Slow Cooker Enchilada Quinoa-this easy and healthy slow cooker recipe is a family favorite. Add it to your dinner menu now!
This post is in partnership with Old El Paso, but our opinions are our own.
Our Black Bean and Quinoa Enchilada Bake is hands down one of the most popular recipes on our site. You guys love it and so do we. We make it for dinner all of the time! Several of you have emailed us and asked if we could create a similar slow cooker recipe. Well, today is your lucky day because we played around with the recipe and came up with a killer Slow Cooker Enchilada Quinoa. If you like our enchilada bake, you will LOVE the slow cooker version because it is SO easy! The slow cooker does most of the work and the results are mighty delicious!
You only need about 15 minutes to prep this delicious dinner recipe. A little chopping, a little can opening, and you are good to go! Dump everything in your slow cooker and let it do the work!
I was worried the slow cooker version wouldn’t be as good as our original enchilada bake, but IT IS!! It really is!
The flavors are incredible! The quinoa tastes just like enchiladas, thanks to Old El Paso’s mild red enchilada sauce, and all of the other fantastic Mexican flavors going on! And do you see all of that cheese? Mmmmmm!
When the cheese is melted, I top the enchilada quinoa with diced avocado, green onions, and fresh cilantro to finish things off.
We like to eat the enchilada quinoa with tortilla chips! You can also serve tortillas on the side or eat it plain. It is good any and every way!
When we make this Slow Cooker Enchilada Quinoa for dinner our boys devour it! It is a family favorite and I am sure your family will enjoy it too! Add it to your dinner menu right this second!
Slow Cooker Enchilada Quinoa
Ingredients
- 1 cup uncooked quinoa rinsed
- 1/2 cup water
- 1 small onion diced
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 1 red pepper seeds removed, diced
- 2 15 oz cans black beans, rinsed and drained
- 2 10 oz cans Old El Paso mild red enchilada sauce
- 1 15 oz can diced tomatoes
- 1 4.5 oz can Old El Paso chopped green chiles
- 1 cup corn frozen kernels
- Juice of 1 small lime
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 tablespoon chili powder
- 1/3 cup chopped cilantro
- Salt and black pepper to taste
- 1 1/2 cups shredded Mexican cheese
- Optional toppings: Sliced green onions avocado, diced tomatoes, sour cream, cilantro, and lime wedges
Instructions
- Combine the quinoa, water, onion, garlic, red pepper, black beans, enchilada sauce, diced tomatoes, green chiles, corn, lime juice, cumin, chile powder, and cilantro in a slow cooker. Stir to combine. Season with salt and pepper, to taste. Cover and cook on high for 3 hours or on low for 6 hours, or until the liquid is absorbed and quinoa is cooked.
-  Remove the lid and stir the casserole. Taste and adjust seasoning if necessary. Stir in the half the cheese and sprinkle the other half on top. Put the lid back on and cook until the cheese melts, about 15 minutes.
- Serve warm with desired toppings.
Have you tried this recipe?
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This looks so heavenly! My mouth is in awe and mouthwatering over it! Love it girl
Thanks so much!
This is totally book marked! I just bought a bag of mixed quinoa too- perfect timing 🙂
Yay! I hope you like it and I hope you are feeling well! xo
Ohhhh totally drooling! Can’t wait to add this to my menu this week!Â
looks delicious for these cold weeknights we are having- yum!
Yes, perfect for a cold night!
I have been thinking about making something really similar to this! Love that this is made easily in the slow cooker!
It is so easy and so good!
It says 3 hours on low or 6 hours on high. Is this a mixup? Can’t wait to try it!
Oops! Thanks for catching my typo! I fixed it!
this does sound really tasty!Â
Hi, can i cook it normally? No slowcooker?
Use this recipe: https://www.twopeasandtheirpod.com/black-bean-and-quinoa-enchilada-bake/
This sounds so wonderful, Maria! Love that you made it so easy by throwing it into the slow cooker! And those flavors…fuhgetaboutit 😉 Must try.
Anything slow cooker always wins my heart…and then you add Mexican flavors…swoon!! <3
This was so delicious!….and easy! Definitely adding it to our dinner rotation. Thanks for sharing!
Glad you liked it!
This was delicious! Where can I find the nutritional value of your recipes?
This looks like a perfect meatless monday meal! Thanks!
what’s the calories and nutrition in this reciepe?
Hi! Do you think I could freeze this? Either before or after I baked it?
Thanks!
Quick question….
The recipe says “1 red pepper, seeds removed, diced”  are we talking about a red bell pepper or a red chile pepper? Might make a big difference, so wanted to check first! 🙂
Red bell pepper
Would you have the courtesy to mention what size slow cooker you used?
We have a six quart slow cooker.
Thanks. Just made this in my 4 Qt. Just fit. Added 1# fried ground beef, doubled the garlic, and used 2 paks low sodium Taco Seasoning instead of the loose seasonings you had. Took 5 hrs on high to get all the Quinoa “popped.” Nacho’s, Nacho’s, Nacho’s! This is terrific. Â Â
Never eaten Quinoa. What’s it like?
