Name: Quick Mexican Black Beans
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 5 min
Total time: 15 min
Ingredients: 1 tablespoon olive oil; 1/4 large onion (or half of a small onion); 2 cloves garlic (smashed and minced*); 1 (15-ounce) can black beans (keep the liquid in the can!); 1 teaspoon kosher salt (use only 3/4 teaspoon salt if you are using table salt); 1/2 teaspoon chili powder** (OR taco seasoning, see note); 1 teaspoon cumin** (OR taco seasoning, see note); 1 teaspoon oregano** (OR taco seasoning, see note); 3 tablespoons cilantro (chopped, optional); 1 lime (juiced); queso fresco (to garnish, optional); Pickled Red Onions (to garnish, optional); sour cream (to garnish, optional); radishes (thinly sliced, optional); jalapenos (sliced, optional)

Mexican Black Beans are delicious and SUPER flavorful, but only take 15 minutes to make! It is my absolute favorite side dish for Mexican food. It’s just a can of beans cooked up with sauteed onion and garlic, plus the right spices. It’s simple but tastes like it took a lot longer to make! Perfect for weeknights.

A bowl of black beans garnished with cilantro, sliced jalapeños, pickled red onions, and radish slices.

In the summertime, Eric and I host what we call “Taco Nights,” wherein our friends come over and we eat tacos, and that’s it. It’s one of my favorite traditions of all time!

I read this article (a decade ago, now!) titled “How to Host a Crappy Dinner Party” and it suggested having a standing dinner date with friends, where no one is allowed to make a stop at a grocery store, and no toilets are allowed to be cleaned beforehand.

I was inspired to start Taco Nights, which always take place on weekday evenings in the summer. I make regular ol ground beef tacos with homemade Taco Seasoning (the recipe for how to make the taco meat is on that post). We drink water and there are no side dishes. The kids play in the pool, and the adults laze about and chat. It’s so much fun!

A close-up of a bowl filled with black beans, topped with crumbled cheese, a drizzle of white sauce, chopped herbs, and a wedge of lime.

We’ve been going for 9 summers now. You can see photos of our first summer of taco nights on this 5-Minute Restaurant Style Salsa post. Edison wasn’t even born when we started! (I also include the menu, which has not changed AT ALL in 10 years. The idea is to keep it SIMPLE!)

Easy Black Beans

I’ve been making these beans forever, it’s one of those recipes that hardly feels like a recipe to me! I thought it was about time to add the details to the blog.

It’s made by doctoring up a can of black beans, and it comes in clutch for me ALL the time:

It goes with anything Mexican
It’s full of protein
It doubles as an easy taco filling

We have a lot of vegetarian friends, so for Taco Nights I always make today’s recipe for Mexican Black Beans as an alternative to ground beef tacos. Black beans make a phenomenal filling for a taco, especially when you add the cheese and the guac and the sour cream and the salsa, as you should. Black beans are flavorful, filling, and have great texture.

I make a huge pot of these beans for taco nights in the summer, but I’ve made a scaled down version using just one can of beans for today’s post. It’s a great taco filling, and also makes the perfect weeknight side dish for serving with any Mexican meal! I am genuinely so excited to share this recipe, since I’ve been making it for so many years!

Close-up of a bowl of black beans garnished with fresh cilantro, lime wedges, sliced jalapeños, and pickled red onions, with a spoon in the bowl.

These black beans are SO easy

Sometimes, with side dishes you guys…I just can’t. Getting dinner on the table every night is a challenge for me, even after all these years!! (Don’t you think I would be used to it by now??)

But even I can handle these easy black beans. Open a can and dump, plus some garlic and onions. It’s super fast, and SO good. Rounds out any Mexican meal.

They seriously go with everything. Enchiladas? Check. Tacos? Check. Sheet Pan Quesadillas, Fajitas, Mexican Meatballs? Check, check, check. My most recent obsession is serving them with this Cilantro Lime Rice, Blackened Chili Lime Salmon and Mango Salsa. (The salmon and salsa recipes are coming soon! Here’s a sneak peek:

Grilled salmon topped with mango salsa, served with green rice and black beans, garnished with cheese and herbs; a fork rests on the plates edge.

This has been one of my favorite meals this summer.

But these beans don’t have to be served with anything fancy. I love a bowl of these beans with plain rice. I could eat rice and beans all day.

Green Cilantro Lime Rice and red Mexican Rice deserve to have a moment, though. Coconut Jasmine Rice, too. Choose any of these rice recipes, or even just regular ol’ White Rice cooked on the stovetop, and turn it into a meal by adding these easy black beans. Then, “put an egg on it,” as they say.

