Burrito Pie is perfect for Cinco de Mayo (or any other day)

I’m posting this in anticipation of Cinco de Mayo, Tuesday, May 5, but really, Burrito Pie is one of those meals that works year-round. I make both meat and vegetarian versions to suit individual preferences, so you can take these recipes and adjust as preferred.

How is Burrito Pie different from a regular burrito?

Besides combining two disparate words (i.e. Burrito + Pie), there isn’t much difference. A burrito is a dish in Mexican and Tex-Mex cuisine consisting of a flour tortilla wrapped into a sealed tubular shape around various ingredients. According to Wikipedia, the word burrito means “little donkey” in Spanish, being the diminutive form of burro, or donkey. The name burrito, as applied to the dish, possibly derives from the tendency for burritos to contain a lot of different ingredients, similar to a donkey carrying a lot.

In the case of Burrito Pie, all the ingredients of a burrito are laid out in a baking dish and cooked together.

The only other distinction between the two is that I find making Burrito Pie much easier than making individual burritos.

BONUS: Burrito Pie is very  leftover friendly!

Each version of this is enough to fill an 8×8 baking pan. That may seem small, but it is very filling! Feeding a crowd? Just double the ingredients and use a 9×13 pan.

How to make Burrito Pie

Make the filling

In a skillet, brown a pound of ground beef. Once cooked through, add water, taco seasoning and salsa. Cook on low heat until thick, about 10 minutes. Remove from heat.

Vegetarian filling

Place black beans, salsa and seasoning in a microwave safe bowl. Cover and microwave on high for 2-3 minutes, until beans start to “pop.”

Stir to make a semi-thick mixture.

Assemble the pie

Line an 8×8 pan with parchment paper. For the first layer, use 4-5 corn tortillas (depending on the size of tortillas). Spread a thin layer of refried beans on each tortilla and place bean side down in the pan (this may seem counterintuitive, but it works).

Use enough tortillas to form a complete first layer in the pan.

Then, add about half the filling and spread evenly to fill the pan.

Add one third of the cheese in a layer over the filling.

Repeat with another layer of “beany” tortilla, filling and cheese.

Make another layer of bean tortillas, then finish with the remaining cheese.

In all, you’ll end up with 2 layers of meat between 3 tortilla layers.

Bake the Burrito Pie

This can easily be assembled ahead of time and baked when you are ready.

If you’re baking right away, only 20-30 minutes of baking time is required, until the cheese is slightly browned and bubbly.

If you’ve assembled this ahead of time and placed it in the refrigerator, add another 10-15 minutes of cooking time.

Serve

Notice that this recipe concentrates on the protein and cheese parts of a burrito; in other words, a typical burrito. For some, that’s enough. But I like to power up the nutrition with a few veggies as well. I don’t bake those in, rather, I serve them on the side.

Think chopped tomato, shredded lettuce, sliced avocado, etc.

And, with either version, condiments! Sour cream and salsa, for sure! Maybe even some guacamole. You do you. 😀

I’m going to bet that once you give this larger version of a “little burro” a try, it’ll become a regular part of your meal rotation.

Print Recipe

5 from 1 vote

Burrito Pie

A family favorite meal!

Prep Time30 mins

Cook Time30 mins

Total Time1 hr

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: Mexican

Servings: 6

Calories: 427kcal

Author: Sula

Ingredients

• 1 LB ground beef *see vegetarian option in notes
• ¾ cup salsa
• 2 TB taco seasoning
• ¼ cup water
• 15 corn tortillas approximately
• 1 can refried beans
• 2 cups shredded cheese Mexican or cheddar

Instructions

• In a large skillet, cook the beef on medium heat until browned through. Add salsa and taco seasoning, reduce heat to low. Cook for 10-15 minutes, or until heated through and liquid is reduced.
• Preheat oven to 350F.
• Line a 8×8 baking pan with parchment paper. Spread about 2-3 tablespoons of refried beans on a tortilla, then place this bean side down in one corner of the lined pan. Repeat with 3-4 more tortillas to completely layer the pan.
• Add half of the meat mixture to the pan and spread out evenly to fill the pan.
• Sprinkle with one third of the cheese.
• Make another layer of bean tortillas, meat and cheese.
• Make a final layer of bean tortillas then finish the last third with cheese.
• Bake at 350F for 20-30 minutes, until cheese is light brown and bubbly.

Notes

For vegetarian filling, rinse and drain a can of black beans. Place in a bowl with salsa and taco seasoning and stir. Microwave, covered, for 2-3 minutes, until beans begin to pop. Stir. The mixture should be somewhat thick and spreadable. If still loose or watery, microwave a little more and stir. Use this mixture to replace the meat filling in the layers.

Nutrition

Calories: 427kcal | Carbohydrates: 33g | Protein: 27g | Fat: 22g | Saturated Fat: 10g | Cholesterol: 81mg | Sodium: 611mg | Potassium: 465mg | Fiber: 5g | Sugar: 2g | Vitamin A: 487IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 262mg | Iron: 3mg

Nutrition values are estimates only, using online calculators. Please verify using your own data.

Another meal idea

If you loved this meal, try some Jalapeno Popper Hasselback Chicken. It’s a whole new flavor profile!!!