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1-ingredient black bean tortillas made with dried black beans (plus water & optional salt). They are grain-free, oil-free, vegan & only 50 calories each.
I remember when I first stumbled upon the “Will it Waffle?” book. I picked it up in a bookstore and looked at nothing else for the next hour. It is such a clever book, and I loved the curiosity of the author, who ventures to the edges of possibility with the types of edibles that can be made in a waffle maker.
I was thinking about the book in the past weeks, because I’ve been having a similar obsession. Following my 1-ingredient lentil tortilla recipe, and subsequent split pea tortillas, I’ve been contemplating other varieties of legumes, with respect to one burning question: Will they Tortilla?
Table of Contents
- Tortillas Made with Black Beans
- Recipe Benefits
- Ingredients
- Step by Step Instructions
- Step One: Soak the Beans
- Step Two: Drain the Beans
- Step Three: Blend the Beans
- Step Four: Cook the Tortillas
- Step Five: Cool the Tortillas
- More Grain-Free & Vegan Tortillas to Love:
- 1-Ingredient Black Bean Tortillas {Grain-Free, Vegan} Recipe
Tortillas Made with Black Beans
With nowhere to start but to start, I grabbed some dried black beans –a personal favorite– from the pantry and got them soaking. I blended, and I cooked, and my first attempt had promise. Several batches later, with tweaks to the proportions of water and the heat of the skillet, I have an answer for black beans: yes, they will tortilla!
These tortillas are very hearty and filling, and the flavor reminds me of blue corn tortillas. I have been loving them with an edamame-avocado-cilantro spread I concocted, topped with a bevy of vegetables and herbs from the garden.
Recipe Benefits
Like their lentil predecessors, these tortillas are naturally:
- Grain-free
- Vegan
- Gluten-free
- Oil-free
- Sugar-free
At the same time, they are high in potassium (260 mg per tortilla!), and have good amounts of protein (3.5 grams per tortilla) and fiber (2.5 g per tortilla).
Ingredients
The exact amounts of each ingredient are indicated in the recipe card at the end of the post. Toggle between US Customary (volume) and Metric (weights) for preferred measurement option.
As I am sure you can guess, the inly ingredient you need to purchase for this recipe is some dried black beans.
You will need some tap water for soaking the beans, and also for blending into a batter. I recommend adding a bit of salt, but it is entirely optional. I’ve given a suggested amount, but you can adjust it to suit your tastes and needs.
Step by Step Instructions
Note that the complete directions are also in the recipe card below.
Step One: Soak the Beans
Place the rinsed beans in a medium mixing bowl or other container. Add enough water to cover the beans by at least 1 inch (2.5 cm). Let stand, at room temperature, for at least 12 hours. Drain and rinse the beans (discard soaking water).
Step Two: Drain the Beans
Once soaked, drain and rinse the black beans (discard the soaking water). The beans will be glossy and plumped up to almost twice their original volume.
Step Three: Blend the Beans
Before proceeding with the blending, I suggest removing any relatives, roommates, etc. who are prone to teasing from the immediate vicinity.
I neglected this precaution. Hence, when I blended my first batch of beans, both my husband and son could not resist noting that the batter looks just like concrete!
But a concrete-like batter is exactly what you want, so ignore any teasing and doubts and blend the beans, along with the fresh water and optional salt (see recipe below for exact amounts).
Stop to scrape the sides of the blender once or twice, until the batter is thick and completely smooth.
I used a High speed blender to make the batter. It is possible to do this in a regular blender, but I suggest stopping multiple times to let the blender rest (so that it will not burn out). It will take longer with a regular blender, but keep going until the batter is very, very smooth.
Transfer the batter to a bowl (it’s easier to scoop for the bowl than from the blender). Your batter should look like this:
Step Four: Cook the Tortillas
Time to cook the tortillas! As with the red lentil tortillas, I used a well-seasoned, cast-iron skillet for the cooking. If you do not use a nonstick pan, you will definitely need to add a spritz of nonstick spray or a swipe of oil before adding the batter.
Heat the skillet over medium heat. Once warm, add 1/3 cup (79 mL) of batter to the center of the pan (the recipe yields about 3 cups/710 ml of batter).
Before spreading the batter around the pan, let it sit for 5 to 10 seconds. This allows some of the batter to adhere to the pan, making it easier to spread the remaining batter. Use the back of a metal spoon to spread the batter into a 6.5- to 7-inch (16.25 to 17.5 cm) circle.
