Vegan Jackfruit and Black Bean Enchiladas

These vegan jackfruit and black bean enchiladas will be a hit for all.  Easy to make and super filling for everyone! Perfectly paired with our homemade red enchilada sauce.

Often when people hear free from Top 8 Allergens, they immediately assume tasteless.  Or, if you tell someone something is vegan or plant based, they assume not filling or lacking because somehow meat is the definition of that.  When you tell someone something is plant based AND Top 8 Free, they loose their mind and say “OH, so you’re eating air”.  Then, you proceed to roll your eyes. 

If you are looking for a recipe that will shut down all those people, this is it. These Vegan Jackfruit and Black Bean Enchiladas are perfect to wow anyone who thinks that you must eat nothing flavorful because of your dietary preferences or needs.  

These vegan enchiladas are super filling and packed full of deep and rich flavorful.  Perfect if you are serving carnivores who want their mind to be changed about eating meat too! The jackfruit completely mimics the feel of shredded chicken or pork.  Go ahead and prove them wrong! 

What ingredients do you need to make vegan enchiladas?

The recipe is super flavorful and filling, but surprisingly you don’t need a lot of ingredients to make it.  Under 10 ingredients, if you do not count the salt, pepper and oil!  That’s winning in my book!

The ingredients that you need to make these jackfruit and black bean enchiladas are: 

• oil
• red onion
• red pepper
• garlic
• jackfruit
• black beans
• kale
• cumin 
• red enchilada sauce 
• salt and pepper
• corn tortillas
• Optional toppings: salsa, avocado, guacamole, jalapeños, cilantro, and more

How do you make vegan jackfruit enchiladas?

If you are using our homemade red enchilada sauce, the first step to this recipe is to make that. 

Once you have that prepared, you can go ahead and chop your onions, bell pepper, and garlic. Shred your jackfruit. (*See below). Chop and massage your kale for just a minute or two. 

In a skillet, add 1 tablespoon oil (like avocado or olive) over medium heat.  Add in the onion and bell pepper and saute until translucent, about 3-5 minutes.  Careful not to burn.   Then, add in the garlic and cook for 1 more minute.  

Add in the cumin and stir until the onion mixture is well coated.  Then, add in some of the enchilada sauce, the black beans, jackfruit, and kale.  Let cook for 7-9 minutes.  The kale should start to breakdown and the jackfruit perfect coated and cooked. Remove from heat once done. 

While cooking, preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. 

Spoon a thin layer of the homemade red enchilada sauce into the bottom of a greased 9×13 baking sheet.  Wrap your corn tortillas in a damp paper towel and cook 30-45 seconds. Place about ¼ to ⅓ cup of mixture on each corn tortillas and roll them up seam side down in your dish. 

Spoon more enchilada sauce over the filled tortillas.  If you have any filling leftover, push it down outside the side. Cook for 15 minutes or until heated through.  Remove and serve. Best served same day.

How do I shred jackfruit?

We have only ever worked with jackfruit from a can, so we cannot speak to using fresh at this time.  If we do in the future, this post will be updated. 

Open your can of jackfruit (we get our at Trader Joes) and drain and rinse the liquid from the pieces.  With a knife, cut off the harden part at the bottom.  The part is usually harder than the rest. 

Then, begin to shred the remaining piece of the jackfruit, like you would do if it was pulled pork or chicken.  There are seeds (look like small round pods) inside the jackfruit, you can discard that or look up ways to use it as they are edible.  

What you should be left with are small pieces of what resembles shredded meat. 

Do I have to use corn tortillas?

This recipe will work using any type of tortilla that you prefer.  We say to use corn because that is what is traditionally used to make enchiladas; however, any preference you may have will work. 

Can you make these Top 8 Free enchiladas?

This recipe is already written to be a Top 8 Free recipe. There are no changes that need to be made. 

It is always important that you double check the ingredients of any products that you buy to ensure they are safe for you and your family and do not contain any allergens. 

Do I have to make the homemade enchilada sauce or can I use store bought red enchilada sauce?

We HIGHLY recommend making our homemade enchilada sauce recipe.  It it completely Top 8 Free and completely vegan.  The flavor is so much more robust than anything that you would get from a store bought can. 

To sum it up, there’s nothing saying you can’t use a canned red enchilada sauce for the recipe if you are short on time; however, we highly recommend you try our homemade version. 

Can I prep these vegan jackfruit and black bean enchiladas ahead?

You can prep the homemade enchilada sauce ahead of time and you can prep that jackfruit and black bean mixture ahead of time.  However, you do not want to put them the tortilla shells and cook them until you are ready to serve. 

Otherwise, the shells soak into the sauce and make them soggy when reheating back up.  Your best bet is to make each up ahead of time and then when you are ready to serve, make them in the tortillas. 

 The enchilada sauce is good for up to four weeks in the fridge; whereas, the jackfruit and black bean mixture is good for up to a week.  

Once you have these things together it takes less than 20 minutes to make, so it’s a prefect meal prep ahead dish. 

What sides can I serve with vegan enchiladas?

If you are look for some great vegan side dishes that would pair perfectly with this recipe, here are some options: 

• Mango Salsa
• Avocado Dip
• Instant Pot Corn on the Cob
• Mexican Black Beans
• Crockpot Refried Beans
• Mexican Bean Soup
• Vegan Queso
• Cucumber salsa

Pin these vegan enchiladas for later: