One Pot Quinoa Taco Casserole
Updated Aug 22, 2024
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One Pot Quinoa Taco Casserole is a dish full of hearty ingredients that come together to create the perfect dinner. This recipe is simple and easy to make on a busy night!
Who doesn’t love a one-pot recipe? They are easy to make, full of flavor, and don’t take a lot of time! This one pot quinoa casserole is no exception. The vegetable broth cooks the quinoa, adding a deep, savory taste to the dish. Mixed with corn, beans, tomatoes, bell pepper, and onion, there is a wide variety of textures and flavors that pair together wonderfully.
This dish has a warm, earthy flavor that goes well with tacos or can be eaten with tortilla chips. Once you try it, quinoa taco casserole is sure to become a go-to recipe in your home!
Table of Contents
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Everything is cooked all in one pot, making the dish easy to cook and clean up.
- The savory flavors blend together well for a delightful, hearty casserole.
- You can use the casserole as a filling, topping, or eat on its own.
Recipe Ingredients
- Quinoa—This will be the hearty base for your casserole.
- Vegetable Broth—To cook the quinoa and add a savory flavor to the dish.
- Pinto Beans—Drained and rinsed.
- Diced Tomatoes—Canned, but not drained! The juice adds a nice flavor.
- Corn—To add a hint of sweetness to round out all the flavors.
- Onion—Finely chopped. We usually use a white onion, but a yellow one will work too.
- Bell Pepper—Chopped. Any color is fine, we like to use orange or yellow.
- Olive Oil—To cook your onion and pepper.
- Spices—A savory and smokey blend of chili powder and cumin.
- Salt and Pepper—Added to taste.
- Avocado—Diced. This goes great on top of your casserole!
- Lime Juice—Freshly squeezed.
- Cilantro—Finely chopped.
See the recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities.
How to Make One Pot Quinoa Taco Casserole
Step #1. In a large pan, add the oil, onion, and bell peppers. Cook until the vegetables start to soften.
Step #2. Add the quinoa, broth, beans, tomatoes, corn, and spices. Stir well to combine.
Step #3. Cover and continue to cook over medium high heat until the quinoa is cooked, stirring occasionally.
Step #4. Remove from the heat and add the avocado, lime juice, and cilantro. Adjust the salt and pepper to taste. Stir to combine. Serve and enjoy!
Recipe Faqs
Yes, it is always a good idea to wash quinoa before cooking, because it is naturally coated in a substance called saponin that has a slightly soapy and unpleasant flavor that can affect your dish. Since the quinoa kernels are very small, pour the quinoa into a small strainer and rinse with cold water thoroughly for a few minutes. If your strainer is too big, you can try laying cheesecloth on the bottom before adding the quinoa. Some packages of quinoa will say it is prewashed, but you can always wash it again just to be sure!
Absolutely! You can use fresh, canned, or frozen corn in this recipe. The key is to make sure there is no excess liquid or moisture going into the dish. So, if you use frozen corn you will need to allow it to thaw and pat it dry before you use it in the recipe. Likewise, if you use canned corn you will have to drain it first. This will ensure that the consistency of the casserole does not change.
As the quinoa cooks, it will soak up most of the liquid in the pan. It can take about 20-25 minutes for it to fully cook and thicken, so keep stirring occasionally! Be sure to cover the pan immediately after you stir for the quickest results. The casserole should not be runny or watery. If that is the case, you may need to cook it a little bit longer on the stove for the liquid to evaporate.
How to Serve and Store One Pot Quinoa Taco Casserole
There are so many great ways you can serve this one pot dish! Although this dish tastes great on its own, you can add some shredded cheese, sour cream or guacamole to top it off. If you want to switch things up, try using your one pot taco casserole as a taco filling, in taco salad, on top of baked potatoes, or even as a dip with homemade tortilla chips.
If you have any leftovers, allow them to come to room temperature before transferring to an airtight container. The taco casserole can be stored in the fridge for about 3-5 days. To reheat your food, place a serving onto a plate, cover, and microwave for 45 seconds at a time until warm.
Expert Tips
- This recipe is vegetarian but can easily be made with any type of ground meat. Cook it separately ahead of time, then add it to your dish with the rest of ingredients as they cook.
- Any type of quinoa such as red or white, as well as any kind of beans will work in this recipe. Customize it to you!
- If you love heat, you can add a few chopped jalapenos or red pepper flakes for some spice!
- You will want to drain the pinto beans but not the diced tomatoes. The juice from the diced tomatoes adds some extra flavor to the casserole.
- If you don’t have any fresh lemons then you can use bottled lemon juice; however, the flavor will not be quite as strong.
More Vegetarian Recipes To Consider
Pasta Dishes
Easy Slow Cooker Vegetable Lasagna
Pasta Dishes
Pumpkin Alfredo
Soups, Stews & Chowders
Homemade Butternut Squash Soup
Salads
Caprese Salad
Did you make this recipe? Leave a ⭐️ review and share it on Instagram, Facebook, or Pinterest!
Healthy One Pot Quinoa Taco Casserole
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1/2 cup finely chopped onion
- 1 cup chopped sweet bell pepper
- 1 cup quinoa, rinsed
- 1 1/2 cups vegetable broth
- 1 can pinto beans, drained and rinsed (15-ounce)
- 1 can diced tomatoes, with the juice (14.5 oz)
- 1 cup corn kernels
- 2 teaspoon chili powder
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- 1 avocado peeled and diced
- Juice of 1 lime
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro leaves
Instructions
- In a large skillet add the oil, onion, and bell peppers. Cook over medium high heat until the vegetables start to soften, about 5 minutes.
- Add the quinoa, broth, beans, tomatoes, corn, chili powder, cumin, and salt and pepper. Stir well to combine.
- Cover and continue to cook over medium high heat until the quinoa us cooked, stirring occasionally, about 20 minutes.
- Remove from the heat and add the avocado, lime juice, and cilantro. Adjust the salt and pepper to taste. Stir to combine and serve right away.
- You can serve this dish its own just as it is but it’s also excellent with a little cheese and sour cream on top, used as a taco filling, on top of baked potatoes, in taco salad, or even to dip tortilla chips in.
My husband is not a fan of much but cleared the pan of this meal. He is going to enjoy many of Melissa’s creations. I have a notebook printed with recipes from her collection online. Thanks, Melissa for making me feel like I can make enjoyable meals for my family that are healthy.
I love that so much! Thank you for taking the time to share your success with me!
Such a flavorful meal! I used diced tomatoes with hot peppers to spice it up a bit. Very tasty!
Ohhh that’s a great addition! Thank you for sharing!
FANTASTIC RECIPE, Melissa! We love this dish so much—we eat it weekly!! ❤️
Made this several times now, always really enjoy it!
So great to hear!!
love this!!! yum
Not always huge quinoa fans, but this was delicious! Quick & easy, too.
I feel the same way but with all that flavor in there with it, it’s great! Thanks for leaving a great review.
Hey this is really good even when you don’t have avocado, cilantro or chili powder. Threw in a hodpodge of powders(ancho, pasilla, chimayo chilis), oregano and garlic powder. Forgot the lime. DRATS! So I compensated by plenty of cheddar cheese and sour cream! Hit the spot! Thanks!!