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, add melted cheese or a dollop of sour cream on top.
Updated July 14, 2022
Mexican food is my go-to when I need something easy and quick.
Why?
Because there are so many Mexican recipes 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).
Jump to:
What is a tostada?
Think of a tostada as an open face taco. The shell is typically crispy, and sometimes can be served in a bowl-like shell. The ingredients, however, are the same as a taco.
A tortilla used for a taco can be either flour or corn, but a tostada traditionally uses a corn tortilla.
Tostada Ingredients
- Baby bell sweet peppers - if your market doesn't carry them, just use regular sized bell peppers. Mix up the colors to make the tostadas more festive.
- Scallions
- Black beans - either cooked from dried or canned.
- Pickled jalapeño slices
- Flour tortillas
- Avocado
- Lime
Cabbage Salad Ingredients
- Red cabbage - or green cabbage.
- Corn - fresh is best for this, but you can use frozen and thaw it.
- Radishes
- Lime
- Feta
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Instructions
Step 1 (10 minutes)
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. Cool to room temperature.
Step 2 (1 minutes)
Fry the tortilla. Crisp up the tortilla using a slick of oil. Cool to room temperature.
Step 3 (1 minute)
Mash. Mash the avocado, lime and salt together. Spread on the tortilla.
Step 4 (2 minutes)
Layer. Heap the sautéed veggies on top.
Step 5 (5 minutes)
Make the salad. Combine all the ingredients for the salad and pile it on top of the tostada.
Step 6 (1 minute)
Serve. Serve with a flourish of roasted pumpkin seeds (pepitas) and cojita cheese.
For the Meat Eaters at the Table
Add anything you would to a taco. Shredded pork, chicken or steak strips, shrimp or salmon.
Want more vegetarian and vegan dish ideas? I can help you. I have three newsletters for different topics: 1) Vegetarian Recipes, 2) Vegetarian Meal Plans, and 3) Vegetarian Tips for helping you to move to a more vegetarian diet. Choose which newsletters are most relevant to your lifestyle and you'll also get my 5 SECRETS TO FUSS-FREE VEGETARIAN DINNERS
Black Bean and Avocado Tostadas with Cabbage Salad
Ingredients
Tostadas
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil divided
- 5 small baby sweet peppers about 1 cup chopped
- 3 scallions about ⅔ cup sliced
- 1 14.5 ounce can cooked black beans
- ¼ cup bean liquid or water
- 8 pickled jalapeño slices
- 2 flour tortillas
- 1 avocado
- ½ teaspoon lime juice
- ⅛ teaspoon kosher salt
Cabbage Salad
- 3 cups lightly packed shredded red cabbage
- 1 cup corn kernels from 1 corn cob
- 3 large 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 1 tablespoon olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Sauté the peppers and scallions until softened. Stir in the black beans and liquid, and simmer until most of the liquid has been absorbed - about 5 - 6 minutes. Stir in the jalapeño slices and remove from the heat.
- Brush the remaining olive oil on a couple of flour tortillas. Warm up a skillet over medium-low heat and add a tortilla. Cook for about 30 seconds, flip and cook another 30 seconds. Repeat with the other tortilla(s). They should be slightly crispy.
- Peel, cube and smash the guacamole, lime juice and salt in a small bowl. Spread on the tortillas.
- Combine the cabbage, corn, and radishes in a medium bowl. Whisk together the lime juice, oil, honey, salt and pepper in a small bowl. Pour over the salad and toss with your hands until evenly coated.
- Top the tortillas with a layer of black beans, then salad. Finish with a flourish of pepitas and cojita cheese before serving.
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!!!