Mexican-Style Mung Bean Tostadas

Tostadas are rather new to me, but this dish is essentially a salad with a toasted corn tortilla base and bean topping with other delights, such as lettuce, tomatoes and salsa or guacamole if you please. I was inspired to try this rather unconventional version of a Mexican classic with mung beans instead of refried beans for quite some time now after I spotted the recipe from Janet of The Taste Space. Another beauty and certainly I encourage my readers to check out Janet's vegan wonders.

I adore mung beans, with their particularly sweet and earthy flavor, and why not play around with traditional dishes? I am certainly glad I did.

Notes: You can buy prepared tostada shells, but I opted for corn tortillas that I baked for about 8 minutes in the oven. Alternately, you can deep fry them in oil in a pan on the stovetop until golden, but I went for the less greasy version.

Use of toppings here is wide open. I made a simple salsa with some cherry tomatoes, olives, avocado and jalapeños with some freshly chopped cilantro. If pressed for time, prepared salsa will do, but because it is so easy to make, I like to make my own fresh. I just kept the spice to a minimum as the beans have a pleasant heat in themselves.

Nutritional yeast here is optional but it does add a pleasant cheesy flavor without any actual dairy cheese. If you wish, do add some grated cheese as part of the topping.

As an alternative to the mung beans, consider my classic version of refried beans.

Mexican-Style Mung Bean Tostadas

Recipe by Lisa Turner
Adapted from The Taste Space
Cuisine: Mexican
Published on April 10, 2015

Crispy golden baked corn tortillas topped with a salad of sweet and zesty refried mung beans, brown rice and salsa

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Tostados:

2/3 cup dried mung beans (2 cups cooked)
4 sun-dried tomatoes
1/2 tablespoon olive oil
1 shallot, finely chopped
2 teaspoons fresh ginger, grated or finely chopped
1 to 2 jalapeños, seeded and finely chopped
1 medium tomato, finely chopped
1 teaspoon ground cumin
2 teaspoons chili powder
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon cayenne, to taste
1 to 2 tablespoons nutritional yeast, to taste (optional)
sea salt to taste
6 6-inch corn tortillas

Toppings:

1/2 cup or more pitted black or Kalamata olives, sliced
jalapeño slices (optional)
1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
1 avocado, sliced
1/4 cup fresh cilantro, finely chopped
juice from 1 lime (2 tablespoons)
pinch of sea salt
1 cup cooked brown rice (from 1/3 cup uncooked)
1 to 2 cups shredded romaine lettuce

Instructions:

Rinse the mung beans and soak for 6 hours or overnight in several inches of water. Drain and rinse, then transfer to a medium saucepan and cover with fresh water. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat to low, cover, and simmer until the mung beans are soft and nearly breaking apart. Drain and set aside.
Meanwhile, soak the sun-dried tomatoes in hot water for 30 minutes, then drain and chop. Set aside.
In a large non-stick frying pan or cast-iron skillet, heat the oil over medium heat. When hot, add the shallots and stir for a few minutes to soften. Add the ginger and jalapeños and cook, stirring, for another few minutes. Add the tomatoes, cumin, chili powder, paprika and cayenne and cook for about 5 minutes until the tomatoes begin to thicken up. Add the cooked mung beans to the pan and mash everything together with a fork. Let them cook for another 5 minutes, stirring often. Stir in the nutritional yeast if using and salt, and remove from the heat.
To make a simple salsa as a topping, in a medium bowl, toss together the olives, jalapeños if using, cherry tomatoes, avocado, cilantro, lime juice and a bit of salt.
Preheat an oven to 400° and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Brush the tortillas with a bit of olive oil and lightly spice if desired with chili powder, cayenne and a bit of salt. Bake for 3 to 5 minutes until they are lightly browned, flip them over, and then cook for another few minutes until crisp and golden. Repeat for all the tortillas.
To assemble, place the totillas on plates, spread some of the mung beans overtop, and then a scoop of rice, some lettuce and some salsa or whatever you prefer. The possibilities are as endless as the mind of the cook and the diners.

Makes 6 servings