MUSHROOM AND BLACK BEAN SMOTHERED BURRITOS

These vegetarian smothered burritos are the ultimate Mexican dinner – soft tortillas stuffed with a rich mushroom and black bean mixture, and smothered with a jalapeño sour cream sauce!

You may know that I adore Mexican food. Nachos, enchiladas, burritos… basically, if something is cheesy and spicy and saucy, I am here for it.

But do you know what’s even better than a crispy, cheesy burrito? A smothered burrito! These mushroom and black bean smothered burritos are pretty much my new favourite thing ever.

WHAT IS A SMOTHERED BURRITO?

You may be wondering what on earth a smothered burrito actually is. It’s pretty self-explanatory – it’s a burrito that’s been smothered in some kind of tasty sauce.

And when you take a burrito that’s already super tasty, with a hot and cheesy filling, and then smother it in a creamy, spicy sauce… it’s even better.

MUSHROOM AND BLACK BEAN BURRITOS

First up, the burrito itself!

You can obviously smother any kind of burrito (sounds a bit sinister, but it’s delicious, I swear).

This time, I went for a simple mushroom and black bean filling, with rice and a rich, spicy tomato sauce. It was awesome. Feel free to use different veggies if you prefer – some peppers or chopped spinach would work nicely too. You can really stuff your burrito however you like!

Of course, it’s always a good idea to add a bit of grated cheese to your burrito filling too, not only to help hold everything together (melty cheese is the perfect glue!), but also just because it’s flipping delicious.

HOW TO FOLD A BURRITO

When you’ve prepared your filling, wrap it up in some large flour tortillas.

It doesn’t really matter how you fold your burrito, as long as you end up with everything safely wrapped up inside. But people are always telling me they have problems wrapping burritos neatly, so here’s how to fold a burrito in a way that will keep all your filling safe.

First, arrange your filling in a rectangular shape in the centre of the tortilla (see image 1 in the collage below). Until you’re an expert burrito roller, don’t try to add too much filling.

Fold in the two short ends of the rectangle first (like I’ve done in image 2).

Then, you can either roll the burrito into a cylinder, or just fold in the two longer sides of the rectangle to make a flatter shape (images 3 and 4). Since we’re going to be smothering that tasty sauce on top, I prefer a flatter burrito for these!

JALAPEÑO SOUR CREAM SAUCE

You could eat your burritos as is – but to really take them to the next level, mix up a little bowlful of this easy jalapeño sour cream sauce.

Again, the name isn’t too much of an enigma – it’s just sour cream mixed with finely chopped jalapeños and some fresh coriander (cilantro), along with a good pinch of salt and pepper.

Quick and easy to make, but so so good.

SMOTHERED BURRITOS

It’s time to get smothering! Lay your filled burritos on a baking tray, and liberally slather the sour cream sauce on top.

This is not the time to be stingy.

You don’t need to be tidy about it – it doesn’t need to be perfectly even or anything. I actually quite like it when there are bits of uncovered tortilla poking through the sauce (they get nice and crispy!), while in other places the sauce is overflowing down the edge of the burrito. Go crazy.

BAKED BURRITOS

Finally, pop your smothered burritos in the oven to bake.

It might seem a little odd to be baking a sour cream sauce, but it actually works really well! It keeps the burritos nice and moist, but still crispy on the edges, and the parts where the sauce itself gets golden are really yummy.

FINISH WITH SOME TOPPINGS!

I know I always go on about toppings when it comes to Mexican food, but it’s true – a few fresh toppings will never fail to raise your smothered burritos to the next level. I simply used some diced tomatoes, fresh coriander (cilantro), and some extra jalapeños, but there are all sorts of things you could pile up on top of your burritos:

• diced or sliced avocado
• finely chopped red onion
• salsa or guacamole
• black olives

Stack them high and dig in!

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MUSHROOM AND BLACK BEAN SMOTHERED BURRITOS

These vegetarian smothered burritos are the ultimate Mexican dinner – soft tortillas stuffed with a rich mushroom and black bean mixture, and smothered with a jalapeño sour cream sauce!

PREP TIME:30 MINS

COOK TIME:20 MINS

TOTAL TIME:50 MINS

SERVINGS:  BURRITOS

INGREDIENTS

• 100 g (~ 1/3 cup) white rice
• 1 tbsp oil
• 1 medium onion, sliced or diced
• 8 medium mushrooms, sliced or diced
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 tsp smoked paprika
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• 1 tbsp tomato puree / paste
• 145 g (~ 2/3 cup) cooked black beans (~ 3/4 of a standard tin)
• Salt
• Black pepper
• 4 large flour tortillas
• 150 g cheddar cheese, grated (~ 1 1/2 cups when grated)
• 1 tbsp pickled jalapeños (I used green), finely chopped
• 1 tbsp coriander (cilantro), finely chopped
• 3 tbsp sour cream
• Toppings, to serve (optional): diced tomatoes, diced red onion, black olives, fresh coriander, jalapeños, diced avocado, etc.

INSTRUCTIONS

• Boil the rice in plenty of water until just cooked, then drain.
• Meanwhile, heat a dash of oil in a large frying pan, and add the onion and mushrooms. Cook for a few minutes over a medium heat until slightly softened, then add the garlic, smoked paprika, cumin and tomato puree. Cook for a few more minutes, stirring regularly.
• Add the black beans and the cooked rice, and season generously. Mix well to combine.
• Take one of the large flour tortillas, and add about 1/4 of the rice mixture to the centre. Top with 1/4 of the grated cheese. Fold two sides of the tortilla inwards, then rotate through 90° and fold in the other two sides to fully wrap the burrito (see the blog post for more detailed burrito-folding tips!).
• Repeat with the remaining tortillas, rice, and cheese, and place the burritos seam-side down on a baking tray.
• In a small bowl, combine the finely chopped jalapeños, coriander, and sour cream. Season with a pinch of salt and pepper, and mix well.
• Divide the sour cream sauce over the 4 burritos, and spread it around a little. Bake at 190°C (Gas Mark 5 / 375°F) for around 15-20 minutes, or until crisped up to your liking. Serve with your choice of toppings.

COURSE: MAIN MEALS

CUISINE: MEXICAN, TEX-MEX

KEYWORD: BEAN BURRITOS, SMOTHERED BURRITOS, VEGETARIAN BURRITOS

AUTHOR: BECCA HEYES

Nutrition Facts

Mushroom and black bean smothered burritos

Amount Per Serving (1 burrito)

Calories 486Calories from Fat 198

% Daily Value*

Total Fat 22g34%

Saturated Fat 10.7g54%

Cholesterol 43mg14%

Sodium 665mg28%

Potassium 417mg12%

Total Carbohydrates 53g18%

Dietary Fiber 5.4g22%

Sugars 3g

Protein 18.7g37%

Calcium35%

Iron27%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

Note: Nutritional information is approximate, and will depend on exactly what ingredients you choose. Information above is for 1 burrito, not including additional toppings.