This incredibly simple Mexican tostada recipe uses a flour tortilla as the base, although you can also use a corn tortilla. It's fried in just a little oil until crispy and then topped with guacamole, black beans, and peppers. Finish it with a cabbage salad with corn, radishes and lime.
Build your tostada to your own preferences. For example, swap out the black beans for refried beans, and add melted cheese or a dollop of sour cream on top.
by Susan Pridmore
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Mexican food is my go-to when I need something easy and quick.
Why?
Because there are so many Mexican recipes that you can make with just a handful of ingredients. For example, if you have black beans, peppers, onions, tomatoes, corn, and cheese on hand, here are some dishes you can whip up:
- Healthy Mexican Casserole (I add quinoa to it, but rice works just as well).
- Mexican Street Corn Tart (you'll also need mayonnaise and an egg).
- Mexican Stuffed Sweet Potato (you'll also need a sweet potato, obviously, lol).
- And you can make a tostada.
🤷♀️ What is a tostada?
"Tostada" translates as "toasted" so a tostada is technically anything on a crispy tortilla. Corn tortillas are typically used to make tostadas, but you can use flour if that's your personal preference.
The tortilla is usually flat but is sometimes formed into a bowl to hold all the ingredients. The ingredients are often the same as in a taco, such as beans, shredded cabbage, tomatoes, peppers, onions, corn, and avocado.
Tostadas can be large enough for a meal or made smaller like these mini plant-based tostadas.
❤️ Why you'll love this recipe
- Flexible. Use ingredients and you and your family like best.
- Fast. Make them in 30 minutes or less.
- Crowd-pleaser. Everyone of all ages loves Mexican food.
- Party food. Set up a tostada bar with fixings and let everyone build their own.
🧅 Main Ingredients + Notes
The secret to faster and easier meals often lies in the ingredients. For example, store-bought items and ingredients you make ahead and store in the refrigerator (or freezer) can turn a 60-minute recipe into a 30-minute meal or less.
For all of the ingredients, measurements, and directions, go to the Recipe Card at the bottom of this post.
- Red peppers - or a mix of baby bell peppers for a more festive look.
- Scallions (green onions)
- Black beans - either cooked from dried or keep it easy and use canned beans.
- Pickled jalapeño slices
- Corn tortillas - flour tortillas are ok, but corn tortilla crisp up better and stay crisp.
- Guacamole - or avocado
- Lime
- Cabbage - either red cabbage or green cabbage is fine.
- Corn - fresh corn is best, but use frozen if corn is out of season.
- Radishes
- Cotija or Queso Fresco
- Pepitas - or plain pumpkin seeds.
Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links to products and foods I use in my kitchen. This means that at no additional cost to you, I will earn a commission if you click through and make a purchase. To view my entire storefront of recommended kitchen tools and equipment, check out my shop on Amazon.
🔪 Recommended Equipment
Having the right equipment for recipes makes prepping much easier. If you want more fuss-free prepping and cooking, check out my updated list of favorite kitchen tools and equipment.
- Chef's knife
- Large skillet
- Griddle
- Medium-size mixing bowl
📝 Instructions Overview
Detailed instructions for making these tostadas are in the recipe card below, but here's an overview!
Step 1
Sauté. Prep and sauté the scallions and peppers. Stir in the black beans and liquid, and simmer until the liquid has been absorbed. Stir in the pickled jalapeños.
Set aside to cool to room temperature.
Step 2
Fry the tortilla. Crisp up the tortilla using a slick of oil on a griddle. I like to use the griddle because I can crisp up several at the same time.
Cool to room temperature.
Step 3
Layer. Smear some guacamole on each of the crisped tortillas, and top with the sautéed veggies.
Step 4
Make the salad. Combine the cabbage, corn, radishes, lime juice, honey, and seasonings in a mixing bowl. Spoon some on top of the tostadas.
Step 5
Serve. Serve with a flourish of roasted pumpkin seeds (pepitas) and cojita cheese.
💡Ideas for Possible Variations
- Use refried beans in place of the guacamole.
- Simplify and replace the cabbage salad on top with sour cream, guacamole, Pico de Gallo salsa (or salsa verde, and a skinny-grated Mexican cheese mix.
- Mix the black beans with pinto beans, or make these easy Mexican black beans!
- Add chopped cherry tomatoes.
- Cook up crumbled plant-based meat substitutes such as seitan, Impossible beef, or Beyond Beef and spread on top of the guacamole.