My husband refuses to eat things with “just” quinoa..he wants meat as well. Â Could ground beef be added to this? At what stage?Â
I haven’t tried it, but I am sure it would be fine. Either add it at the beginning to cook or add cooked ground beef at the end.
Can you add raw chicken breasts to this? Looks fabulous!
this is great, see that it’s one of your top recipes of 2016 and can see why, I’d missed it the first time so glad to see it here, thank you for posting this!
I made this tonight and it is phenomenal! We are so tired of eating out or eating frozen. This was simple enough a terrible cook like me can make it without bombing anything. I am making another batch for potluck tomorrow.
Seriously…. everything you post looks delish!!!
This recipe was so good! BUT! My family felt it made a better DIP for chips. Because it was a little on the spicy side and extremely thick, it was overwhelming for us to eat all by itself. Nice, healthy dip or topping. It makes so much though as a dip that  I may have to give some away to the neighbor.
I really liked using a lot
Of vegetables (2 or sometimes even 3 large bell peppers) in the oven recipe, but don’t want to mess this up either because need to do this and (so grateful!) you made it into a slow cooker, may I use 3 bell peppers??
Sure!
Does it freeze well?
Yes!
We love this recipe! We use it at least once a month for easy, yummy lunches. I’m just wondering if you have any calories or a nutrition breakdown available? Thanks!
Delicious! We have made this half a dozen times so far and really enjoy it. An easy weeknight meal.
WhT is the fiber. Intent of the slow cooker enchilada quinoa?
I see a lot of people have asked for nutrition info. I don’t know the full breakdown, but calories per serving is 372. 🙂
This isn’t cool! This recipe was either taken from Betty Crocker or they took it from this website!
Someone needs to be honest.
This recipe was a collaboration with Old El Paso so they published it on their site too. Sorry for the confusion! We did create the recipe.Â
Perhaps you should seek information before making !! accusations. THAT’S not cool. Sheesh.
Delicious and easy! It took very little time to prepare and the timing of cooking was accurate. Even without kids in the house, the dish was gobbled up!
I am glad it was a hit!
Delicious! Made this last night and was very happy with the meal. Directions were easy to follow and the result was fantastic. However, the recipe is for 8 people. Way more than we needed so make sure to cut the ingredients down if you are not feeding a large group. I made it for two people and still had yummy leftovers!
Oh my goodness this was delicious. Your pictures were very enticing, and I knew I had to try it out. My husband loved it, but it was a little too spicy for my girls. Could one of the cans of enchilada sauce be omitted for another can of beans instead?
Glad you liked it. You can cut back on the chili powder if you want it less spicy.
This is absolutely amazing… and really easy to make! I was in awe about how something can take little effort and taste so good. I’m making this like every other week, now. I did replace the chili powder with cayenne pepper for a little more of a kick.
I doubled the recipes into a 7-quart crock and it turned out great! Tip: I didn’t increase the cook time; I cooked for six hours on low then two on high and before it was time to serve and it was still too soupy for my expectation. I also didn’t drain the cans of vegetables, doing so will help with this too I presume.
Love the original recipe, and curious how to adapt to an Instant Pot (vs slow cooker)?
I just made this and it’s wonderful! I love the hesrtinesd of the quinoa with the enchilada flavors. Thank you.Â
(Heartiness..)
This sounds so good! Could you add chicken to this recipe? If so, would you recommend throwing it in the slow cooker frozen in the beginning with everything?
I’ve been making this recipe for years and I’m obsessed with it! Feel free to experiment with it; I always sub the red pepper for a poblano, and I like to use fire roasted diced tomatoes for a little added kick. It’s super easy to veganize as well if you use non-dairy cheese & sour cream!
Delicious!
This got a 5 star rating from my mother who does NOT like quinoa! I was amazed.
It is a keeper in my meal rotation.
Yay! Glad it was a hit!
If I want to add ground chicken, do I cook it ahead of time then add to the slow cooker or will it cook okay in the slow cooker from the beginning?
When I have made this in the past I have put my chicken in at the beginning (raw) and shredded it when cooking is complete. However, I imagine you could use rotisserie chicken and add close to the end just to heat it.
Can this be made in an Instant Pot?
I would also like to know this!!! Urmi, if I get it right when I try it, I will report back 🙂
This is a go-to favorite recipe in our house. Thank you so much!
This recipe is great! It’s filling and has that mexican flavor that we all love. It has become a household favorite and is great for Meatless Monday meals.
Yay!
How would you make this as a freezer meal?
You can let it cool and freeze in a freezer container. Thaw and reheat!
Love this recipe!
Next time I want to make it with dry beans. Any suggestions?
I love this recipe and would like a quick version for weeknights – any advice on converting it for the instant pot?
I’ve been making this recipe for years. Recently transferred to the crock pot version and still LOVE IT. I find the crock pot version easier and quicker, of course, and better when taking to work functions, etc. THANK YOU So much for sharing!
You are welcome! I am glad you love it so much.
Is there only 1/2 cup of water required? That seems like too little considering there’s a cup of uncooked quinoa. Did I miss other liquids?
The enchilada sauce and diced tomatoes add liquid too.