Air Fryer Black Bean Taquitos

Black Bean Taquitos made in the air fryer! Crispy vegan taquitos made in the air fryer with just a handful of ingredients. 

this Recipe

This is one of those recipes that I can’t believe took me this long to master. Crispy vegan taquitos that take just minutes to prep without any deep frying? Seems almost too good to be true. 

I adore my air fryer. In fact, I recently pulled it up from the basement to sit in the corner of our kitchen counter so I can enjoy my air fryer buffalo cauliflower wings and air fryer zucchini chips more often. 

When I’m not cooking those, it’s easy to quickly preheat for sweet potato chips, veggie burgers, or my crispy tacos which are the inspiration for these vegan taquitos. 

My kids would choose to eat tacos almost every chance they get. Like mama, like kiddos, I suppose. They both ask for my lentil tacos weekly; there’s something about perfectly seasoned black beans that plays well with tortillas and toppings. 

These black bean taquitos are a pureed filling of canned black beans, spices and salsa then rolled into warmed corn tortillas and air fry until perfectly crisp and golden. Serve with your favorite toppings, like my homemade salsa, creamy jalapeño sauce, guacamole, thinned dairy-free sour cream, avocado and herbs. Or, just eat them straight out of the fryer basket! Either way, you are going to love these. 

Here’s how to make them: 

Ingredients for Crispy Vegan Black Bean Taquitos

For these air fryer taquitos, you’ll need the following:

• 1 (14 ounce) can black beans, drained and rinsed
• 1/4 cup pico de gallo (or other salsa)
• 2 teaspoons taco seasoning
• 1/4 cup shredded dairy-free cheese (optional)
• 12 corn tortillas
• Cooking spray, for cooking

If you want to use flour tortillas over corn, you can. As flour tortillas are fairly soft compared to corn tortillas, you don’t need to warm them in the microwave first. You can also use a blend of corn and flour tortillas; both La Tortilla Factory and Trader Joe’s make a corn and flour tortilla that I love. It has the flavor of a corn tortilla with the pliability of a flour. 

As with almost all of my recipes, this one is customizable to what you like in your taquitos. You can completely skip the dairy-free cheese for a healthier option, or add in jalapeños or canned diced green chiles for more heat. 

Step by Step Instructions for How to Cook Taquitos in the Air Fryer

Start by making the filling. Place the black beans, pico de gallo and taco seasoning in the base of a food processor and pulse until well combined. You can see in the photos below what the mixture is supposed to look like; it should be mostly creamy with a few pieces of whole beans remaining. 

Unlike more traditional beef or chicken taquitos, I love using beans here as they have a great meaty texture, are packed with plant-based protein, fiber and are naturally cholesterol free. If you are looking for a new way to enjoy beans, you’ll love this taquito recipe. 

Next, place the tortillas in a damp paper towel and warm in the microwave for 20-30 seconds until pliable and easy to roll. If you are using flour tortillas, then you don’t need to warm first. 

Preheat your air fryer to 400 degrees F and set for 6-9 minutes.

Spread the black bean mixture onto the tortillas. If using the shredded cheese, add a tablespoon or two onto the black bean mixture then roll up until tight. If the tortilla doesn’t “seal” on its own, make sure there is a small amount of the black bean mixture on the end to glue the tortilla ends together.

Place the rolled taquitos seam side down in the air fryer basket and lightly spray with cooking spray or oil spray. Cook for 6 minutes, then flip and cook another 3-5 minutes until crispy and golden brown. 

Depending on how large your air fryer basket is, you may need to cook the taquitos in batches. Roll the remaining taquitos, then cook as directed above. 

How to serve air fryer taquitos

You know I love a good dip, and that’s no exception for these taquitos. As I usually don’t make them with added cheddar cheese on top, I like to dip them either in my vegan queso dip or my jalapeño salsa if I want a spicy kick. 

For these photos, I made them how my kids love them, with avocado and a drizzle of DIY cremé: dairy-free sour cream thinned with lime juice. 