A fried egg, preferably, with an oozy yolk that’s ready to seep into all the rice. I’m telling you, it’s the best poor man’s meal. Quick, easy, filling, cheap. Don’t even get me started on adding fried plantains to this situation!! This could be my last meal, truly. (Either that or Pot Roast with Mashed Potatoes). I’m a simple girl, folks.

Ingredients to know about

This recipe is meant to be a weeknight hero, so the ingredients are all simple and hopefully things you keep well stocked in your pantry! Here’s what you need to know:

Canned black beans are saving the day here. I love a pot of homemade, from-scratch beans, like these Tejano Pinto Beans, but sometimes you just gotta git er done. A can of beans makes this SUCH a quick and easy side dish!
Lotsa seasonings to add flavor to those otherwise bland beans. I like to use salt, cumin, oregano, and chili powder. Taco seasoning is a good sub if you have it on hand.
Fresh aromatics take beans from “these are from a can” to “OMG” so fast. For these beans, it’s a quick saute of some onion and garlic, and then a handful of chopped cilantro stirred in at the end. They make such a huge difference!

How to make Mexican black beans

Here are all the ingredients you are going to need! I usually have most of these on hand, do you also stockpile black beans in your pantry??

Ingredients including oregano, chili powder, cumin, olive oil, black beans, salt, an onion, garlic, and cilantro are arranged on a white surface.

Here’s a refresher on chopping onions, I have a whole post about How to Cut an Onion if you want more details.

Two images show an onion being diced on a wooden cutting board. In the top image, the onion is half-sliced; in the bottom, it is being chopped into small pieces. Onion skins are scattered to the side.

You only need or a quarter or a half an onion for this recipe, about 1/2 cup chopped.

(Chop the rest of the onion and save it in a ziplock in the freezer! The next time you need an onion it will be ready to go. I do this all the time! You can dump it straight into a pan from frozen when you need it later.)

Now prep som garlic. I love to smash and mince fresh garlic, but honestly, most of the time I use garlic from the jar. Because I’m usually in a hurry! It gets the job done just fine.

Close-up of a cutting board with chopped onions, minced garlic, and a chefs knife. Garlic cloves and diced onions are separated on the board in two different stages of preparation.

Add all the onions to some oil in a pan.

Chopped onions being added to a pan from a cutting board, then sautéed in the pan with a wooden spoon.

Once the onions have sauteed a bit, add in the garlic.

Then add in the can of beans, along with all the can liquid.

Top: Black beans and sautéed onions in a pan with a wooden spoon. Bottom: Same pan with added spices including salt, dried herbs, cumin, and chili powder on top of the beans and onions.

Add the spices: salt, cumin, chili powder, oregano.

Let that simmer for a few minutes (literally just however long you want until the rest of your dinner is ready!)

And then add in some cilantro, if you are into it.

Chopped cilantro on a cutting board with a knife above a pot of cooked black beans topped with fresh cilantro and a wooden spoon.

I also love to squeeze in lime juice, if I have it on hand. Gives it the perfect acidic kick!

And that’s it! You should basically get an award for making a side dish for dinner!!

A bowl of black beans garnished with fresh cilantro, sliced jalapeños, and pickled red onions, with a spoon beside the bowl on a woven surface.

What to serve with these black beans

The sky is the limit here, folks. I love to eat these beans for lunch with rice and a fried egg over the top. So good! Obviously, these are the perfect side for ANY type of Mexican entree. I’m listing a few of my favorites below, but be sure to check out the Mexican/Tex Mex page on the blog even more ideas you’ll love!

My New Favorite Chicken Enchiladas >> so flavorful and cheesy, and of course doused with the best homemade Green Enchilada Sauce!
Traditional Carne Guisada Tacos >> this is some of the best beef you’ll ever have, truly!
The Chicken Fajitas Recipe That Changed My Mind >> this is a HUGE weeknight favorite around here, everyone loves this recipe

A close-up of a bowl filled with creamy black beans, garnished with crumbled cheese, fresh cilantro, and a drizzle of white sauce. A sliced radish sits on the edge of the bowl.

How to store leftovers

Transfer cooled leftovers to any container with an airtight lid and store in the refrigerator. They’ll stay good in the fridge for about 4-5 days. To reheat, you can add them to a pot on the stove over medium heat until warm throughout, or microwave individual servings for 1-2 minutes at 50% power.

Beans are perfect for freezing and a fabulous option if you are only feeding 1-2 people, or you want to use leftovers for a future meal. Transfer the beans to a freezer ziplock bag (or to freezer safe individual containers) and store in the freezer for 3-6 months!

Beans for every meal

Beans are complimentary to a wide variety of meals, and I regularly eat leftovers as a stand alone lunch, maybe with some Pickled Red Onions for crunch. They’re so versatile, filling, and delicious. Check out a few of my other go-to bean recipes!