Mexican Menu Plan

When shopping is restricted, getting smart about making some core essentials and then mix and matching them to make new meals helps a ton to maximize your efforts and keep things interesting. I like interesting.

So here’s what I do when I want some Mexican flavors. (Everything is Gluten-Free, Dairy-Free, and Plant-Based.)

Mexican Menu Plan 

Make a pot of black beans for a good old bowl of rice and beans, then use the leftovers to make black bean-sweet potato burgers, and black bean hummus to eat or freeze later (bonus!).

Mexican Black Beans and Rice with a big salad topped with shredded carrot and avocado
Quick Black Bean-Sweet Potato Burgers with Quick Cilantro-Lime Cabbage Slaw
Black Bean Hummus

Pantry item checklist to make all three: 

Black Beans
Rice
Salad greens
Carrot
Avocado
Sweet Potatoes
Onions 
Garlic
Cilantro
Tahini
Nuts/Seeds

Mexican Black Beans

Use these as a soup or as basic black beans. Immediately freeze what you don’t use for easy beans later. These have replaced every other black bean soup I’ve ever made. (If you live at altitude, you will need to use a pressuer cooker, cooking at medium-high pressure for about 4 minutes.) Cooking them in the same broth gives an inky-black, rich broth and deeply flavored bean. 

Yield: about 5 1/2 - 6 cups cooked beans

2 cups dried black beans (sort and remove any small stones or pieces of dirt)
1 bay leaf
5 whole garlic cloves (no need to peel)
1 medium onion (left whole, peeled with root end left on and sliced down the middle, stopping before the root so that it can open in the pot but not fall apart)
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
2 tablespoons sea salt
1/2 cup chopped cilantro stems
1 cup chopped cilantro leaves

In a large, heavy dutch oven or Le Creuset soup pot, add sorted black beans, bay leaf, onion, cumin seeds, salt and cilantro stems and cover with 8 cups of filtered water. Cover and bring to a almost a boil, keep covered and turn to the lowest stetting. Let cook, covered, for about 1 1/2 hours. Taste the broth and add salt to the pot if needed and continue to cook until they are tender but not falling apart. Scoop out the onion and discard. Pull the garlic cloves out entirely or just squeeze the garlic out of the skins and stir back into the beans. Stir in the fresh cilantro leaves before serving. 

Serve over white or brown rice. (If you have greens available, layer them under the rice.) Top with chopped avocado and hot sauce, if desired.

White Basmati Rice

Cooking time: 20 minutes
Yield: 3 cups cooked rice

1 cup white basmati rice
1 1/2 cup filtered water
1/2 teaspoon sea salt

Bring water and rice to a boil over medium-high heat, covered.  Reduce heat to low and continue to cook, covered, until all the water is absorbed - about 20 minutes. Remove from heat and let sit, covered, until ready to serve.

Lime- or Lemon-Garlic Vinaigrette

2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lime or lemon juice
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
1-2 garlic cloves, pressed or minced
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
sea salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
*add 1 teaspoon crushed oregano to make an Italian vinaigrette

Whisk together lemon juice, salt and garlic in a small bowl until thoroughly combined.  Add oil gradually, whisking while adding in a slow steady stream until dressing is emulsified.  Season to taste with additional lemon juice, salt and freshly ground pepper. Use as salad dressing or as a marinade.

Use leftover black beans to make:

Quick Black Bean - Sweet Potato Burgers

Yield: about 6 burgers

1 garlic clove, chopped
1 cup cooked black beans
1 1/2 cups cooked rice (black, brown or white) (leftover from another meal)
1 heaping cup steamed cubed sweet potato (or leftover sweet potato)
1 cup toasted pecans, walnuts or sunflower seeds
1/4 cup diced white onion (or yellow or red)
1/2 cup fresh cilantro, stems and leaves, chopped
Pinch chipotle pepper powder
Sea salt, freshly ground pepper

1. In the bowl of a food processor, mince the garlic with a large pinch of sea salt. Add the black beans and sweet potatoes and pulse several times, then add pecans and pulse several times, add the rice and cilantro and pulse 2-3 times. The goal is to have some of the items still have a little texture. Remove from the processor work bowl, stir in the onion and chipotle powder and adjust to taste for salt.

Serve over a big  salad of greens or with cabbage slaw.

Simple Cilantro Cabbage Slaw
(just omit the cilantro if it’s not your jam)

White or red cabbage
Sea salt
Lemon or lime
Cilantro

Thinly slice once cup cabbage per person. Place in a small bowl and sprinkle with a pinch of salt per cup. Squeeze a quarter lime or lemon per cup. Squeeze the cabbage with your hands to soften and stir in about a teaspoon of cilantro leaves per serving.

Have extra black beans? Make a lunch dip or spread:

Black Bean Hummus

Prep time: 15 minutes
Yield: 1 1/2 cups
Gluten-free, Dairy-free

1 can (14 ounces) black beans
2 tablespoons raw tahini
Juice of 1/2 lime (about 1 tablespoon)
1 garlic clove, peeled
2 tablespoons raw sunflower seeds (or substitute raw pumpkin seeds)
1/8 teaspoon dried chipotle chile or smoked paprika
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
Freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons cilantro, optional

1. In the bowl of a food processor, grind garlic and salt until minced. Add beans, tahini, lime juice, chile powder or paprika and pulse until blended. Add sunflower seeds and pulse a few more times until blended but still chunky. Taste for salt and pepper and adjust as needed.

Use as a sandwich spread, in a collard green wrapper, or as a dip for red peppers and carrots. Add 2 tablespoons chopped cilantro for extra Southwestern flavor.