) I hope you think this is a compliment because I do, when my husband LOVES something I make, he always asks, is this from the one with the dog? Invariably it is and he says, I KNEW it. Thank you for making our transition into vegetarians so so simple, it’s been a year and two months now and his friends are starting to get envious after disparaging him in the beginning.
I came across Cookie and Kate a little while ago, and didn’t really want to give her a try. We had the lemony noodles with collards and I was HOOKED.
This was A.M.A.Z.I.N.G!!!!!!!! I didn’t realize that the recipe only makes 1, so we had to quadruple everything to make it a dinner. The kale was a bit too spicy by itself, but with everything it was so good!!! My 21 month old loved the burrito too. We make a lot of burritos and the beans don’t always come out as flavorful. We will be making these burritos at least twice a month…maybe more.
I’m glad you finally tried something from C+K, Sarah! Burritos on regular rotation is a great idea– they’re such a simple, nutritious meal!
That is freakin’ delicious. I recommend going heavy on the lime juice and leaving it marinating for ages to help the acidity soften the kale. Also leave the jalapeno seeds in for some kick!
Great tips, John! Thanks.
Fabulous recipe, Kate! I absolutely love the kale-onion-feta combo… perfect compliment to the beans. We like things extra spicy, so I stirred some cayenne and dry sriracha seasoning into the Greek yogurt–yum. Since that was too much heat for my little boy I added some diced mango to his burrito, which was amazing!! We’re trying to reduce our meat consumption, so I’ll definitely be back to try some of your other recipes. Thank you!
Ooh, diced mango sounds delicious! I might have to try that next time. :)
Absolutely loved this recipe and it got a big tick with my hubby for the amazing flavours! I am trying to do veggie meals throughout the week and meat on weekends…which is a massive change for my meat-loving hubby. This is my new favourite site for recipes! Thank you!
Great, Naomi! I hope my blog makes the transition a bit easier. :)
WOW ! It could be because my expectations were low-ish (or at least, not HIGH), but this is probably one of the best things I’ve made in a while!!! This burrito came together in literally 7 minutes, all with pantry ingredients (I happened to have Tuscan Kale in the fridge and I ALWAYS have cilantro). What a simple, fresh, tasty little wrap! This will definitely be my default lunch when I don’t have leftovers!
It doesn’t have to be complicated to be good! ;)
Made this 2 days straight family loves it!!! Thanks!!
Such a genius idea, and such beautiful simple recipes.
Thank you for the Kale and Black Bean Burrito recipe. My girlfriend and I really enjoyed it.
Can’t wait to try this! Thank you for these a awesome recipes!
Tasty and pleasant!! Nice and warm burrito and i love the marinated greens…would have never done that on my own.
I’m glad you think so, Liz! Glad to have provided some inspiration.
I had really high hopes for this recipe, but sadly it didn’t deliver. It tasted like it was really missing something but I couldn’t put a finger on what.
I’m sorry you felt that way! You could always increase your favorite spices.
I have made this meal over a dozen times over the course of the year. Adjusting it a bit to my own taste but for the most part sticking to the list of items and measurements as they are written, it is easily one of the more delicious, nutritious, and life-sustaining lunches that I bring with me. I often add either or both chopped red peppers or cherry tomatoes. When I bring it for lunch I typically bring a container with the filling with a dollop of yogourt on top of it, and in a separate bag the pita bread. I assemble it when I’m ready to eat to prevent the pita bread from getting soggy. I also typically make a HUGE batch of it to eat it over the course of a few days, and it hands down only gets better each day. Thanks so much for this fantastic recipe!
Happy to hear this is a regular for you, Emma! Thanks so much for your comment and review.
I visited NYC once forty years ago and hated it with a purple passion. I hope you enjoyed it more than I did.
The burritos look yummy.
Thanks!
I am on a strict meal plan to meet a body goal in the next month, this dish is AMAZING! I just tried it. The cook time was not long at all and all the flavors plus the yogurt, meshed so well! My coworker hates vegetables and I tricked him into having it ! Success! This will not be the last time eating this for sure !
Thank you, Brittany! I’m glad it was a hit.
I made these last night for my family of six. My seventeen year old son helped me make them. I thought he would complain or make smart remarks while we made them, but he actually made one for himself and I didn’t here any complaints. Also, I was thinking my other kids would be skeptical and not want to eat them. I didn’t hear one complaint throughout dinner and all my kids loved them, and ate everything in them. They didn’t even open up the burritos to see what was inside (which is usually what happens), haha! It’s always a score when you find something healthy that your kids like. Thanks for the recipe. They were delicious!
That is a win, Sharon! I really appreciate you sharing. Thanks so much for your review!
Once again Kate’s recipe was fantastic. Once again I started this with doubts but as soon as I tasted the combination of marinated kale and black beans along with the onions and avocado, I was convinced this will be a repeat recipe in our household. I’m actually eating it again for lunch today. Such a great combo of flavors!
Thank you, Martha!
Delicious, especially with dinosaur kale.
Thank you.
Thank you for your review, Alison!
Love this!! Sooo good and hits all the major macronutrients. Unreal!
This recipe seems so simple, but it had become a favorite in our house! We’ve been eating vegetarian for almost a year and the transition has been harder for my husband. He LOVES this meal. I mean..we both do. All the flavors work so well together. It’s super fast for a week night dinner…just wonderful. The only change I made, because raw onions trigger migraines for me, is that I sautéed the red onions before cooking the beans. Thank you of this recipe!
You’re welcome, Elyse! This is a great favorite to have. :)
I actually cooked the kale with the black beans and I thought it turned out really nice! Thank you for a great recipe.
I didn’t think these tacos sounded all that good (the combo of black beans and feta didn’t appeal to me), but I needed a quick dinner with ingredients I had on hand, so I made the recipe. Much to my surprise, they were terrific! Thanks so much for another great flavor combination, Kate.
Im glad you enjoyed them, even though unsure! I appreciate you taking the time to review.
Can I use spinach instead of kale? I’m not a huge fan of kale, but otherwise this recipe looks awesome.
Hi, sure that can work as a substitute! I hope you enjoy it.
Omg this was so good and easy to make! I used red kale since it’s softer and yum. Can’t wait to try other kale recipes!
I hope you try more and love them! Thank you for your review, Emily.
Nice flavor combination. However, I would massage the kale prior to adding to filling. Without being “worked” a little, the kale was a little too chewy and did not complement the other ingredients as well as it could.
Delish!! Added the quick pickled onions. Family loved…
Wrap was wonderful. I made it the night before for work the next day. Still so fresh, bright and flavorful. Will be adding to my weekly lunches.