Crunchy Bean Flauta Bites
Crunchy Bean Flauta Bites
Perfect for parties and midday treats, Crunchy Bean Flauta Bites promise a crispy burst of flavor in every bite. These mini rolled tacos are tightly packed with savory black beans and seasoned with a blend of earthy spices. They deliver a satisfying crunch and are just right for dunking into your favorite soup—or one of ours, like Aztec Avocado Chipotle Soup!
Happy & Healthy Cooking,
Fun-Da-Mentals Kitchen Skills
- fry :
to fry in a pan in a small amount of fat.
- roll :
to use a rolling pin to flatten dough; use your hands to form a roll or ball shape; or move a round food, like a grape or a meatball, through another food, like sugar or breadcrumbs, to coat it.
- smash :
to break up food into smaller pieces or squash food to flatten or soften it.
Equipment Checklist
- Large pot
- Medium mixing bowl
- Can opener
- Masher
- Measuring spoons
- Liquid measuring cup
- Wooden spoon
- Toothpicks
- Tongs
Ingredients
Crunchy Bean Flauta Bites
- 1/2 15-oz can black beans **(for LEGUME ALLERGY sub 1 C mushrooms, chopped)**
- 1/4 tsp ground cumin
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 pinch ground black pepper
- 12 corn tortillas
- 1/2 C vegetable oil **
- toothpicks
Food Allergen Substitutions
Crunchy Bean Flauta Bites
- Legume: For 1/2 15-oz can of black beans, substitute 1 C chopped mushrooms.
- Soy: Substitute canola oil or other nut-free high-smoking point oil for vegetable oil.
Instructions
Crunchy Bean Flauta Bites
intro
Think of a flauta (FLAU-tuh) like a rolled taco. This recipe will help you create mini flautas perfect for dunking into our Aztec Avocado Chipotle Soup. These crunchy creations will be perfect for soaking up all the delicious broth.
drain + smash
Open and drain 1 can of black beans. You will use half for the Crunchy Bean Flauta Bites and the other half you can add to Aztec Avocado Chipotle Soup if making. Smash 1/2 can black beans in a medium mixing bowl.
season + roll
Season the smashed beans with 1/4 teaspoon cumin, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1 pinch of black pepper. Stir until fully combined. Lay out 12 corn tortillas on a clean surface. Scoop 1 to 2 heaping teaspoons of the bean mixture onto each tortilla, placing it in the center of each. If you have any leftover beans, distribute the remaining beans evenly among the tortillas in a line down the center. Roll the tortillas into long tubular shapes. Be sure to roll them tightly while being as gentle as possible. Stick at least 2 toothpicks into the flauta to hold it together while cooking.
heat + fry
Pour 1/2 cup of vegetable oil into a medium pot over high heat. If you have a thermometer, the temperature of the oil should be as close to 350 F as possible before frying. Once the oil is shimmering or rippling at the surface, carefully place as many flautas into the oil as possible using tongs. Don’t make the pot too crowded; leave a bit of space between each flauta. Cook on both sides for 4 minutes, or until golden brown.
crunch + munch
Cook as many batches of flautas as needed. Then, remove the toothpicks and serve the flautas alongside our Aztec Avocado Chipotle Soup, another soup, or as a snack. Dip, crunch, and munch these tasty rolled tacos to your heart's content.
Hi! I’m a Bean!
"Hey! How've you bean … I mean, been? My name is Cannellini, and I'm a white bean! We beans go back a long, long time. A couple of my cousins are the Navy bean and the Great Northern bean. You can add us to soups, stews, and chili, or eat us all by ourselves! We sometimes cause tummies to inflate (you know, get gassy?), but soaking, draining, and rinsing dried beans really well might help prevent that from happening. Did you know that Senate Bean Soup is on the menu at the US Senate's Dirksen Café every single day?! I'm inflating with pride just thinking about that!"
History
- Globally, there are 13,000 known varieties of beans. They include the white bean, like the Italian Cannelini, Great Northern, and Navy Bean; the black turtle bean (usually shortened to black bean); and the pinto bean. What kind of beans are you using today?
- Beans were one of the first foods gathered, according to archaeologists. Our hunter-gatherer ancestors used beans as food tens of thousands of years ago. They were grown around 7,000 years ago in the Middle East.
- In ancient Greece, public officials were elected if they picked the single white bean from a bunch of black beans.
- In the 15th century, Spanish explorers brought beans to Europe when they returned from voyages to the New World. Then, Spanish and Portuguese traders took them to Africa and Asia to sell.
- Beans are now prevalent worldwide, primarily due to their use as an inexpensive, plant-based protein.
- Today, the largest commercial producers of common dried beans are India, China, Indonesia, Brazil, and the United States.
- North Dakota grows forty percent of the beans in the US, more than any other state!
- Brazil grows the most beans in the world.
- In Nicaragua, newlyweds are given a bowl of beans for good luck.
Anatomy & Etymology
- Did you know: Beans are technically a fruit!
- Beans are legumes, so they have seeds that dry in the seed pod. Other legumes include lentils, peas, peanuts, and soybeans.
- Beans plants leave the soil better and healthier than before they were planted. Most plants deplete the soil, but not beans. This is because they have nodules on their roots that add nitrogen, which the soil needs.
- The world's tallest bean plant was over 45 feet tall! That's the equivalent of three average-sized giraffes stacked on top of one another. The plant was grown in the USA in 2003.
- The word "bean" was first used before the 12th century. It comes from the Old English "bēan," from the Proto-Germanic "bauno," and is related to the Dutch "boon" and German "Bohne."
How to Pick, Buy, & Eat
- Beans are harvested at full maturity when their pod reaches about six inches long, and the leaves turn brown and fall off about 75 days after the beans are planted.
