Made with black beans, a colorful veggie mix, and a smoky red enchilada sauce, this vegetarian enchilada casserole layers tortillas with melted cheese and a hearty bean-and-vegetable filling for a freezer-friendly weeknight dinner even meat-eaters come back for seconds of!

An overhead shot of a rectangular baking dish with a cooked vegetarian enchilada casserole. There are lime slices, sprigs of cilantro, and small bowls with jalapeños and cilantro around them.

5 star review

“Thank you so much for this yummy recipe! My daughter is vegetarian so I’m always looking for delicious dinner ideas that the whole family can eat. This was a winner!”

– Jenny
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My Favorite Veggie Enchilada Casserole

This vegetarian enchilada casserole is the EASY way to make enchiladas without rolling a single tortilla! The filling comes together in one-pan with black beans, sauteed bell peppers, zucchini, and corn, plus wilted spinach and a few spoonfuls of cream cheese for a little bit of richness. Everything gets layered between flour tortillas and smothered in red enchilada sauce for a hearty, family-friendly dinner that even meat-eaters come back for seconds of.

Two small steps that I think makes this casserole noticeably better than the average vegetarian enchilada bake. First, lightly mashing some of the black beans with the back of a fork after the filling cooks helps the mixture hold together when sliced, instead of falling apart into a loose pile of beans and veggies. Second, stirring a few spoonfuls of cream cheese into the warm filling melts into the sauce and adds a creamy, mild richness that balances the smoky red enchilada sauce (so good!). Use my homemade enchilada sauce if you have a batch on hand, or a 15-ounce can of store-bought works just as well.

Top the casserole with sliced avocado, fresh cilantro, lime wedges, and a dollop of sour cream right before serving and everyone will be ready to dig-in. This recipe also holds up beautifully as a make-ahead meal: assemble the casserole up to 24 hours in advance and refrigerate, or freeze it unbaked (covered tightly with plastic wrap) for up to 3 months. To bake from frozen, add an extra 15 minutes to the covered cook time. And another vegetarian enchilada with a different flavor profile, my black bean and sweet potato enchiladas uses sweet potatoes alongside the black beans for a slightly sweeter take.

Welcome to My Kitchen, Let’s Make a Veggie Enchilada Casserole!

Jump to Recipe Instructions
An overhead shot of various containers with the following ingredients: spinach, shredded cheese, tortillas, enchilada sauce, diced zucchini, diced onions, black beans, diced jalapeños, corn kernels, salt, oil, garlic powder, and cream cheese.
Gather ingredients and preheat oven.
An overhead shot of a white pot on a grey surface with diced onions, red bell pepper, and zucchini.
Saute the onions, zucchini, bell peppers, and salt.
An overhead shot of a white pot on a grey surface with uncooked spinach, corn kernels, cream cheese, chopped jalapeños, black beans, chopped zucchini, salt, and garlic powder.
Add black beans, corn, green chilis, cream cheese, spinach, and seasonings.
An overhead shot of a white pot on a grey surface with a creamy chopped veggie mixture and a fork.
Lightly mash some of the black beans with the back of a fork.
An overhead shot of a white pot on a grey surface with a creamy chopped veggie mixture, shredded cheese, and a wooden spoon.
Add shredded cheese and stir to combine.
An overhead shot of a rectangular baking dish topped with tortilla halves and cooked veggies and surrounded by containers with spinach, shredded cheese, corn kernels, enchilada sauce, and black beans.
Layer sauce, tortillas, vegetables, and cheese.
An overhead shot of a rectangular baking dish covered in aluminum foil surrounded by containers with spinach, shredded cheese, corn kernels, enchilada sauce and black beans.
Cover with foil and bake for 20-25 minutes.
An overhead shot of a rectangular baking dish with a cooked and sliced vegetarian enchilada casserole. Slices have been removed from the bottom right corner of the dish.
Uncover and bake for an additional 5 minutes, or until the cheese is lightly browned. Slice and serve!
A straight on shot of a layered tortilla, and vegetable dish on a white shallow bowl. The slice is topped with cilantro and sliced jalapeño.