Cook the tortilla for about 2 to 2 and 1/2 minutes until the surface of the tortilla appears dry. Try sliding a spatula underneath the tortilla; if it will not glide under with ease, keep cooking until it does. Once it does, flip the tortilla. Let the other side cook for another minute or so, to set the other side.
Step Five: Cool the Tortillas
That’s it! Cool the tortillas on a wire rack and repeat with the remaining batter. If using a skillet (as opposed to a griddle) I recommend taking the skillet off of the heat source upon removing the tortilla, to prevent the skillet from becoming too hot.
Note that these tortillas are thicker than my red lentil tortillas, so they do not roll without breaking. However, they are flexible when they are warmed, so load them up with warm fillings for breakfast, lunch and dinner wraps, tacos or burritos.
Enjoy these hearty, delectable, nutritious tortillas, everyone! I can assure you, I will experiment with other legumes (and vegetables, too!), to create more grain-free tortillas, breads and flatbreads. Expect even more deliciousness in the days and weeks to come!
More Grain-Free & Vegan Tortillas to Love:
- 1-Ingredient Red Lentil Tortillas
- 2-Ingredient Coconut Flour Tortillas
- 2-Ingredient Chickpea Flour Tortillas
- 3-Ingredient Sweet Potato Tortillas
- Grain-Free Spinach Tortillas {2 ingredients}
- 1-Ingredient Split Pea Tortillas
1-Ingredient Black Bean Tortillas {Grain-Free, Vegan}
Equipment
- 1 large nonstick skillet
Ingredients
- 1 cup dried black beans, rinsed and drained
- water for soaking
- 1 1/2 cups water, (I use filtered tap water)
- Optional: 1/2 teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Place the rinsed beans in a medium mixing bowl or other container. Add enough water to cover the beans by at least 1 inch (2.5 cm). Let stand, at room temperature, for at least 12 hours. Drain and rinse the beans (discard soaking water).
- Add the drained, soaked beans, 1 1/2 cups water, and the optional salt to a blender (preferably a high-speed blender). Blend on HIGH speed until completely smooth (no tiny bumps) stopping once or twice to scrape down the sides of container. The batter will be thick (it looks like cement :). Scrape into a bowl.
- Heat a nonstick skillet (well-seasoned cast iron skillet is ideal), or a nonstick griddle, to medium heat (no hotter). (Note: If using a regular skillet—not nonstick—you will need to spray with nonstick cooking spray to prevent sticking).
- Once warm, add 1/3 cup (75 mL) of batter to the center of the pan (the recipe yields about 3 cups of batter). Wait 5 to 10 seconds (this allows some of the batter to set; it makes it easier to spread!), and the use a metal spoon to spread the batter into a 6-1/2 to 7-inch circle.
- Cook about 2 to 2 and 1/2 minutes until surface of tortilla appears dry. Slide a spatula underneath (if it will not slide under, it is not ready to flip; cook a bit longer) and flip. Cook about 1 minute longer to brown other side. Transfer to cooling rack and cool completely.
- Repeat with the remaining batter.
When I made them the first time, they turned out great. The 2nd and 3rd time were a disaster. I used a cast iron skillet and a portableinduction cook top. Don’t understand why it’s not working.
Hi Ed,
Oh no, so sorry you are having issues with the tortillas on your subsequent batches. Since your first batch was great, I’m wondering if you can explain what was a disaster second time around? I need some details in order to troubleshoot possible solutions.
Hi Camile, got a quick question for ya.
Recipe card does not give water amount but has amount, 11/2 cups in directions. When I tried to 3X the recipe, the water ration remained same at 1 1/2. Is this correct?
Thank you for your time and wonderful recipes!
Hi Robe! I’ve made some adjustments to the recipe card to clarify the water amounts. You can now get the doubled or tripled amounts of both beans and water when you click the 2x or 3x buttons. Thanks so much for pointing this out, as well as for the kind words. Cheers 🙂
Great recipe! I used red beans because that’s what I had on hand. Thanks for the detailed instructions. They came out just as pictured.
Fantastic, Ashley! I am so glad you made and enjoyed the tortillas 🙂
Could I put them in the oven instead of cooking non a skillet??