- When harvested, the shells are broken open, and the beans are collected as long as they are dry. If they're not thoroughly dried, they can be hung up to finish drying before they're popped from their shells.
- We can't eat raw, uncooked beans. Why? Because beans have something called lectins that are poisonous, and the only way to remove most of these lectins is to cook the beans.
- If you're using dried beans, soak them before cooking to remove "antinutrients," compounds that block the absorption of nutrients.
- Dried beans are generally available in prepackaged containers as well as bulk bins; both canned and dried beans are available throughout the year.
- Canned beans can stay fresh for years!
- Combine the creamy texture of beans with a whole grain such as brown rice, and you have a virtually fat-free high-quality protein meal.
- Beans are made into burgers, dips, brownies, cakes, dips, fudge, muffins, pies, and drinks (coffee and cocoa beans). They can also be used in jewelry, toys, and musical instruments. "Bean bag chairs" are made with polystyrene "beans," but the small bean bags for play are sometimes made with real dried beans.
Nutrition
- Beans are complex carbohydrates and high in fiber, which keeps our digestion strong and smooth and our tummies happy.
- Beans are excellent sources of iron, magnesium, and potassium. The body needs these minerals to grow, develop, and stay healthy.
- Beans supply several B vitamins to our diet, especially folate (B-9). These vitamins contribute to healthy brain function, formation of red blood cells, increased energy, and decreased cancer and cardiovascular disease risk.
- The fiber and protein in beans are good for stabilizing blood sugar. They are popular with vegans and vegetarians because they replace some of the nutrients found in meat.
Beany Expressions:
- Bean counter = an accountant
- Bean pole = describing someone tall and thin
- Cool beans = when something is cool
- It doesn't amount to a hill of beans = when something doesn't add up to much
- Full of beans = full of energy, enthusiasm
- Hasn't got a bean = doesn't have any money
- Not worth a bean = not worth anything
- Spill the beans = dish the dirt, tell the truth
What are Flautas?
- A flauta (FLAU-tuh) is a rolled taco from Mexico consisting of a corn or flour tortilla filled with shredded beef or chicken, then rolled up and fried until crispy. You can serve flautas with shredded cheese, guacamole, salsa, and sour cream.
- Smaller versions are called "taquitos" (small tacos). The word "flauta" means "flute" in Spanish. The dish may have originated with indigenous people centuries ago.
Let's Learn About Mexico!
- Officially, Mexico's name is "The United Mexican States." It is one of several countries and territories in North America, including Canada and the United States of America.
- Spanish is Mexico's national language, and Mexico is the largest Spanish-speaking country in the world. Mexican people didn't always speak Spanish, though. For thousands of years, Native Americans lived there and built great cities. The people had advanced language, education, and calendar systems, and they had very clever ways of raising food. Mexico is also the country with the largest number of native American speakers in North America.
- The capital of Mexico is Mexico City. Mexican legend says that Aztec leaders were told to build their great city of Tenochtitlan at the site where they saw an eagle sitting on a nopal cactus with a snake in its beak. That image is in the center of Mexico's flag. The Aztecs built their city on an island in the middle of a lake. The ruins of Tenochtitlan are at the center of Mexico City and still sit on top of a lake! As water is pumped out to serve the needs of the city's growing population, the city has been sinking at a rate of 6 to 8 inches per year.
- Indigenous Mexican people included the Aztecs in the central interior of the country, the Mayans of the Yucatan peninsula, and the Zapotec of the south. Spanish explorers landed in Mexico in the early 1500s, and they ruled Mexico for over 300 years. During this time of colonization, Mexico's Mesoamerican civilizations mixed with European culture.
- Before the arrival of Spaniards, native Mexican food primarily consisted of corn, beans, peppers, tomatoes, sweet potatoes, squash, and herbs. Indigenous people occasionally hunted and added wild turkey, rabbit, deer, and quail to their largely vegetarian diets. Native royalty sipped chocolate drinks. Europeans introduced cattle, sheep, pigs, goats, chickens, sugarcane, and wheat to Mexico upon their arrival.
- Mexican cuisine uses chili peppers to give it its distinct flavor. Jalapeños, poblanos, and serrano peppers are commonly used in Mexican dishes. Dishes that include mole, a sauce made of dark chocolate, chili peppers, cinnamon, and other spices, may be served on special occasions, such as Día de los Muertos.
What is it like to be a kid in Mexico?
- Mexican children may live near the ocean or the gulf, in the desert, or in the mountains.
- Kids often live with extended family, including grandparents. Their full names include their father's and their mother's.
- Most kids speak Spanish, but Mexico also recognizes 68 native languages.
- They attend school from September through June. Large schools have two shifts—one group in the morning and one in the afternoon. Students are usually required to wear uniforms.
- They may play soccer, baseball, and other sports. Jumping rope and other outdoor games are very popular. They might play a game similar to bingo called Lotería. It is played with picture cards and songs.
- Corn tortillas are a staple for kids, along with beans and rice. Dishes that include mole, a sauce often made of dark chocolate, chili peppers, cinnamon, and other spices, may be served on special occasions.
- A popular family holiday is Día de los Muertos (Day of the Dead), a celebration to remember and honor a family's ancestors. Family members decorate the graves of their relatives who have passed on. Typical foods served for this holiday include empanadas, tamales, pan de muertos (a sweet bread in which a ring with a tiny plastic skeleton is hidden), and calaveras de azucar (sugar candy skulls).
Lettuce Joke Around
Have you heard the joke about the tortilla?
It was corny.
Lettuce Joke Around
What kinds of beans can’t grow in a garden?
Jelly Beans!
Lettuce Joke Around
What does a sad tortilla say?
"I don’t want to taco bout it."
That's Berry Funny
What bean is the most intelligent?
The Human Bean!
