Making an amazing dish from canned black beans is very simple and this easy Cuban black beans recipe will prove that. These seasoned black beans with tomatoes have so much flavor and make such an amazing meatless meal or side dish that you can be proud of!

I have been making this simple black bean recipe for as long as I can remember because it is the perfect easy pantry meal when I am short on time. This recipe is perfect for any busy family.

If you want to cook your black beans from scratch and use dried beans, that will work fine too. You would just want to cook your black beans until just tender and then follow the steps in this recipe once that is done.

Now let me show you how easy it is to make!

What You Need

This recipe is all about adding seasonings and the flavor you are adding to those canned black beans.

Beans

Diced tomatoes. The tomatoes help make the brothy sauce the black beans sit in.
Red bell pepper. This is the veggie bite in this black bean recipe
Canned black beans: rinsed and drained
Water. This is to thin out the sauce a bit. You want a nice delicious broth for the black beans to sit in.
Olive oil.

Seasonings

Tomato paste. I like buying tomato paste in a tube so I can refrigerate what I don't use.
Cilantro. I like to use fresh cilantro for this recipe. If you do not have that, you can easily just leave it out.
Cumin. This adds a wonderful earthy flavor to the beans.
Paprika. This is sweet paprika.
Garlic. This adds so much flavor!
Kosher salt
Oregano (optional)

It may seem like a lot of additions to the canned black beans but the majority of these spices are things most people have in their pantry. Trust me when I say, it is really good.

The Steps

Drain and rinse the beans: For this recipe or any recipe that uses canned beans, you want to make sure that you pour your beans into a colander and rinse them. You need to rinse the beans under cold water until the liquid turns clear coming off the beans. The reason for this is the canned beans have a thick brine on them and it is not at all what you want in your recipe.
Add the black beans to the pot: Add the rinsed and drained black beans to a pot with the red pepper, tomatoes, and olive oil.
Add the Seasoning: Once you have added the beans to the pot, cooking the beans will take just minutes and it is just about adding flavor and gently heating them on the stovetop. Really easy!

Serving Ideas

Some more ways to use these canned seasoned black beans are:

Add these black beans to sheet pan loaded nachos or to these tostones (from Whole30's site)
These jazzed-up canned black beans are great served over basmati rice, easy Spanish rice, and with my cumin and lime coleslaw!
These black beans would also make a great addition/side to pulled pork, baked BBQ chicken or chicken in cast iron.
They even would make a great filling for stove-top quesadillas, air fryer quesadillas, and rice and bean burritos!

This easy black beans recipe makes a great vegetarian option for when you are entertaining for someone who cannot eat meat. It will taste so good that everyone including meat eaters will love it.

More Recipes With Beans

If you love this easy Cuban black beans recipe, you may also like these:

My simple pesto pasta has cannellini beans in it and my collard greens with pintos use beans to round out the meal. They are so good!

For quick meals with beans: Our Pasta with Chickpeas cooks up fast.
For sides with beans: Our Pinto Bean and Avocado Salad, Chickpea salad or our garlic green beans are all delicious.

black beans in a pan with tomatoes sitting on a blue cloth

Print Recipe

5 from 16 votes

Easy Cuban Black Beans

These seasoned black beans with tomatoes have so much flavor and make such an amazing main meal or side dish that you can be proud of!

Prep Time10

Cook Time15

Total Time25

Servings: servings

Author: Melissa Oleary

Ingredients

1 can petite diced tomatoes 14 oz
½ of a red pepper finely diced
2 cloves of garlic minced
2 15 oz cans of black beans rinsed and drained
¼ cup of water
2 tablespoon of fresh chopped cilantro
1 tablespoon of olive oil
1 tablespoon tomato paste I like buying tomato paste in a tube so I can refrigerate what I don't use.
½ tablespoon of cumin
1 teaspoon of paprika
1 teaspoon kosher salt plus more to taste
⅛ teaspoon of oregano

Instructions

In a medium saute pan over medium heat, add your olive oil and red pepper and saute until it begins to soften about 5 minutes.
½ of a red pepper finely diced, 1 tablespoon of olive oil
Now add garlic and cook for 1 minute.
2 cloves of garlic minced
Now add your canned black beans, water, fresh cilantro, tomatoes, tomato paste and all of the spices and mix well.
1 can petite diced tomatoes, 2 15 oz cans of black beans rinsed and drained, ¼ cup of water, 2 tablespoon of fresh chopped cilantro, 1 tablespoon tomato paste, ½ tablespoon of cumin, 1 teaspoon of paprika, 1 teaspoon kosher salt plus more to taste, ⅛ teaspoon of oregano
Bring to a simmer
Once it comes to a simmer, turn your heat to low and cover to simmer for about 10-15 minutes until the tomatoes begin to soften a bit and the flavors come together
Remove from stove and taste for seasoning.
Add salt to taste.
Serve over rice or alongside meat and enjoy!

Nutrition

What You Need

The Steps

Serving Ideas

More Recipes With Beans

Easy Cuban Black Beans

Ingredients

Instructions

Nutrition

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