These Mexican-inspired vegan quesadillas with black beans are perfect for lunch, dinner, a side dish, or a filling snack! The recipe is gluten-free, grain-free, dairy-free, nut-free, and super easy to make.
Cheesy Vegan Black Bean Quesadillas
Serve me some good vegan quesadillas, and we are friends, lol. Seriously, quesadillas are life! I was addicted to cheese before I went vegan, and that’s why I get so excited when I create a new vegan cheesy deliciousness. And this is one of them!
You have to give this recipe a try if you don’t believe me, it’s really that good. These black bean quesadillas are dairy-free, gluten-free, nut-free, and everything is homemade from scratch, even the vegan cheese, and the tortillas. No strange ingredients which you can’t pronounce!
Filling ingredients for Mexican-inspired vegan quesadillas
The great thing about quesadillas is that you can get creative. You can make them with vegan cheese only, or you can also add your favorite veggies. I love to add fried veggies, and my favorite ones are:
- Peppers
- Mushrooms
- Corn
- Onion
- Garlic
I also love to add legumes such as black beans (or kidney beans) because they are healthy and contain plant-based protein.
Which vegan cheese?
As mentioned before, I normally make everything from scratch because of two reasons. Either I can’t buy great vegan products in the store, or I don’t want to buy them because they contain lots of unhealthy ingredients. Therefore, I used my popular easy vegan cheese sauce for this recipe.
I added 1 teaspoon of psyllium husk powder, which helps to make the sauce thicker and hold the tortilla together. You can leave out the psyllium husk powder if you don’t have it, the cheese sauce will still taste great, but it will be runnier.
My vegan cheese sauce recipe is ready in 3 minutes, it’s furthermore nut-free (no cashews!), soy-free, and tasty.
However, if you don’t want to make your own vegan cheese sauce, you can simply use your favorite store-bought vegan cheese. I would recommend vegan mozzarella or vegan cheddar cheese. I also shared a firm vegan cheese on my blog before, maybe you want to check it out.
How to make vegan quesadillas
When I crave some delicious cheesy “finger food” I’ll make these vegan quesadillas because the recipe is so simple. You just need to fry and season your favorite veggies, make the cheese sauce (or use store-bought cheese), and have your tortillas ready.
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Heat 1/2 tbsp oil in a pan, add 1 tbsp soy sauce, onion, garlic, pepper, and mushrooms, and sauté over medium heat for 3-4 minutes. Add the corn, black beans, and spice mix and fry for a further 3-4 minutes.
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Make a batch of my vegan cheese sauce and spread some of it in an even layer on one tortilla. You can use any other vegan cheese of choice.
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Add a layer of the veggie mixture (about 2-4 tbsp) and place another tortilla on top.
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Transfer to a (lightly oiled) skillet and cook for about 2-3 minutes. Brush the top with a little oil, flip, and cook from the other side until both sides are nicely browned and toasty.
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Repeat steps for the remaining tortillas. Cut into 4 pieces and enjoy hot!
I make my own gluten-free tortillas with chickpea flour and tapioca flour because I cannot buy gluten-free tortillas in the store. In my opinion, they taste even better than wheat tortillas, but you can, of course, use any store-bought tortillas of choice.
How To Serve
- Serve on its own as a delicious quick snack.
- Serve as a side with vegan tomato soup, vegan broccoli cheese soup, vegan tortilla soup, Mexican pinto bean soup, or roasted cauliflower soup.
- Enjoy with different dips and spreads like refried beans, onion dip, vegan spinach artichoke dip, or this Yum Yum sauce.
-  Serve with this Mexican avocado salad or a vegan Buddha bowl.
FAQs and Tips
- Can I use different veggies? Even though these are Mexican-inspired vegan quesadillas, you can use your favorite vegetables. Some examples are roasted cauliflower, zucchini, peppers, tomatoes, sweet potato, and eggplant.
- I used gluten-free soy sauce, but feel free to use tamari or coconut aminos.
- You can use canned black beans or cook them from dry. Also, I used fresh corn from the cob, but frozen corn or canned corn is fine too.
- Store leftovers covered in the fridge for up to 3 days. Reheat in a skillet with a lid. Freezing should work fine too.
