20 Recipes You Can Make with a Can of Beans | foodiecrush.com (2024)

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Canned beans are one of those pantry staples we always have on hand. They’re cheap, easy, fuss-free, and filling, and their versatility makes them an awesome standby for tacos, salads, soups, enchiladas, and more. To get more meal prep inspiration from your pantry, check out this list of favorite dinners made with all different types of beans.

No matter how depressingly barren our pantries may get, we can always find at least one can of beans lurking in there somewhere. Beans are the cornerstone of a well-stocked pantry.

Canned beans have saved our meal making when we’ve lapsed on the grocery shopping, meal planning, and budgeting. They’re inexpensive and efficient, and they give us protein and fiber. And beans are the building block to so many recipes, where you can get a lot of mileage out of beans as a main or co-starring ingredients, incorporating them into soups and chilis, enchiladas and burritos, stuffed peppers, casseroles, salads, and more.

Check out this of meals to make with a can of beans below, and use your bean!

This easy Mediterranean chickpea salad is infused with flavor thanks to a heaping helping of fresh herbs with a garlicky lemon dressing that ups the crunch from red bell pepper, celery and red onion for a simple side dish or topping for greens from FoodieCrush.

Soups are the star of most of our cooler weather meals, though this one’s good enough to eat all year-round. With roasted cauliflower and chickpeas, it’s deliciously velvety, nutty, and hearty from Floating Kitchen.

Roasted veggies, black beans, and a homemade chipotle-spiked enchilada sauce make this incredibly easy, healthy vegetarian casserolea weeknight winner from Ambitious Kitchen.

Mac and cheese + chili = comfort food bliss in this ridiculously easy one pot meal that also comes together in just 20 minutes from RecipeTin Eats. Seriously, what’s not to love?

Classic Southwestern flavors, corn, rice, black beans, and lean ground beef make these rainbows of stuffed bell peppers a favorite, healthy dinner that comes mostly from the pantry that your whole family will enjoy.

Confession: We’re obsessed with soups that have pasta in themand this one boasts chickpeas and whole wheat shells in a garlicky, tomato broth with lots of Parmesan (fuhgettaboutit) from How Sweet Eats.

This Tuscan tuna salad with white beans makes a quick and easy-to-make lunch or even a light dinner, and puts high protein front and center with chunks of albacore tuna and white beans tossed with arugula and more Mediterranean flavors coming from FoodieCrush.

Fragrant spices, butternut squash, and chickpeas make up this Moroccan stewmade easy in the slow cooker from Simply Quinoa.

Skillet meals are our saving grace on weeknights when we don’t feel like cooking. This onefeatures cannellini beans, salmon, and cherry tomatoes, and gets a boost of of smoky flavor from charred lemons from Bev Cooks.

Whether you’re vegetarian or just taking a night off from meat, these sweet potato taco bowlshit the spot. They’re loaded up with spicy roasted sweet potatoes, black beans, fire-roasted corn, cilantro lime quinoa, and are full of awesome flavor from Chelsea’s Messy Apron.

They say chicken soup soothes the soul, but we’re pretty sure this rustic Italian soup made with leafy kale, cannellini beans, lots of veggies, and chunks of sourdough bread gives it a run for its money from A Couple Cooks.

All you need are 5 ingredients to make this comforting sweet potato turkey chili studded with black beans from Pinch of Yum.

Using a store-bought rotisserie chicken makes these creamy white bean and salsa verde enchiladas a breeze any night of the week from Skinnytaste.

Coconut milk, chickpeas, and tons of aromatic spices make for an irresistible vegan curry that easily beats any takeout version from Jessica in the Kitchen.

Chicken breasts, butternut squash, and red onion all get roasted on one sheet pan and then served up in a bowl, with black beans, rice, and guacamole in this healthy, easy weeknight dinner from FoodieCrush.

More Building Block Ingredient Recipes to Try Now

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20 Recipes You Can Make with a Can of Beans | foodiecrush.com (2024)

FAQs

How to fancy up canned beans? ›

Add the garlic, oregano, chili powder, and cumin and cook for 1 minute, stirring frequently. Add in the drained beans, bay leaves, and broth or water. Cook for 5-10 minutes, or until the beans are warmed through, then remove the bay leaves.

How to use a can of beans? ›

15 Ways to Use and Cook with Canned Beans
  1. Hummus. Hummus is not just for chickpeas! ...
  2. Taco Filling. Fork-mash with ½ cup prepared salsa for a chunky taco filling.
  3. Dip or Sandwich Spread. ...
  4. Succotash. ...
  5. Grain Salad. ...
  6. Refried Beans. ...
  7. Pasta e fa*gioli. ...
  8. Light Lunch Salad.
Mar 26, 2020

What can I do with leftover beans in a can? ›

If you have leftovers, you can mash them and serve them as a dip or spread for toasts.

How to cook canned beans well? ›

Pour the beans directly into the pot and season for how you plan to use them. Allow it to simmer, stirring occasionally. Continue to stir and heat beans until they reach the desired temperature and consistency, about 5-10 minutes.

How to make beans more interesting? ›

Stir through your favourite chilli sauce, crushed chilli flakes or sliced red chilli for a spicy kick, add a few spoonfuls of barbecue sauce for a sweet, smoky finish, or try a little bit of Worcestershire sauce and horseradish for some bloody Mary flavour.

What can I add to beans for flavor? ›

Those aromatics in the pot will revolutionize the beans' final flavor. The aromatics I tend to use are onions, carrots, garlic, and celery, and then heartier, woodsy herbs, like rosemary, sage, and thyme, which marry beautifully with the earthy-sweet flavor of beans.

Are canned beans healthy? ›

Put canned beans — a healthy pantry staple — in the spotlight. Beans boast protein, fiber, folate and lots of minerals, like iron, magnesium, potassium and zinc. If you're worried about sodium, rinse and drain beans before using to cut back on the salt by as much as 40 percent.

What to do with a lot of beans? ›

25 Best Bean Recipes
  1. Hummus. 7 ingredients. ...
  2. Easy Vegetarian Chili. No list of bean recipes is complete without a classic chili made with kidney beans and tomatoes. ...
  3. Creamy Potato Soup. ...
  4. Creamy Wild Rice Soup. ...
  5. Spiralized Vegetable Noodle Soup. ...
  6. Ribollita (Tuscan White Bean Soup) ...
  7. Creamy Vegan Pasta. ...
  8. Vegan Pasta Salad.

Why you should always rinse canned beans? ›

One of the primary reasons for draining and rinsing canned beans, or any canned food, is to remove some of the excess salt.

Is it OK to eat beans out of the can? ›

The reason that beans are safe to eat straight from the can is pretty simple: They're already cooked. Per Epicurious, beans are blanched before being canned with water, salt, and other additives, and then sealed and cooked under steam pressure at a high temperature before landing at your local grocery store.

How do you use old beans? ›

First soak the beans. The quickie soak isn't very useful for OLD beans, so soak them overnight, 12 hours at least. Then, if you have reason to think they are going to be tough, bring them to a boil, turn off the heat, [and add] 3/8 teaspoon of baking soda per 3 cups of water (and 3 cups of water per cup of beans).

Should you throw away liquid from canned beans? ›

The liquid in good canned beans is just the water and salt the beans were cooked in… filled with delicious bean flavor. And this liquid is a great thickener for not only the specific dish you're making at the moment, but for any dish that could use some thickening, some salt, and some bean flavor.

How to spruce up a can of beans? ›

I like to sprinkle in some taco seasoning, but you could add whatever spices you like — garlic powder, cumin, and chili powder are all good calls.

How to make canned beans tastier? ›

My technique, typically, was to caramelize the onions and garlic a bit, then add the drained cannellini beans, finishing with salt, lemon zest, sherry vinegar or lemon juice, red pepper flakes, and fresh herbs.

Can dogs eat black beans? ›

Like a few other food types, black beans can be beneficial to your dog. For starters, black beans have high protein levels and low-fat content. If you want to implement more protein into your dog's diet, combined with eggs or meat, it can make for quite the potent punch of protein.

How do you elevate a can of baked beans? ›

5 Ways to Upgrade Canned Baked Beans
  1. Honey + Dijon Mustard. ...
  2. Caramelized Onion + Bacon + Espresso Powder. ...
  3. Adobo Sauce + Chorizo + Chopped Cilantro. ...
  4. Fire Roasted Tomatoes + Little Smokies + Chopped Parsley. ...
  5. Mixed Chopped Herbs + Breadcrumbs + Cheddar Cheese.
Jul 7, 2015

How to make beans fancier? ›

Fry some onion until browned a bit, add bell pepper(or a hotter kind) and fry til softened, add some garlic, cumin, chili powder and black pepper. Add your beans and heat them through. Then season, beans especially need salt to go from terrible to pretty good/great.

How to improve canned beans on Reddit? ›

Add olive oil or a bit of lard, some diced onion, cumin, chili powder and cayenne. And some cut up peppers if you want. You can also mix it some different beans as well, but beans are expensive where I am so I usually don't.

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