Nothing's better than vegetarian comfort food!
Finally…a comfort food that vegetarians and low-fat dieters can enjoy, too! Our Mexican Style Vegetarian Loaf is made with satisfying and savory “meat” loaf and includes a variety of high-fiber, high-protein beans and spicy seasonings.
This Mexican style vegetarian loaf includes corn and green chilies, along with cumin, chili powder and cayenne pepper, which means you get a healthy meal with all the great taste of Mexican cooking! With a coating of barbecue sauce, this loaf is sure to be a family favorite. The recipe is guilt-free, checking in at under 300 calories. It also contains 14 grams of fiber and a whopping 19 grams of protein. Dive into this loaf for dinner and make a sandwich with the leftovers!
Some vegetarian loaf recipes are just as unhealthy as traditional beef meat loaves. They are packed with processed ingredients and might be high in sodium. Whatever you miss in saturated fat, you make up for with other unhealthy ingredients. Luckily, when you make your vegetarian loaf from scratch and use our fresh, whole ingredients, you get a meat-free loaf that is packed with nutrition. It makes vegetarian eating truly healthier than the alternative.
If you love the taste of Mexican flavor and you want to try your hand at meat-free eating, give this a shot. We also have a number of other great vegetarian options on our site, so add this one and all the others to your monthly menu.
Mexican Style Vegetarian Loaf
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 red onion diced
- 15 ounce kidney beans can drained well
- 15 ounce black beans can drained well
- 4 ounce diced green chili peppers can hot or mild -drained
- 1 cup whole kernel corn unsweetened
- 2 teaspoons dried oregano
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- sea or kosher salt to taste
- 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 1 1/4 cups panko bread crumbs gluten free or bread crumbs of your choice
- 1/2 cup 2% cheddar cheese shredded
- 1/3 cup barbecue sauce no sugar added -look for one that has honey or molasses ...check out our recipe for barbecue sauce
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- In a large skillet add oil, turn to medium-low heat and sauté onions until tender, about 4 minutes. Add kidney beans, black beans, green chili peppers and corn, continue to sauté until beans soften up, about 3 minutes. Add oregano, chili powder, cumin, black pepper, salt and cayenne pepper, stir to combine.
- Combine in a large mixing bowl bean mixture, bread crumbs and cheese. Lightly spray a loaf pan with nonstick cooking spray, add bean mixture, shape into a loaf. Bake for 30 minutes, add barbecue sauce and bake 1 additional minute. Remove from oven and allow to set for 5 minutes. Cut into 8 slices and carefully remove each slice with a spatula.
Notes
Nutrition Information
Have you made this recipe?
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At what temperature is the loaf supposed to bake?
350 degrees.
Nevermind! I see it! Thanks!
I think there are some errors with this recipe. There is no baking temp listed, and whole wheat bread crumbs are not gluten free. I used crushed rice chex instead. all in all a good recipe. I baked at 350.
Deldre, Thank you so much for pointing this out. The temp is actually 350 degrees. I've added gluten free bread crumbs to the ingredients. 🙂
Finally, a veggie loaf recipe that doesn't use anything soy!
I am not seeing barbecue sauce on the ingredients list. How much should be used?
Thank you.
Jennifer, 1/3 cup…I'll add now. Sorry about the oversight! 🙂 Here's my recipe for bbq sauce https://skinnyms.com/slow-cooker-spicy-barbecued-d…
Looks fantastsic. I want to make a veggie loaf for this weekend, can't wait for it. 🙂
this was great. I ran it through my food processor first and the kids didn't even know it was meatless.
I made this last night for meatless Monday, and everyone loved it! Skinny Ms. has not let me down yet.
Julia, YEAH!!!! Thank you so much for the feedback. 🙂
Can I leave out the cheese without it effecting anything?
Kis, Yes…it will still be relish!
Yes, you can.
If I skip the bbq sauce altogether will it ruin the recipe? Or are there any bbq sauce substitutions?
Amanda, No, it’s fine to leave it out of the recipe. Enjoy! 🙂
Great recipe, nice and spicy. My husband was nervous about my meatless Monday suggestion…not anymore! I left out the BBQ sauce and once it was cooked I realised why it was a good idea but instead we topped it with salsa (peach would be nice) and a dollop of (low fat) daisy on the side, served with a spinach and tomato salad. Thanks for the inspiration and ideas!
Emma, So happy you and hubby enjoy! 🙂
do you think quinoa flakes would work as a substitute for breadcrumbs?
I think so.
Well… I cooked it: If you eat this dish with "meatloaf" in mind… you ARE going to be disappointed, because it tastes like what it is: beans with BBQ sauce. I'd call them "refried beans with BBQ" and it's a WONDERFUL refried bean! 😉 Great as a SIDE dish. (not as a main dish)
I'm not sure what I did wrong, but the recipe was dry and the whole thing fell apart. Was there supposed to be eggs somewhere to act as a binding agent and the moisten it?
Gloislane, The recipe doesn't call for eggs but you can add a couple of eggs to the mix when forming it in the pan and also cover it with foil for the duration of the bake time until you add the barbecue sauce at the end.
I always add water to mine to get a sticky consistency, otherwise I find it to be really dry as well! It’s one of my all time favorite recipes! I prep it Sunday and bake it later in the week! 🙂
Great suggestions!
Is this good freezing
the leftovers and for how long?
Hi Meme, yes you can freeze the Vegetarian Loaf. If properly stored, it should keep up to a month. Wrap the leftovers in plastic wrap and then place in a well sealed container or Ziploc bag. If you’d like, you can pre-portion the loaf into slices and package each slice on it’s own for easy meal prep!
This is a staple in my household for several years now. Pantry staples are all that are needed, and is very tasty. Serve a salad before and makes a great weekday supper.
Thank you so much Kirsten for the feedback.
Love, Love this recipe.
Excellent!