Skillet Vegetarian Enchiladas are no-roll enchiladas packed with ALL the flavor and minimal effort. Sweet potatoes and black beans are skillet baked under smoky enchilada sauce and cheese. This one fulfills meatless cravings you didn't even know you had.
Skillet vegetarian enchiladas are fondly known as lazy enchiladas because there is no rolling required. Save time by not stuffing every last corn tortilla with enchilada filling. Instead enjoy the flavors and textures of stuffed enchiladas with less work. If you like sweet potatoes and black beans in my quinoa chili, you'll equally adore them in vegetarian enchiladas.
Skillet Veggie enchilada ingredients
Ingredient amounts are included in the printable recipe below.
olive oil - or any neutral-flavored cooking oil.
garlic cloves - I almost always recommend fresh garlic over powdered garlic. You can’t beat the aroma and flavor, especially in Mexican recipes.
red onion - These are my favorite of all onions, but feel free to use white onion, yellow onion, or green onion. Any will work fine for this recipe.
sweet potatoes - Vegetarian enchiladas are so delicious with sweet potatoes! One trick I like to do is soften the sweet potato in the microwave while it's whole and uncut. Just pierce the flesh with a knife and nuke them on HIGH for a few minutes until they've softened up.
black beans - I always recommend reduced-sodium beans so you can control the salt in the recipe. Also, save money and use higher quality ingredients by making pressure cooked black beans for this recipe. They take less than an hour and are hands-free.
corn tortillas - Use white or yellow corn tortillas for vegetarian enchiladas.
enchilada sauce - If you're up for an easy recipe with TONS of flavor and NOT a ton of salt, make my homemade enchilada sauce. You can use packaged sauce if you like, but that homemade stuff is off the hook delicious! It's what gives these vegetarian enchiladas that deep red color and flavor!
shredded cheese - Use your favorite shredded cheese blend for this recipe. Super flexible.
optional garnish - sour cream, cilantro, lime, avocado ranch, salsa
Sweet potato black bean enchiladas recipe steps
Instructions are included in the printable recipe below.
Step 1. Preheat oven to 375°F. Make the enchilada sauce or use your favorite packaged sauce.
Step 2. In a large, oven-safe skillet, sauté garlic and onion in olive oil on medium-high heat for a few minutes.
Step 3. Add sweet potatoes and continue cooking until fork-tender (about 5 min). Transfer veggies to a mixing bowl and set aside.
Step 4: In the warm skillet, layer enchilada ingredients, alternating between tortillas, sweet potatoes, black beans, corn, cheese, and enchilada sauce.
Step 5. Cover the skillet and bake 20 minutes. Then remove the lid and bake another 10 minutes until enchilada sauce is bubbly.
Serve warm. Garnish options: sour cream, lime, cilantro, avocado, salsa, avocado ranch.
What vegetables go in veggie enchiladas?
My recipe below is for a sweet potato black bean combination, but you can add any variety of vegetables to these skillet enchiladas. Just be sure the firmer vegetables get cooked soft in the skillet before baking the enchiladas to insure the right texture when served.
You can add onions, corn, bell pepper, broccoli, cauliflower, zucchini, butternut squash, mushrooms, sweet potatoes, potatoes, carrots, spinach, or kale.
Recipe Tips
Tip #1: Make my smoky scrumptious enchilada sauce a day or two in advance to cut steps on enchilada night. Sure, you can use packaged enchilada sauce, but we really really recommend the homemade sauce for skillet vegetarian enchiladas. Trust me, the extra 15 minutes is so worth it!
Tip #2: You can either layer the tortillas with the enchilada ingredients, or chop and scatter them with the other ingredients and skip the layering part.
Tip #3: If using canned black beans, use reduced-sodium option. Better yet, you can meal prep my Instant Pot Black Beans and save money.
Tip #4: You can pre-cook the sweet potatoes in the microwave to cut down the sauté time. Scrub, then pierce sweet potato, and cook on high in 2 minute intervals until soft.
Tip #5: Add other ingredients like your favorite vegetables, cooked rice, or cooked quinoa. The grain will soak up the sauce and can add great texture to the enchiladas.
Toppings for vegetarian enchiladas
- sour cream (or plain Greek yogurt)
- fresh cilantro
- a squeeze of fresh lime
- sliced avocado
- 5-Minute Blender Salsa Recipe
- Avocado Ranch Dressing
Mexican recipes we love
- Chipotle Copycat Cilantro Lime Brown Rice
- 5-Minute Restaurant Style Salsa
- Avocado Ranch Dressing
- Instant Pot Taco Pasta
- Easy Chicken Tortilla Soup
- Chicken Tacos with Peach or Mango Salsa
- Instant Pot Vegan Tortilla Soup
Skillet Vegetarian Enchiladas
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons Olive Oil
- 3 cloves Garlic, minced
- ½ medium Red Onion, diced
- 1 large Sweet Potato, peeled and ½" diced (about 2 cups)
- 1 (15 oz can) Black Beans, rinsed and drained
- 1 cup Corn
- 6-10 Corn Tortillas
- 3 cups Enchilada Sauce, homemade or packaged
- 1 cup Shredded Cheese
Equipment
- 12” cast iron skillet or preferred skillet
- serving spoon
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375°F. Make the enchilada sauce or use your favorite packaged sauce.