- For added heat, sway out pickled jalapeños for very thinly sliced jalapeños.
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Black Bean and Avocado Tostadas with Cabbage Salad
Equipment
- Chef's knife
- Medium-size mixing bowl
Ingredients
Tostadas
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil divided
- 1 cup chopped red bell pepper or mix the colors of the peppers
- ⅔ cup sliced scallions
- 14.5 ounce can of black beans with the liquid or cook your own from dried black beans
- 8 slices pickled jalapeño
- 4 corn tortillas
- 1 cup guacamole
Cabbage Salad Topping
- 3 cups lightly packed shredded red or green cabbage
- 1 cup corn kernels cut from 1 corn cob
- 3 medium radishes, sliced
- 1 ½ tablespoons lime juice
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 1 ½ tablespoons honey
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- ¼ cup cojita cheese
- 2 tablespoons pepitas or roasted pumpkin seeds
Instructions
- Heat one tablespoon of olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Sauté the peppers and scallions until softened. Stir in the black beans and their liquid, and simmer until most of the liquid has been absorbed - about five to six minutes. Stir in the jalapeño slices and remove from the heat.
- Brush the remaining olive oil on the corn tortillas. Warm up a griddle over medium heat and add the tortillas. Cook for about 30 seconds on each side until crispy.
- Divide the guacamole between the tortillas and spread it as evenly as possible. Top with the bean mixture.
- Combine the cabbage, corn, and radishes in a medium bowl. Whisk together the lime juice, oil, honey, salt, and pepper in a small bowl. Toss it with the salad.
- Top the tostadas with the salad and finish with a sprinkling of cotija cheese and pepitas..
cheri
Love meals like this Susan, looks flavorful and crunchy, spicy and sweet. Lovely pics too!
The Wimpy Vegetarian
I had it 3 days in a row last week for lunch, cheri! Crazy, but now I'm craving it for dinner tonight. I'm sure my husband's getting tired of it now 🙂
Lynda
What a great veggie light option for cinco de mayo!
The Wimpy Vegetarian
Thanks Lynda! Happy Cinco de Mayo to you!
lizthechef
Just don't forget the margarita 😉
The Wimpy Vegetarian
What was I thinking???!!! Yes, margaritas all around 🙂
Rosemary Mark
Great photos Susan, I can see how you couldn't not share! Recipe is surely yummy too.
The Wimpy Vegetarian
Thanks Rosemary! It was a lot of fun to shoot. It was so photogenic, it was hard to mess up 🙂
apuginthekitchen
Love this dish, I want to make it this week, love the cabbage salad, so fresh and crunchy.
The Wimpy Vegetarian
I think you'll really like it, Suzanne! Happy Cinco de Mayo to you 🙂
colleen @ foodietots
So pretty with the purple cabbage! My kids are newly obsessed with crispy taco shells -- we'll have to experiment with tostadas next.
The Wimpy Vegetarian
It could be a great way to segue them into salads! Thanks so much, and thanks for stopping by 🙂
Cynthia
This looks diVINE! I could eat a bathtub full of the cabbage salad alone. And just yesterday I picked up black beans to cook overnight in the crock pot. Note to self: cook beans tonight. Thank you Susan - you've outdone yourself here!
Choc Chip Uru
A salad with a twist, delicious tostada idea 😀
Love it!
Cheers
Choc Chip Uru
Christy @ Confessions of a Culinary Diva
Mmmm....love this! Will be making it for lunch this week!
cindy z
YUM! E! Let me say that again... YUM! E!
Just ate this for dinner & we loved it. The cabbage salad is my new favorite slaw!
The first photo is what originally captured my attention. Then when I read the ingredient list, I knew I had to try it - what a combo of different things - just delicious!
Thank you. I will definitely be making this again and again - oh, yes, leftovers in the frig - umm, lunch tomorrow!
The Wimpy Vegetarian
Thanks soooo much for letting me know!! I'm so so happy you liked it so much 🙂
mjskit
Sorry for the absence. I can see I've missed some pretty awesome dishes! These tostados are going to make a great meatless Monday for us! Thanks!
Yosef - This American Bite
Drooling over this... looks awesome.
Roz @ La Bella Vita Cucina
Gorgeous! Love this meatless recipe! Thank you!!!!!
The Wimpy Vegetarian
Thanks so much Roz!!!