Skip the store-bought variety and make your own Freezer Friendly Beef and Bean Burritos at home. A far tastier and much more wholesome choice.
I love it when I’m on the ball. When I plan ahead, have that list ready on Saturday to do the big grocery haul, remember to pick up every item I need for my meticulously planned dinner menus for the week, and get some prep out of the way. Yeah, just love that.
Unfortunately, those times have been few and far between lately. That’s where recipes like this come in.
The next time you’re in one of those Marie-Kondo-I’m-going-to-tackle-my closets-and-the-world kind of moods, it’s the perfect day to add the task of making these delicious Freezer Friendly Beef and Bean Burritos to your to-do list. That way when all heck breaks loose, as it seems to do so frequently, you’ll have a quick and easy meal in minutes.
If you’ve got teenagers in the house, I guarantee you’ll be happy to have these on hand.
The slightly saucy, deliciously seasoned ground beef filling is a snap to make and is layered on flour tortillas with both refried and whole pinto beans and plenty of shredded Jack and sharp cheddar cheese.
There are some dos and dont’s for success when preparing frozen burritos.
How to Make Freezer Friendly Beef and Bean Burritos
Use room temperature flour tortillas since chilled tortillas have a tendency to crack. If you are pulling the tortillas from the fridge, microwave a stack of 8 to 10 tortillas on a microwave-safe plate for about 30 seconds to warm them slightly.
Allow the meat mixture to cool slightly before filling the tortillas. If the mixture is too hot, it can result in a soggy tortilla. First layer on a mixture of refried beans combined with a can of rinsed and drained whole pinto beans and then some of the ground beef mixture (see the recipe card below for all the details).
I always have Monterey Jack and sharp cheddar cheese on hand so that’s what I use most often but use what you love. Get creative! Adjust the ingredients to suit your family’s tastes. Add a diced jalapeno or diced green chiles to the ground beef mixture. Throw in some diced red bell pepper, frozen corn and pepper Jack cheese for a Tex-Mex flair.
Be sure to tuck the edges of the flour tortilla in over the filling and roll the burritos tightly to form a neat package so the ingredients won’t spill out when it is heated.
This recipe will make 8 to 10 burritos, depending on how beefy you want them.
Double wrap them first in wax paper and then foil to avoid freezer burn. This is an important step if you want to freeze them for any length of time.
Use a permanent marker to label them individually with the date or place them in a freezer safe plastic storage bag and label the bag with the date and contents. The frozen burritos will stay fresh for up to 3 months.
How to Heat Freezer Friendly Beef and Bean Burritos
These burritos can be heated straight from the freezer in the microwave or a conventional oven.
To heat them quickly in the microwave, remove the foil and wax paper from one burrito and wrap it in a paper towel. Cook for 2 minutes and then flip the burrito and cook for an additional 30 to 45 seconds, or until heated through. Allow the heated burrito to sit for 20 seconds or so before serving. When using the microwave you should reheat them one at a time for the best result.
If you’d like to heat a batch of them all at once, this can be done best in a conventional oven. Remove the wax paper and foil and then re-wrap the burritos in the foil (discarding the wax paper). Place as many as you need on a baking sheet and bake them for about 45 minutes. The time can vary depending on how full you’ve made them. Flip them about half way through the cooking time. The tortillas will toast up a little and they will cook up perfectly.
Teenage food at its best!
Freezer Friendly Beef and Bean Burritos
Ingredients
- 1 ½ pounds ground beef
- ½ cup diced yellow onion
- 8 ounce can tomato sauce
- 2 teaspoons Homemade Taco Seasoning Mix
- a few generous shakes of your favorite hot sauce, (we love Choluha Chipotle flavor)
- 16 ounce can refried beans
- 16 ounce can pinto beans,, rinsed and drained
- 1 cup shredded sharp cheddar
- 1 cup shredded Monterey Jack cheese
- 8 to 10 (10″) burrito size flour tortillas
Instructions
- Coat a large non-stick skillet with non-stick cooking spay and place it over MEDIUM heat. Add the ground beef and onion and cook, stirring to break up the ground beef, until the beef is thoroughly cooked and no pink remains. Drain the grease from the skillet and return it to the heat. Add the tomato sauce, taco seasoning and a some generous shakes of your favorite hot sauce (we love Choluha Chipotle flavor). Reduce heat to LOW and simmer for 2 or 3 minutes to combine the flavors. Remove the skillet from the heat and allow the mixture to cool slightly.
- Meanwhile, combine the refried beans and pinto beans in a medium mixing bowl. Set aside.
To assemble the burritos:
- Layer the tortillas with bean mixture, beef mixture and shredded cheese. Fold the ends of the tortilla over the filling and then roll up tightly.
- Securely wrap the burritos in a sheet of wax paper and then in a sheet of foil. Use a permanent marker to label them individually with the date or place them in a freezer safe plastic storage bag and label the bag with the date and contents.
- The frozen burritos will stay fresh for up to 3 months.
Heating the burritos:
- The burritos can be heated from the frozen state individually in your microwave or heat a batch in your conventional oven.
- Microwave method:
- Remove foil and waxed paper. Wrap one frozen burrito in a paper towel and place it on a microwave-safe plate. Microwave on high for 2 minutes. Flip the burrito over and cook for an additional 30 to 45 seconds or until heated through. Let stand for 20 seconds and then devour!
- Conventional oven method:
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Remove foil and wax paper from burritos you are reheating. Use the same foil to re-wrap the burritos (without the wax paper). Place foil-wrapped burritos on a baking sheet and bake for 45 minutes or until heated through, flipping half way through the cooking time.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated using generic ingredients, and is an estimate not a guarantee. For more accurate results, please refer to the labels on your ingredients at home.
Absolutely delicious. Easy to prepare. Great to have on hand for a quick, hearty meal. So much healthier and tastier than store-bought frozen beef and bean burritos. I made 8 burritos from one recipe so each burritos was full of flavorful beef and beans. I will make sure to always have a few in the freezer!
Yay! So glad the recipe worked out so well for you. 🙂
Have you ever tried sneaking any veggies in these? What veggies? Did it work? I hat were the process and method?
Veggies would be great. Just sauté your veggies of choice and mix them in with the cooked beef. I think zucchini, bell pepper, corn, spinach, and/or mushrooms would all be delish!