- In a large oven-safe skillet, heat OLIVE OIL over medium-high heat; sauté GARLIC and ONION a few minutes until tender, stirring as needed.
- Add diced SWEET POTATOES and continue sautéeing until they're almost fork-tender (about 5 min). *See recipe footnote
- Transfer cooked veggies to a bowl and set aside.
- In the warm skillet, layer enchilada ingredients, alternating between TORTILLAS, SWEET POTATOES, BLACK BEANS, CORN, CHEESE, and ENCHILADA SAUCE. *See recipe footnote
- Cover the skillet and bake 20 minutes. Uncover and bake enchiladas another 10 minutes until the sauce is bubbling around the edges.
- Serve warm. Garnish options: sour cream, lime, cilantro, avocado, salsa, avocado ranch. *See recipe footnotes for reheat instructions
Traci's Recipe Tips
Nutrition
Nutrition data provided as courtesy estimates using unbranded ingredients from a nutrition database. Please consult preferred resource for precise data.
Cassandra says
This was delicious! I made it per recipe with the homemade enchilada sauce. This dish is a bit on the sweet side given it is made with sweet potato and corn, so I'd recommend leaving the brown sugar out of the sauce recipe if you don't want it too sweet. I left it out and am glad I did. I will definitely be making this again, thank you for the recipe !!
The Kitchen Girl says
Glad you enjoyed it, Cassandra. The 2 teaspoons of sugar in the enchilada sauce is more for knocking down bitterness than making it noticeably sweet, but ya, totally optional. Thanks for the review 🙂
Emily Ratliff says
I was skeptical when paring sweet potatoes with enchilada, but this recipe is fantastic! My 11 year old daughter even asked for seconds. I agree that the homemade enchilada sauce is key to this recipe. A week after making this for the first time, a friend (who happens to be a vegetarian) of mine broke her leg. I made this recipe for her and she loved it as much as we did!
The Kitchen Girl says
This is just music to my ears, girl. I'm so glad you're enjoying it. This enchiladas recipe is definitely unique, so I'm super glad you gave it a go. Thank you for the feedback
SHANIKA says
This Veggie Enchilada recipe looks so great! I love how customizable it is and that you can mix and match so many different ingredients!
Traci Antonovich says
Thanks, Shanika! We love that about it too 🙂
Marie-Charlotte Chatelain says
I have never had or heard of no-roll enchiladas but this is sure a recipe that speaks to me! I love keeping things simple and with those bold flavors, this dish can only be a win!
Traci Antonovich says
Thanks, Marie-Charlotte! Yes, easy enchiladas are always a winner in our house too 🙂
Irina says
Made it last night! The recipe was really easy to follow. The meal was just DELICIOUS! Surely, we will repeat this experience again!
Traci Antonovich says
Awesome, Irina! So glad to hear it! I'm glad you find the recipe easy too 🙂
Pam Greer says
I love that these are no roll!!! Such a time saver!! These are going into regular rotation at our house!
Traci Antonovich says
Yay, so glad to hear it, Pam! Thanks so much 🙂
Vicky says
You offer some great options for filling these enchiladas. I love the fact that they are no roll as this makes the whole meal even easier.
Traci Antonovich says
Thanks, Vicky...yes! We love our enchiladas to be easy 🙂
Sarah P says
This was SO GOOD! Thank you! I followed the recipe exactly including the homemade enchilada sauce. This did NOT take me 30 min... more like 2 hours haha 🙂 Next time I will only use 1 cup of cheese because it was honestly so good without cheese at all.
Traci Antonovich says
Yay Sarah! I'm so glad to hear that this was a hit for you! Yeah, the enchilada sauce prep time is not included in the time for the enchiladas because it's a separate recipe. Also, I've edited it to be a 60-minute recipe. And so true about the cheese! I've changed the recipe wording to reflect that. Thanks for the feedback on all fronts...I really appreciate it! oxo
Bintu | Recipes From A Pantry says
This recipe would certainly go down well in my house - it is definitely something we would all enjoy which can be rare! This looks so tasty, I'm adding it to my list of recipes to try
Traci Antonovich says
Oh I love hearing that, Bintu! Hope you get to try it out and love it like we do! 🙂
Kiki Johnson says
A great, affordable meal idea for a Mexican-themed dinner! Perfect for a big crowd! I love, that you chopped up the tortillas. Makes it so much easier to serve!
Traci Antonovich says
Thanks Kiki! Yes, you're so right...big crowd pleaser for the people AND the cook 🙂
Beth says
Oh man! This looks thoroughly delicious! I am a huge Tex-Mex fan and I love how you made them Vegetarian!
Traci Antonovich says
Thanks Beth! I love all enchiladas, but sometimes, you just need all the veggies 🙂
Ben Myhre says
The combo DOES rock and it really makes for a great vegetarian combination. This recipe looks fabulous!
Traci Antonovich says
Thanks so much, Ben! Love hearing all the kind words...day made! 🙂