Testing Tips for This Vegetarian Enchilada Bake

  • Round out the meal with classic enchilada sides! My what to serve with enchiladas roundup covers every angle from quick salads to easy dips.
  • The vegetable mix is fully customizable, here, so feel free to throw in some mushrooms or extra bell pepper all work well in place of (or alongside) the zucchini. Keep the total vegetable amount the same, about 3 cups of diced veggies after the onion sautes, so the casserole assembly comes out balanced.
  • To add protein for meat-eaters, one of my readers, Shelby, stirred in 2 cups of shredded rotisserie chicken with the bean filling and reported it was an easy, satisfying tweak.
  • For the fastest possible weeknight version, use pre-cut frozen vegetables instead of dicing fresh. One of my readers, Elyssa, tested this with the bag of frozen pepper-and-onion mix and reported it worked beautifully! Add the frozen veggies straight to the hot pan without thawing, and add 2 to 3 minutes to the saute time to drive off the extra moisture.

Follow my step-by-step video:

An overhead shot of a rectangular baking dish with a cooked vegetarian enchilada casserole. There are lime slices, sprigs of cilantro, and small bowls with jalapeños and cilantro around them.
4.94 stars (15 ratings)

Vegetarian Enchilada Casserole (Black Bean)

Developed and tested by A woman with long blonde hair, smiling, holds and pours a bottle of oil in a modern kitchen setting.Robyn Conley Downs
Servings: 10 servings
Prep: 15 minutes
Cook: 30 minutes
Total: 45 minutes
Vegetarian enchilada casserole layered with black beans, bell pepper, corn, and zucchini in a smoky red sauce. A freezer-friendly family dinner!
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Ingredients

  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 medium yellow onion, finely diced
  • 1 large bell pepper (red, orange, or yellow), finely diced
  • 1 medium zucchini, finely diced
  • 1 ½ teaspoon kosher salt, divided
  • 1 teaspoon granulated garlic powder
  • 2 cups baby spinach
  • 1 cup fresh or frozen-defrosted corn kernels
  • 1 (4-oz) can diced green chilis
  • 3 tablespoons cream cheese, softened
  • 2 (15-oz) cans black beans, drained and rinsed
  • 2 cups shredded Mexican cheese blend, divided
  • 2 cups red enchilada sauce
  • 12 small flour tortillas, cut into halves

Equipment

Instructions 

  • Heat the oven to 375F.
  • Heat a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onion, bell pepper, zucchini, and ½ teaspoon salt. Cook until the vegetables are tender, about 8-10 minutes, stirring frequently.
  • When the vegetables are tender, turn the heat to medium low, then add the garlic powder, spinach, corn, black beans, green chilis, 1 teaspoon salt, and cream cheese, stirring to combine.
  • Cook until the spinach is completely wilted and the cream cheese is evenly distributed, about 2-3 minutes.
  • Turn off the heat, and lightly mash some of the black beans with the back of a fork. Add 1 cup cheese, stirring until well combined.
  • Add 1 cup enchilada sauce to the bottom of a 9×13 baking dish. Add a layer of overlapping tortillas to cover.
  • Spoon ⅓ of the vegetable bean mixture on top. Add a second layer of overlapping tortillas, cover evenly with ½ cup enchilada sauce, then spoon ⅓ vegetable bean mixture on top.
  • Add the final layer of overlapping tortillas, cover with the remaining ½ cup enchilada sauce, and the remaining ⅓ cup vegetable bean mixture.
  • Top with 1 cup shredded cheese, then cover with foil and bake for 20-25 minutes, or until bubbling. Uncover and bake for an additional 5 minutes, or until the cheese is lightly browned.

Notes

  • For gluten-free: Be sure to use gluten-free flour or corn tortillas and gluten-free enchilada sauce.
Course: dinner, Main Course
Cuisine: American, Mexican

Nutrition Information:

Serving: 1 (of 10), Calories: 251kcal, Carbohydrates: 30g, Protein: 11g, Fat: 10g, Saturated Fat: 5g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g, Monounsaturated Fat: 3g, Cholesterol: 18mg, Sodium: 1226mg, Potassium: 260mg, Fiber: 3g, Sugar: 7g, Vitamin A: 1626IU, Vitamin C: 29mg, Calcium: 328mg, Iron: 2mg
Nutrition disclaimer
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