Should you give this vegan quesadilla recipe a try, please leave a comment below, and don’t forget to tag me in re-creations on your Instagram or Facebook post with @elavegan and #elavegan because I love to see them.
If you like vegan cheese dishes, definitely also check out the following dairy-free, gluten-free recipes:
- Vegan Grilled Cheese Sandwiches
- Cheesy Rice And Bean Casserole
- Vegan Calzone Recipe
- Crispy Spinach Tacos
- Healthy Vegan Mac And Cheese

Vegan Quesadillas
Ingredients
- 6 tortillas (I used homemade GF)
- 1/2 onion chopped
- 2 cloves of garlic minced
- 1 bell pepper chopped
- 1 cup fresh mushrooms sliced
- 2/3 cup black beans cooked from dry, or canned
- 1/2 cup corn fresh, frozen, or canned
- 1 tbsp oil divided
- 1 tbsp tamari or coconut aminos
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 1/2 tsp cumin powder
- 1/2 tsp (ground) oregano
- 1/4 tsp smoked paprika
- 1/3 tsp red pepper flakes (optional)
- Salt and pepper to taste
- 1 batch vegan cheese sauce (see notes)
Instructions
- You can watch the video in the post for visual instructions.Heat 1/2 tbsp oil in a pan, add 1 tbsp soy sauce, onion, garlic, pepper, and mushrooms. Fry over medium heat for 3-4 minutes. Add the corn, black beans, and spice mix, and fry for a further 3-4 minutes.
- Make a batch of my easy vegan cheese sauce and spread some of it in an even layer on one tortilla. You can use any other vegan cheese of choice.
- Add a layer of the veggie mixture (about 2-4 tbsp) and place another tortilla on top.
- Transfer to a (lightly oiled) skillet and cook for about 2-3 minutes. Brush the top lightly with some oil, flip and cook from the other side until both sides are nicely browned and toasty.
- Repeat steps for the remaining tortillas. Cut into 4 pieces and enjoy hot!
Notes
- Vegan cheese sauce: I added 1 teaspoon of psyllium husk powder which helps to make the sauce thicker and hold the tortilla together. You can leave out the psyllium husk powder if you don't have it, the cheese sauce will still taste great.
- Recipe serves 6. Nutrition facts are for one serving.
Nutrition information is an estimate and has been calculated automatically
Made these tonight. Absolutely delicious! Will definitely make them again. Big fan of your site. 🙂
So glad you like my recipes, Carolyn. 🙂
Didn’t have mushrooms but my whole family (including my omni husband) loved these!
That’s so good to hear, Mary! Thanks so much for your great feedback. 🙂
Made this last night for dinner and it was absolutely delicious! My boys said it’s the best thing I have made lol. Definitely will be making this a lot more. Thanks for such a great and easy recipe!!
Aww, that’s awesome, Jerinae! I am so glad it was a hit! 🙂
Fantastic! Every recipe of yours that I try is soooooooooooo amazing! Thank you for creating and posting your food art! 🙂
Hi Sheryl, thanks so much for your amazing feedback, I appreciate it! 🙂
This was SO GOOD! I made these for meal prepping and I’m already looking forward to tonight so I can have more! I think I’ll just heat them up in the oven 🙂
PS I blended the cheese sauce before heating it up because I couldn’t break up the lumps with a whisk, and it came out super smooth & yummy!
So glad it turned out delicious! Thanks for your feedback, Manon. 🙂
These were so delicious, and so easy to put together. Thank you for the awesome recipe!
You are very welcome, Ioleen! Glad they turned out delicious. 🙂
These are on standard rotation at our home and I am always so happy when I make them. The black bean/mushroom combo is so delicious and fills any craving for something savory and filling. I add a few handfuls of chopped spinach at the end to get extra veggies in. If you have time for homemade guac that would be lovely with these. The hardest part is flipping them but I always celebrate when I land one perfectly! The filling is great to have extra of in to make more quesadillas during the week or top a baked potato with. Outstanding recipe. Thank you, Ela!
Aww, that’s awesome, Denise! I am so glad you love them.
Thanks for your great feedback. 🙂
My husband and I love this flavor profile, and I don’t think I’ve tried a better nacho ‘cheese’! I love this and will add it to my arsenal of plant-based recipes. Thank you Ella
Awesome! I am so glad you love it, Sandy. Thanks for your feedback! 🙂