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These vegetarian enchiladas are an easy Mexican-inspired dinner that’s hearty, healthy, and flavorful! Flour tortillas are stuffed with black beans, corn, roasted veggies, and cheese, then smothered in enchilada sauce and baked until hot and bubbly.
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While we love chicken enchiladas and beef enchiladas, meatless meals are good for the grocery budget and for our health. These vegetarian enchiladas are one of those simple dinners that comes together quickly with a handful of store-bought shortcuts. Thanks to plenty of great flavor and texture, they appeal to meat-lovers, too!
What are enchiladas usually filled with?
A traditional enchilada is a corn tortilla that’s rolled around a filling of meat, potatoes, beans, vegetables, or cheese, and covered with a savory sauce. Enchiladas originated in Mexico and are popular throughout the southwestern United States.
There are many different varieties of enchiladas, stuffed with everything from beans and cheese to veggies, potatoes, beef, chicken, and seafood. To make these veggie enchiladas, we’re filling the tortillas with a variety of roasted veggies (including zucchini, broccoli, and onions), black beans, corn, garlic, and spices, along with cheese and red enchilada sauce.
Are enchiladas better with corn or flour tortillas?
You can use either corn tortillas or flour tortillas in this recipe, so pick whichever option you prefer. While corn tortillas are most traditional for enchiladas, I always use flour tortillas. My kids prefer the soft texture of the flour tortillas, and I find that they’re easier to work with because they don’t rip or tear when rolling.
The Secret to Good Enchiladas
The key to the best vegetarian enchiladas is packing each bite with tons of flavor! We’re using a variety of veggies to achieve great texture, and a homemade seasoning blend to jazz up the filling. The enchilada sauce gives the dish some spicy kick, a blend of Mexican cheeses adds ooey, gooey, depth of flavor, and your favorite toppings are like the icing on the cake. With so many layers of goodness, nobody will miss the meat!
Ingredients for the Best Ever Vegetarian Enchiladas
This is just a quick overview of the ingredients that you’ll need for our favorite vegetarian enchiladas recipe. As always, specific measurements and step-by-step cooking instructions are included in the printable recipe box at the bottom of the post.
- Zucchini, onion, broccoli, and garlic: veggies that you’ll roast until tender and charred.
- Olive oil: to coat the vegetables for roasting.
- Cumin, chili powder, kosher salt, and ground black pepper: to season the vegetables.
- Black beans: add protein and fiber to bulk up the filling. Feel free to sub with extra veggies, or use a different type of bean. Good options include pinto beans, pink beans, cannellini beans, and kidney beans.
- Mexican-style corn with red and green pepper: also called “Mexicorn.” Use regular corn if you like!
- Mexican blend cheese: this typically includes a variety of flavorful cheeses, such as cheddar, Monterey Jack, queso quesadilla, and asadero cheese. Feel free to sub with just cheddar cheese or Pepper Jack cheese.
- Red enchilada sauce: I use this traditional red enchilada sauce, but you can substitute with green enchilada verde sauce if you prefer. You can also use about 2 ¼ cups of homemade enchilada sauce if you have a little bit more time.
- Tortillas: I prefer flour tortillas because they’re easier to work with, but corn tortillas are also a great option.
- Optional enchilada toppings: sliced green onions, chopped fresh cilantro, chopped red onion, pickled red onion, diced avocado or guacamole, sour cream, lime wedges.
How to Make Vegetarian Enchiladas
We make these enchiladas vegetarian by swapping out the chicken, beef, or other meat and replacing it with beans and roasted veggies. I’ve included the detailed directions in the recipe card below, but here’s the quick version:
- Season the veggies and roast until tender.
- Stir together the vegetable and bean filling.
- Roll the filling inside the tortillas.
- Arrange the tortillas in a casserole dish, and top with enchilada sauce and cheese.
- Bake for about 20 minutes, or until heated through and the cheese melts.
- Garnish with your favorite toppings, and serve!
Serving Suggestions
If you’re looking for a good vegetable to eat with enchiladas, here are some of our suggestions for greens and other sides:
- Black Bean and Corn Salad or Summer Corn Salad
- Refried Beans or Ranch-Style Beans
- Tortilla chips with salsa, guacamole, or queso
- Easy Pico de Gallo
- Rice
- Simple green salad
- Green Beans
- Broccoli and Cheese
- Mexican Cornbread
Preparation and Storage Tips
This easy vegetarian enchilada recipe is a great make-ahead dinner. You can assemble the enchiladas up to 24 hours in advance and keep them covered in the refrigerator until ready to bake. When ready to bake, allow the dish to sit on the counter and come to room temperature for at least 30-60 minutes.
Leftover enchiladas will keep in the refrigerator for 3-4 days.
How to Freeze
You can freeze the veggie enchiladas before baking. Wrapped tightly, the assembled dish will keep in the freezer for up to 2 months.
When ready to bake, allow the enchiladas to thaw in the fridge overnight, then bake according to recipe instructions. Alternatively, if the enchiladas are in a freezer-to-oven-safe dish, you can bake them directly from the freezer. Cover the dish with foil and bake the frozen enchiladas covered in a 350°F oven for about 20 minutes, then remove the cover and continue baking for about 20 more minutes (or until heated through).
