10 Mexican Entrées Under 300 Calories

Beef Carnitas Empanadas

Carnitas is a Mexican dish of braised pork that's cooked until very tender and shredded or torn into small bits. This beef version features carnitas as filling for empanadas, but you can also use it in tacos, enchiladas, or burritos.

Recipe: Beef Carnitas Empanadas

Black Bean Tacos

This veggie taco is loaded with protein from the beans and seitan (wheat gluten). Look for seitan in health food stores or near tofu in larger supermarkets. If you prefer to skip the seitan, use another can of black beans, tofu, beef, or chicken in its place.

Recipe: Black Bean Tacos

Pork Chops Mole

Chocolate is the key ingredient in this traditional sauce, which can be whipped up quickly using ingredients like dried spices that are already in your pantry.

Recipe: Pork Chops Mole

Crab-Stuffed Poblano Chiles with Mango Salsa

Fresh mango and lump crabmeat add a Caribbean twist to these stuffed chiles. Add a chopped jalapeño pepper to the crabmeat mixture to spice things up.

Recipe: Crab-Stuffed Poblano Chiles with Mango Salsa

Chipotle Lime Roast Chicken with Tomatillo Sauce

Buying a whole roasting chicken is an efficient way to help cut costs at the grocery store, but you can use individual chicken breasts if you prefer. The tomatillo sauce is a perfect match for the chipotle-and-limed flavored chicken, and it's also good over baked fish or grilled beef.

Recipe: Chipotle Lime Roast Chicken with Tomatillo Sauce

Tex-Mex Beef Tacos

Weeknight dinners are easy when you make tacos using on-hand ingredients like frozen corn, canned beans, and canned tomato sauce. These tasty tacos are ready in about 20 minutes.

Recipe: Tex-Mex Beef Tacos

Black Bean and Chicken Chilaquiles

This layered tortilla breakfast dish is usually laden with cream and cheese, but our lightened version boasts less than 5 grams of fat and an intensely rich flavor.

Recipe: Black Bean and Chicken Chilaquiles

Turkey Enchilada Casserole

This simple casserole is perfect when feeding guests because it makes 8 servings, but go ahead and make it when you're serving fewer people because it reheats well and you can serve it at another meal.

Recipe: Turkey Enchilada Casserole

Chiles Rellenos Gratin

Stuffed with a fresh veggie, black bean, and queso fresco mixture and then baked in a creamy white sauce, these chiles are a sure to be a hit at your supper table.

Recipe: Chiles Rellenos Gratin

Huevos Rancheros

Turn an ordinary dinner into a weeknight fiesta with this healthy breakfast-for-dinner recipe.

Recipe: Huevos Rancheros

More 300 calories-or-less recipes

Stay trim with a wide variety of delicious low-calorie meals, like the Turkey Reuben Sandwiches at left.

Healthy Diet