Hi Ali! I think you cold make that work! I would spread out into a circle on a parchment paper lined baking sheet. I would try a fairly high heat (like 400F/ 200C). Flip over halfway through. To make the flip easier: lift the parchment with the tortilla(s) off of the sheet and place another piece of parchment on the baking sheet. Flip over the sheet of parchment with the tortilla(s) on it (so the tortilla(s) are between the layers of parchment). Once cooked and cooled, peel off the parchment paper (you can reuse the paper). Cheers 🙂
Dear Camilla,
I love your recipes, and your exploration spirit!
I am a bit concerned about anti-nutrient and toxins naturally presents in legumes and usually eliminated through long time cooking. Is it relevanT here ?
Hi Mike,
The long cooking time needed for beans in most cases is for whole beans. Here, the beans are broken down into tiny particles (essentially you ar making bean flour, but with the addition of water to make it easier to blend). Each tiny particle of bean cooks very quickly, and thoroughly, especially when used in a batter that is spread very thinly. So the beans are thoroughly cooked 👍. Do be sure that the bean batter is entirely smooth (no random large bits of bean that may take longer to cook). If it helps to know, bean flours have been used in the Middle Eastern, Southeast Asian, and European cooking for centuries (e.g., In Burma to make Shan tofu (chickpea tofu), Italy and France to make foods such as panisse and panelle, and India to make everything from savory fritters to sweet fudge). Cheers 🙂
Lentils tortillas, almond flour tortillas and lentils rolls are amazing. I do love all your recipes. Thank you so much.
You are so welcome, Nora, and thank you!
An excellent recipe! Thank you very much!
You are very welcome, Ирина!
It is the perfect flourless tortilla! Easy to make, great taste and beautiful!
Whoohoo, so glad you like the tortillas, Léonie!
Came out great! Next time I am going to blend in some jalapeño to the batter. Thank you for such a cool new way to use dried beans!
So glad you like them, JJ!
There is no way these can stay together. I tried for the heck of it and I was right. Good thing I like black bean dip.
where is the binder?
Hi Gaye,
It sounds like you used canned beans, or some other kind of cooked beans (based on your bean dip reference). These need to be made with dried (raw, uncooked) beans in order to work. I hope that you will give them another try with the dried beans, they definietely work (I make them all the time).
I made this using pinto beans and added salt, cumin, onion powder and garlic powder. They turned out tasty and good enough to snack on. Thank you!!
That sounds delicious, Victoria! I’m so glad you like recipe and also made it your own 🙂
Hi! This recipe looks great. I have a flat top griddle on my stove. What temperature would you guess would be medium heat? It is well seasoned cast iron, so I think this will work much better and I could make multiple tortillas at one time.
Hi Lucy, a griddle is a great idea. I think 350F/180C is a good option for medium heat .
Can I use can black beans?
Hi Rachel,
Alas no, it has to be raw beans. The protein changes once the beans are cooked (like trying to use hard boiled eggs to make an omelette or cake batter).
I totally failed my first batch but I tried again and paid more attention to your instructions (I guess that’s why they are there!). They came out really good and are very flexible for wraps. I used some last night for dinner and again today for a lunch wrap. Thanks for this!
Can I use a food processor instead of a blender?
Hi Dana,
I am not sure if a food processor will be powerful enough to break down the beans. You could certainly try!
Thank you for the black bean tortilla recipe. It filled me up and left my blood sugar down low where it should be.
You are very welcome, Sage!
Hi! I’ve looked at a few of your bean tortilla recipes and didnt see one for pinto beans. Can I use pinto beans instead of black beans to make them?
Hi Jay! You sure can, pintos will work very well here. Kidney beans and white beans do not work well.
best torilla i ever had the black bean
Awesome, Jeremey, that is high praise!
I absolutely love butter beans, do you think they would work using those?
Or canned beans?
Love bread and wraps just trying to keep the calories down.
Thanks.
Hi Helen,
Ooh, yes, butter beans are wonderful. Sure, I think that would defitintely work in place of the black beans.
After you make this and they cool down do you think you could cut into triangles and cook in a low oven to make crunchy chips to dip?
Hi Kelly! Yes. I do it for my red lentil tortillas (here is the recipe: https://www.powerhungry.com/2018/05/red-lentil-tortilla-chips-grain-free-vegan/). Simply do the same but with the black bean tortillas 🙂
Hi
I don’t understand the instructions fully, the part where you talk about the ‘remaining’ 1-1/2 cups of water.
