This creamy black bean & pasta skillet is the perfect dish you are looking to make whenever you are feeling too lazy to cook!
Jump to RecipeLazy Days
Folks, maybe it’s because I have been staying indoors so often, but I have something to tell you: I have been feeling incredibly lazy. Honestly? As much as I love cooking, I have not had much creative energy to barnstorm new meal ideas. Am I the only one who goes through this struggle?? I can’t be.
But alas, I had to come up with some meals to cook this weekend. Surely my husband could cook. But most of the time, due to our different work schedules, I take on this task. Either way, if no one cooks, no one eats. And we can’t have that.
Hmmm…
The other day, as I was looking through my pantry and fridge, weighing the limited variety of shelf-stable products and decaying produce, some pasta, back beans, and my wok, an idea come to me: Why not do a one-pot meal? So I figured, why not?
Carby goodness!
I pulled out my rotini pasta, black beans, tomatoes, and onions, and immediately began dicing my tomatoes, onions, and kale. Before I knew it, I whipped out my store-bought taco seasoning, and added it to the mix, along with the pasta and back beans, and voila! And you know what? This creamy improvisational black bean pasta skillet has been one of the most delicious meals that I have cooked in a while. Not only do the black beans give a level of richness and plant-based protein to this dish, but my impulsive decision to incorporate some coconut milk into this dish really brought this meal to a decadent creamy level. All of the ingredients and spices and flavors married beautifully. Moreover, even my very picky husband was a fan of this dish!
Did I mention that this dish is also vegan? If I haven’t, now you know!
And folks, this pasta skillet dish is not only delicious, but is super simple, contains basic pantry items, and can be ready in less than 20 minutes!
(Also, feel free to substitute the veggies in this dish for whatever else you may have!)
Now…let’s move onto the recipe!

Creamy Black Bean & Pasta Skillet
Equipment
- Large skillet or Wok
Ingredients
- 16 oz. Rotini pasta
- 15.5 oz. Black beans
- 4 oz. Full-fat coconut milk
- 1 Medium Onion
- 1 Cup Fresh Kale or spinach
- 1 Medium Tomato
- 1 Bell Pepper
- 6 oz. Low-sodium tomato paste
- 4 Garlic cloves, finely minced
- 2½ Cups Water
- 2 Tbsp. Cooking oil
(2 tbsp.) Taco seasoning made with:
- ½ tsp. Red chili powder
- 1 tsp. Cumin
- 1 tsp. Smoked paprika
- ¾ tsp. Salt
- 1 tsp. Black pepper
- ¼ tsp. Allspice
Instructions
- Finely dice all of the veggies (tomato, kale, pepper &onion) until they are about 1 inch cubes. Set aside.
- Heat up a wok or large skillet/ pot with cooking oil and heat tomedium-high. Gradually add in the veggies & garlic, and sauté for about 6-7minutes or until the onions and tomatoes have begun to sweat. Make sure tocover for the first three minutes.
- Once veggies are sweating, add the taco seasoning, water, tomatopaste, into the existing pot with the veggies. Then, increase the heat to highand allow to heat until the water mixture begins to rapidly boil.
- Once the water begins boiling, reduced the heat back tomedium-high and add the pasta and boil for 10 min or until the water hasevaporated and created a thick sauce.
- Add drained black beans and coconut milk and stir until mixturethickens and is creamy.
- Enjoy!
Video
Nutrition Information per serving:
671 calories/ 17.6 grams protein/ 16.7 grams fat/ 118.4 grams carbohydrates/ 22.9 grams of fiber
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