Oven Directions

If your prefer to cook these vegan taquitos in the oven, then you’ll prepare as directed and place on a lightly oiled baking sheet and spray the tops again. This helps to give a crispy outer shell that’s classic to a taquito. 

Bake at 425 degrees F for 11-15 minutes until crispy, flipping once. 

If your taquitos split open while cooking, then I recommend inserting toothpicks on the ends, then removing them after baking! 

My Tips for Perfect Air Fryer Taquitos

Leftovers don’t keep well, so I’d recommend not making them in advance and only right before you plan on eating them. 

If you don’t have taco seasoning, then you can make your own mix by combining: 1/2 tablespoon chili powder, 1 teaspoon ground cumin, 1/2 teaspoon salt and pepper and 1/4 teaspoon each of garlic powder, onion powder, dried oregano and paprika

My go-to dairy-free cheese brands are Violife and Chao. Try it with cheddar or Monterey jack! To make these vegetarian, you can use regular cheese.

More Air Fryer Recipes

• Air Fryer Cauliflower Wings
• How to Make Tofu in the Air Fryer
• Nacho Skins 
• Air Fryer Zucchini Chips
• Crispy Tacos with Queso Dip

More Taco Recipes

• Instant Pot Lentil Tacos
• Lentil and Zucchini Tacos
• Vegan Potato Tacos with Chimichurri Sauce 
• Lentil Tacos with Roasted Cauliflower
• Vegan Fish Tacos
• Tofu Tinga Tacos
• Tropical Tofu Tacos with Mango Salsa 

If you try this recipe, let me know! Come back to leave a rating and a comment. Your feedback helps other readers and seeing you make my recipes makes my day. 

Black Bean Vegan Taquitos in the Air Fryer

• Author: Alexandra Caspero
• Prep Time: 10 minutes
• Cook Time: 10 minutes
• Total Time: 20 minutes
• Yield: 12 taquitos 1x
• Category: vegan, dinner, air fryer
• Method: Air Fryer
• Cuisine: Mexican Inspired, Tex Mex
• Diet: Vegan

Description

Black Bean Taquitos made in the air fryer! Crispy vegan taquitos made in the air fryer with just a handful of ingredients. 

---

Print Recipe

Pin Recipe

• Author: Alexandra Caspero
• Prep Time: 10 minutes
• Cook Time: 10 minutes
• Total Time: 20 minutes
• Yield: 12 taquitos 1x
• Category: vegan, dinner, air fryer
• Method: Air Fryer
• Cuisine: Mexican Inspired, Tex Mex
• Diet: Vegan

• Author: Alexandra Caspero
• Prep Time: 10 minutes
• Cook Time: 10 minutes
• Total Time: 20 minutes
• Yield: 12 taquitos 1x
• Category: vegan, dinner, air fryer
• Method: Air Fryer
• Cuisine: Mexican Inspired, Tex Mex
• Diet: Vegan

Scale 1x2x3x

Ingredients

• 1 (14 ounce) can black beans, drained and rinsed
• 1/4 cup pico de gallo (or other salsa)
• 2 teaspoons taco seasoning
• 1/4 cup shredded dairy-free cheese (optional)
• 12 corn tortillas
• Cooking spray, for cooking

Cook Mode Prevent your screen from going dark

Instructions

1. Place the black beans, pico de gallo and taco seasoning in the base of a food processor and pulse until well combined.

2. Next, place the tortillas in a damp paper towel and warm in the microwave for 20-30 seconds until pliable and easy to roll. If you are using flour tortillas, then you don’t need to warm first. 

3. Preheat your air fryer to 400 degrees F and set for 6-9 minutes.

4. Spread the black bean mixture onto the tortillas. If using the shredded cheese, add a tablespoon or two onto the black bean mixture then roll up until tight. If the tortilla doesn’t “seal” on its own, make sure there is a small amount of the black bean mixture on the end to glue the tortilla ends together.

5. Place the rolled taquitos seam side down in the air fryer basket and lightly spray with cooking spray. Cook for 6 minutes, then flip and cook another 3-5 minutes until crispy and golden brown. 

did you make this?

Tag @delishknowledge on Instagram and hashtag it #delishknowledge