How to Reheat
If reheating an entire pan of enchiladas, cover the dish loosely with foil and bake in a 350°F oven until warmed through (about 20 minutes). Individual portions can be reheated in the microwave for 1-2 minutes.
Recipe Variations
- Use different vegetables in lieu of the broccoli, onion, zucchini, and corn. Good options include sliced mushrooms, red bell peppers or green bell peppers, spinach, red onions or pickled red onions, cauliflower florets, butternut squash, or diced, roasted sweet potatoes.
- Swap out the black beans and use pink beans, pinto beans, cannellini beans, or kidney beans.
- Omit the beans and substitute with about 1 ½ cups of additional roasted veggies, diced potatoes, or corn. You can also replace the beans with 1 ½ cups of cooked rice.
- Use corn tortillas instead of flour tortillas. You’ll need to warm the corn tortillas before rolling them (so that they don’t fall apart). To do so, wrap a stack of tortillas in damp paper towels. Microwave for 30 seconds – 1 minute, or until the tortillas are soft and flexible.
- Swap out the Mexican-style corn and use regular canned corn or frozen, thawed corn.
- Use green enchilada sauce instead of the red enchilada sauce.
- If you have extra time, prepare a batch of homemade enchilada sauce for this recipe. You’ll need a total of about 2 ¼ cups.
Tips for the Best Vegetarian Enchilada Recipe
- For extra flavor, add a can of diced green chiles to the vegetable mixture. You can also season the veggies with taco seasoning rather than the cumin and chili powder.
- Make the enchiladas spicy with some jalapenos on top or some cayenne in the filling.
- Bake the enchiladas just until warmed through (this takes about 20 minutes, but every oven is slightly different). The sauce should be hot and bubbly, and the edges of the tortillas should be crisp. Keep an eye on them, because you don’t want them to burn.
- Set out an enchilada toppings bar and let your family members garnish their plates with all of their favorites! There are so many delicious options, including onions, fresh cilantro leaves, avocado, sour cream, and lime.
More Enchilada Recipes to Try
Easy Chicken Enchilada Casserole {4 Ingredients!}
45 minutes mins
Beef and Cheese Enchiladas
45 minutes mins
Sour Cream Chicken Enchiladas
1 hour hr 5 minutes mins
Vegetarian Enchiladas
Ingredients
- 1 small zucchini, diced (about 1 cup)
- ½ of a small onion, diced (about ½ cup)
- ½ of a head broccoli, cut into florets (about 1 ½ cups)
- 1-2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 clove garlic, grated, minced or pressed
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- Kosher salt and ground black pepper, to taste
- 1 (15 oz) can black beans, drained and rinsed
- 1 (11 oz) can Mexican-style corn with red and green peppers, drained
- 1 (19 oz) can red enchilada sauce, divided (about 2 ¼ cups total)
- 2 cups grated Mexican blend cheese (or use a combination of cheddar and Monterey Jack), divided
- 8 (8-inch) flour tortillas
- Optional toppings: sliced green onions; chopped fresh cilantro; chopped red onion; diced avocado or guacamole; sour cream; lime wedges
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425°F. Line a large rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Spread the zucchini, onion, and broccoli in a single layer on the prepared baking sheet. Drizzle with olive oil; add garlic, cumin, chili powder, salt, and pepper. Toss to coat.
- Roast the vegetables for about 20-25 minutes, or until tender and slightly charred, stirring halfway through.
- Transfer the veggies to a large bowl. Add the black beans, corn, ¾ cup of the enchilada sauce, and 1 cup of the cheese. Stir to combine. Taste and season with additional salt and pepper or other spices, if desired.
- Reduce the oven temperature to 350°F. Grease a 9 x 13-inch baking dish. Spread about ½ cup of the enchilada sauce in a thin layer in the bottom of the pan.
- Spread some of the veggie and bean mixture in the center of each tortilla. Roll up and place seam-side down in the prepared baking dish.
- Pour the remaining enchilada sauce over top. Sprinkle with remaining cheese.
- Bake, uncovered, for about 20 minutes (or until the enchiladas are heated through and the edges of the tortillas are a bit crispy). Garnish with desired toppings and serve warm.
Notes
- Use different vegetables in lieu of the broccoli, onion, zucchini, and corn. Good options include sliced mushrooms, red bell peppers or green bell peppers, spinach, red onions or pickled red onions, cauliflower florets, butternut squash, or diced, roasted sweet potatoes.
- Swap out the black beans and use pink beans, pinto beans, cannellini beans, or kidney beans.
- Omit the beans and substitute with about 1 ½ cups of additional roasted veggies, diced potatoes, or corn. You can also replace the beans with 1 ½ cups of cooked rice.
- Use corn tortillas instead of flour tortillas. You’ll need to warm the corn tortillas before rolling them (so that they don’t fall apart). To do so, wrap a stack of tortillas in damp paper towels. Microwave for 30 seconds – 1 minute, or until the tortillas are soft and flexible.
- Swap out the Mexican-style corn and use regular canned corn or frozen, thawed corn.
- Use green enchilada sauce instead of the red enchilada sauce.
- If you have some extra time, prepare a batch of homemade enchilada sauce for this recipe. You’ll need a total of about 2 ¼ cups.