Sorry if I’m dumb but isn’t the point of draining beans that you get rid of the entire water? Or do you catch the water from the drained beans and add 1-1/2 cups of the drained water back to the soaked beans before you put them in the blender?
Thanks!
Hi Werner!
You are anything but dumb, I am sorry about the instructions being less than clear (my fault, not yours). I have gone back and added more detail to make the water additions more clear. You drain and rinse the beans after soaking (do not save the water). Then you blend the soaked beans with 1 and 1/2 cups water (fresh water, not soaking water) and optional salt.
These are amazing!! While I love black beans , chickpeas are my real jam so… i attempted this recipe with them. Another amazing variation. Worked perfectly!
Whoohoo! Sounds great, Susan. Chickpeas are very much my jam, too 😊
I love your site! Your recipes give me hope, I’m going to try them this week. I just wish your site had less pop-up ads!
Hi DN,
So happy to have you hear! Apologies for the ads, it’s how I support the site and keep it free for users 🙂
Hi I did the lentil beans recipe today I had brown Lentils at home and I enjoyed it today for breadfast with eggs sausages it was delicious thank you I will try the black beans too
Great, Nancy!
I added cumin and a touch of chili powder. So good!
These are addicting. I recommend making them after you have eaten, otherwise, you will eat them as soon as they are done.
:):):) LOL, I am right with you, Lily!
Hey Camilla! These are a staple in my diet now! I make them every other week and vary from black beans to pintos. Thank you!
My fav tortilla recipe! Grain-free tortillas are very hard to find, and don’t taste veery good either. These are great!
Thank you for this simple nutritious recipe. For people who don’t understand: dried beans can be ground into flour, it has been done in many cultures for centuries (like Myanmar, where my family comes from). Cooking bean flour is not the same as cooking whole dried beans because the bean has been broken up from the grinding process. This recipe pulverizes beans, too, but with water. So the generic advice from websites about cooking whole dried beans is not the same as cooking pulverized dried beans.
Love this recipe, made them tonight and loaded them up with mashed pinto beans, sweet potatoes and corn and other taco stuff. Fantastic tortillas, they held up to all my fillings and were so easy to make. I submitted this recipe and the photos of what I made for an assignment. I’m taking a professional plant based course from Rouxbe cooking school and we had the assignment to choose a legume and use it creatively two different ways. I did include your blog name as the source for the recipe. Hope my grade is a good as how these taste. These will definitely be in our monthly rotation along with your red lentil tortillas. Thank you so much for your hard work of testing and writing it all down for us.
Update, received a 100% grade on my assignment 👍🏼😀
whoo-hoo!!!!!!!!!!
Can you soak overnight in the fridge?
Hi Shane,
Yes, that works! I have done that before (once forgot about them for 2 days, came out great).
These, and the red lentil tortillas, are excellent! Really surprised at how good they are, and how easy to make. Fantastic 🙂
So glad that they worked well for you, Barsha!
Hi, can canned black beans be used with this recipe? Thanks, marise
Hi Marise,
No, they have to be raw beans for the recipe to work.
Having been both gluten free and vegan for 18 years, and having rejected all of the unhealthy gf flour substitutes, I am delighted to find your website. You are truly a breath of fresh air, very creative and innovative. I fancy myself rather creative in the kitchen, and I am ready to concede your superiority. I can’t wait to try some of your recipes and will buy your books.
Thanks.
Thank you so much for the kind and generous compliments, Lumi! So glad that our paths have crossed 😊
Having been both gluten free and vegan for 18 years, and having rejected all of the unhealthy gf flour substitutes, I am delighted to find your website. You are truly a breath of fresh air, very creative and innovative. I fancy myself rather creative in the kitchen, and I am ready to concede your superiority. I can’t wait to try some of your recipes and will buy your books.
Thanks.
Just got done blending in high speed Blendtec. Batter seems very runny. Any idea how to thicken before I try to cook these? Should I have added the water as needed?
Hi Kim,
Hmm, The batter should not be runny, it is definitely more on the fluffy, medium thickness side. I am wondering if perhaps too much water was added. That has happened with a few other people, that is, they did not drain the soaking water beforadding the remaining one and a half cups of water, or something to that effect. After the black beans are soaked, they are drained. The drained soaked beans (the 1 cup beans nearly double in volume) are blended with the remaining 1-1/2 cups water. That should not produce a runny batter. Might you have added more along the way (e. G adding 3-1/2 at the end of not draining the beans after soaking)?
