Fluffy baked potatoes topped with spicy beef and black beans then covered in melting cheese were a big hit for dinner last night. I wanted something simple that I could make with ingredients already in the house.
I was in the mood for a stuffed baked potato and I also wanted tacos; I came up with this combination and we all really enjoyed them.
I used both small Yukon gold potatoes and larger sweet potatoes. They both were delicious and everyone in the family was able to stuff their favorite potato their own way.
If you use an assortment of sizes, simply check them to determine doneness and remove each potato from the oven when it is fork-tender.
Beef and Black Bean Stuffed Baked Potatoes
Ingredients
- 6 medium 4-5" potatoes or 12 small 2-3" potatoes
- olive oil
- kosher salt
- 1 lb ground beef
- 2 tablespoons taco seasoning I used this Mexican spice mix
- 1/4 cup water
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch or arrowroot
- 1 1/2 cups cooked black beans or 1 can rinsed and drained black beans
- 1 cup shredded cheese of your choice I used Pepperjack and cheddar
- Optional toppings: lettuce tomatoes, olives, avocados, sour cream
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Scrub the potatoes and then rinse and dry thoroughly. Poke several holes into each potato
- with a fork and then place them on a baking sheet. Drizzle the potatoes
- lightly with oil. Generously sprinkle each potato with salt and then
- place in the oven. Bake until the potatoes are fork tender. They
- should be crisp on the outside and tender inside. This took about 40 minutes for the small potatoes and between 60-70 minutes for the large potatoes. Remove from the oven and set aside.
- When the potatoes are almost done, cook and crumble the beef in a large skillet over medium high heat. As it is cooking, sprinkle with the spice mix. Whisk together the water and the cornstarch. When the meat has browned, stir in the cornstarch slurry. Add the beans and let the sauce simmer and thicken for 1-2 minutes. Remove from the heat.
- Slice each potato down the center and fluff the insides with a fork. Top each potato with the beef and bean mixture and then with cheese. For ease of serving, you can also simply chop a baked
- potato onto a plate and top with the beef and bean mixture and then with cheese. Add any additional toppings that you desire. Enjoy!
- FREEZER MEAL: This is a great recipe to double or triple. The filling can be cooled completely and then transferred to a freezer safe ziploc bag or airtight container. Thaw completely before reheating. Cook and stuff the potatoes as directed above. This meat and bean mixture also works great on nachos or spooned over rice.
Becki's Whole Life says
This is such a nice, easy dinner idea. I particularly like that you can add some salad toppings and you have a whole meal. Yum – will have to try the mexican seasoning, too!
Joanne says
I love sweet potato paired with tex mex flavors so this sounds awesome to me! The sweet and spicy are perfect together.
Jenn says
Could you please slide that plate this way? I know it's only 5am, but who cares… it looks amazing!
Tricia @ saving room for dessert says
We used to get BBQ stuffed potatoes and loved them – I need to try this since my husband is a ground beef fan. So creative and pretty too!
Pam says
I love stuffed potatoes! Especially loved the stuffed sweet potatoes!
Nizz says
These sound amazingly tasty!
Pam says
This could be my dinner and I would be perfectly happy!
Monet says
I love baked sweet potatoes, and I think that this is a great twist on a classic. The beef and black beans make this a perfect meal for a cold night. Thank you for sharing. I hope you are having a beautiful week!
Big Dude says
Create looking creations Mary. I could go for either but especially the seriously stuffed and cheesy sweet potato.
Chris says
Now that is a great idea. I bet that sweet potato really kicks up the flavor.