Chicken & Bean Freezer Burritos

Boy howdy is my freezer packed full right now. It’s times like these that I wish I had a secondary freezer to stock meat and meals.

Alas, all I have is a small, overly-stuffed freezer right now. I’m pretty sure all of the food is blocking the freezing cold air from moving through, too. Oh well. Such is life.

Before I went to the grocery store earlier this week, my freezer was relatively barren. Except for a few scoops of ice cream, some 3+ year old frozen hot dogs, and a half-filled bag of shredded chicken, there wasn’t much in there. Since I’ve gone to the grocery store, it’s now packed full of meat, ice cream sandwiches, and these burritos I made to eat for lunch.

Who needs to buy a bag of frozen burritos when you can just make your own?? This is my gift to you: DIY frozen burritos that taste better than the bagged kind and can be reheated in a flash.

I had a ton of canned refried beans leftover from the holidays (don’t ask) and wanted to deplete my stock. Burritos sound like just the right idea to do that. They’re simple and filling and store well to be eaten later.

A few tips when you go into the burrito-making world:

• Buy larger tortillas. Don’t get the “taco” size ones. You need to have plenty of tortilla real estate to roll them up.
• Don’t overthink the rolling. Just look at my burritos: they’re pretty whacky. I can’t roll a burrito to save my life, but I don’t care. As long as the filling is stuffed inside and tastes good without falling apart, who cares if it looks like a 3 year old wrapped a present?
• Two ways to reheat. Microwave or stovetop. My microwave is pretty low-powered (900 watts or whatever) so I microwave two frozen burritos at a time for 2 minutes, flip, then microwave again for 1.5 minutes. You’ll need to adjust the cooking time for your microwave, but I recommend starting out at two minutes then checking and adjusting from there. I love toasting burritos on the stove top, but they need to be completely thawed to do that.

Get some tortillas and get to cracking–er, rolling! These are a great grab-and-go meal for kids and adults alike.

Enjoy!

Chicken & Bean Freezer Burritos

• Servings: 10-12
• Time: 30 mins
• Difficulty: Easy
• Print

Ground chicken and refried beans fill these quick and easy burritos that store well in the freezer.

Ingredients

• 1 lb. ground chicken
• 1 small onion, diced
• 1 tsp. cumin
• 1 tsp. garlic powder
• 1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper
• 1 tsp. chili powder
• salt & pepper
• 1 tsp. oregano
• 1 TBS. olive oil
• 1 (15 oz) can refried beans
• 1/2 cup salsa
• 1 (4 oz) can green chiles, diced
• 1 jalapeno, diced
• 12 tortillas
• 1 1/2 cups shredded cheese

Directions

1. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add ground chicken, onion, cumin, garlic powder, cayenne, chili powder, salt, pepper and oregano. Cook, stirring, until chicken is no longer pink and onion is translucent, about 4-5 minutes.
2. Stir in beans, salsa, green chiles, jalapenos and 1/2 of the cheese. Stir and cook until simmering. Let mixture simmer for 8-10 minutes.
3. Let mixture cool before rolling burritos. Heat tortillas (microwave for about 30 seconds) so they are more pliable. Spoon 2-3 spoonfuls of the chicken mixture in the middle of a tortilla. Top with a sprinkle of cheese. Roll the tortilla up, tucking in the ends so everything is encased in the tortilla. Repeat with the rest of the tortillas.
4. Wrap burritos tightly in foil and freeze. If you’re eating them before freezing, heat a pan with nothing in it over medium heat. Add burrito and toast until browned on all sides, about 2-3 minutes per side.
5. Frozen burritos will last for 2-3 months in the freezer. To reheat: unroll and discard foil. Microwave for 2 minutes, then flip burrito. Microwave for 1 to 1.5 minutes more, or until middle is hot to the touch.

Step-By-Step Instructions

Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add ground chicken, onion, cumin, garlic powder, cayenne, chili powder, salt, pepper and oregano. Cook, stirring, until chicken is no longer pink and onion is translucent, about 4-5 minutes. Stir in beans, salsa, green chiles, jalapenos and 1/2 of the cheese. Stir and cook until simmering. Let mixture simmer for 8-10 minutes.

Let mixture cool before rolling burritos. Heat tortillas (microwave for about 30 seconds) so they are more pliable.

Spoon 2-3 spoonfuls of the chicken mixture in the middle of a tortilla. Top with a sprinkle of cheese. Roll the tortilla up, tucking in the ends so everything is encased in the tortilla. Repeat with the rest of the tortillas.

Wrap burritos tightly in foil and freeze.

If you’re eating them before freezing, heat a pan with nothing in it over medium heat. Add burrito and toast until browned on all sides, about 2-3 minutes per side.

Frozen burritos will last for 2-3 months in the freezer. To reheat: unroll and discard foil. Microwave for 2 minutes, then flip burrito. Microwave for 1 to 1.5 minutes more, or until middle is hot to the touch.