A coffee grinder will mill almost any bean into a flour that can be made into tortillas, I’ve done white and butter beans in the past you can also do oat flour and rice flour but the rice meal is not that good for tortillas they are too hard
Thanks John, great tip!
@John what kind of coffee grinder to grind the beans?
@John, I assume you would have to increase the water if making the beans into a flour first to get it to the same consistency of the soaked beans.
I gave this recipe a go and I’ve had some issues with my attempt. Even after soaking overnight it was a bit of a problem for my blender to chew through which ended up with me switching to the food processor, and after cooking it still had a raw bean taste. Other than that it held together like a champ.
PS. There’s a typo with the intro to the recipe saying “red lentils” rather than “black beans”.
Hi Elizabeth,
Thanks for pointing out the error, I have fixed it.
I am sorry you had some issues with the batter and the results! Based on your feedback, I have added a note about using a regular blender (I used a high-speed blender). YOu can use a regular blender, but you will need to let it “rest” along the way to keep it from burning out. But keep blending and blending until the batter is super smooth. I suspect that that is what led to the uncooked bean flavor (i.e., larger piece of bean in the batter that remain uncooked). The batter should be so smooth that it is almost fluffy. Thanks Elizabeth!
Just curious. Is the short cooking time here enough to deal with the lectin issue with dried beans? I know that regular cooking of beans will deal with it but is this enough cooking in this recipe? If it is I will definitely be trying these.
Apologies, Lesley, my knowledge of lectins is too limited to know for certain.
I love these, thank you.
@Camilla, Ι am so glad I gave this recipe a try (several tries! my first ones stuck, but I kept going).They are so tasty and satisfying. thank you!
New follower and definitely look forward to try other recipes. Tried your black bean tortilla recipe last night for taco dinner and it was a big hit on the table. Thank you so much! You can also try with split green and split red lentils(orange) the same way. I put raw garlic and ginger at the time of blending for taste.
Excellent, thanks Pretti!
Do you think this recipe would work with pre-cooked, canned beans?
Hi Sheila,
No, it will definitely not work with cooked beans. 🙂
Black bean flour is available from Bob’s Red Mill. I’m curious to try making your tortillas with the flour. Unless you’ve already tried it!
Hi Deb! Yes, I am sure you can make tortillas with the black bean flour (you could use my chickpea flour tortillas recipe as a guideline)! That would save the step of waiting around for the beans to soak, and blending!
You are definitely a genius! I can’t wait to try this!. Thank you so much!
I am so glad you appreciate my wacky creations, Laura! 🙂
I’m confused. you said in the description 2 cup water and 1 cup beans and soak 12 hrs.
Recipe calls for 3 1/2c water, which is correct?
Hi Pat! Sorry that it is not making sense. The recipe calls for 3-1/2 cups of water, divided. In step one, you soak the beans in 2 cups of the water (this is enough to cover the beans). When you are done soaking, you drain the beans (end of step 1). In step 2, I instruct to blended the drained, soaked beans with the remaining 1-1/2 cups water and the salt (so 2 + 1-1/2 = 3-1/2). I hope that clarifies!
I tried something different. I took the dried beans and put them in the blender until it felt like a flour mixture. Transferred to a bowl and added 1 and 1/4 cups of water and let it sit for about 5 minutes until it thickened. Then took a 1/3 cup of the batter and made flatbread. It came out great. They were the size of a 4 inch pancake.
Ooooh! Peter, you wizard! I am going to have to follow your lead and give it a try, thank you for sharing!
“Heat the skillet over medium heat. Once warm, add 1/3 cup of batter to the center of the pan (the recipe yields about 3 cups of batter). before spreading the batter, let it sit for 5 to 10 minutes; this allows some of the batter to adhere to the pan, making it easier to spread the remaining batter. Use the back of a metal spoon to spread the batter into a 6.5- to 7-inch circle.” You have 5 to 10 seconds in the recipe section, but you may want to correct your blog portion to seconds instead of minutes.
Looks like a great treat! Cannot wait to try it!
Oh my goodness, Angela, thank you so much for catching that! That would give an entirely different meaning to BLACK bean tortillas! I have made the change. Thanks again! 🙂