Our bean dip recipe combines refried beans, sour cream, the perfect blend of spices, and melty shredded cheese. It’s hot, bubbly, cheesy, and really delicious!
Serve this easy bean dip with tortilla chips, toasted bread, or veggies! It’s basically my new go-to party appetizer (well, this and our infamous onion dip). It’s excellent with homemade refried beans, but you can absolutely use canned for ease.
This is perfect with chips, especially homemade tortilla chips. It never lasts long.
Key Ingredients
- Refried Beans: Canned works perfectly fine, but I love making our refried beans from scratch when I have the time.
- Onion, Garlic, and Spices: You’ll cook these in a bit of oil before adding our spices. We combine chili powder (I love ancho chili powder or homemade chili powder), cumin, smoked paprika, and coriander.
- Salsa: Use your favorite store-bought salsa or make your own. I love this roasted tomato salsa or this quicker restaurant-style salsa.
- Green Chiles: I use canned green chiles in quite a few of our recipes and love them! They are sold in small (4-ounce) cans near salsas and hot sauce. When buying them, look for either “mild” or “hot” on the can and choose whichever you prefer based on how spicy you want the dip. Other recipes where I use them include homemade queso, this white chicken chili, and our weeknight taco soup.
- Cream Cheese and Sour Cream: These make our dip extra creamy. I love full-fat versions of each for the best flavor. To make this dip vegan, you can substitute your favorite dairy-free versions.
- Melty Cheese: This dip has two layers of melted cheese (on top and in the middle), so when you dig in with a tortilla chip, you are guaranteed to get some cheese. Use something that melts well, like cheddar, Monterey Jack, or my favorite, Oaxaca melting cheese, which I buy in a local Mexican grocery store.
Find the full recipe with measurements below.
How to Make Our Cheesy Bean Dip
Tip 1: Cook the onions with spices. You want your onions to turn soft and sweet, so cook them in a bit of oil wth the garlic. When they smell sweet, stir in the dried spices and let them toast in the pan to really bring out their flavor.
Tip 2: Bring everything together. Once your onions are ready, you’ll stir them with the other dip ingredients (refried beans, salsa, chilies, cream cheese, and sour cream). It doesn’t look like much, but wow, does it turn out delicious.
Tip 3: Add two layers of cheese. Instead of adding all the shredded cheese to the top of your dip. Spread about half of the bean dip mixture into a baking dish, then cover with cheese, add the remaining dip mixture, and top with more cheese. Layering the cheese like this guarantees a cheesy dip every time you go in for more.
Tip 4: Bake until hot. You are looking at about 25 minutes in the oven. Then you want to serve it hot. If you aren’t quite ready to bake, cover the dip and refrigerate until you are. It can sit in the fridge up to 3 days, and then be baked for serving.
Tip 5: Add some toppings. The dip is lovely as is, but you can make it even better by adding a sprinkle of your favorite fresh toppings like diced avocado, chopped tomatoes, onions, or cilantro.
More Favorite Party Appetizers
Cheesy Bean Dip
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Perfect for parties, watching the game, and family gatherings, this easy bean dip comes together in no time. Start with canned refried beans, or use homemade refried beans to make it. I love serving this with homemade tortilla chips!
Watch Us Make the Recipe
You Will Need
1 (15-ounce) can of refried beans or 1 ¾ cups homemade refried beans
1 tablespoon avocado oil or olive oil
¾ cup finely chopped onion, half a medium onion
1 tablespoon minced garlic, 3 cloves
¾ teaspoon ancho chili powder or homemade chili powder
¾ teaspoon ground cumin
½ teaspoon smoked paprika
½ teaspoon ground coriander
½ cup mild or medium salsa, like homemade roasted tomato salsa
1 (4-ounce) can of diced green chilies
½ cup cream cheese (113g or 4oz)
½ cup sour cream (113g or 4oz)
¾ cup shredded cheese like cheddar, Monterey Jack, or Oaxaca cheese (85g or 3oz)
Salt and fresh ground black pepper
Pinch cayenne or hot sauce, optional for spicy dip
Optional toppings: lime juice, diced avocado, guacamole, chopped tomatoes, sliced jalapeño, fresh cilantro, extra hot sauce
Directions
1Prep: Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C). Set aside a small (1 to 1 ½ quart) baking dish or 8-inch cast iron skillet.
2Cook the onions and garlic: Heat 1 tablespoon of oil in a small skillet over medium heat. Add the onions and garlic, then cook, stirring occasionally, until the onions are soft, translucent, and smell sweet, about 5 minutes. Stir in 3/4 teaspoon chili powder, 3/4 teaspoon cumin, 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika, and 1/2 teaspoon coriander.
3Prepare the bean dip: In a medium bowl, stir the refried beans, salsa, diced chilies, cream cheese, and sour cream. When they are ready, stir in the cooked spiced onions and garlic.
4Taste the dip, and then adjust with salt and pepper as needed. To make it spicy, add a pinch of cayenne pepper or a few dashes of hot sauce.
5Bake the bean dip: Transfer half of the dip to a small baking dish. Top with half of the shredded cheese. Then, spread the remaining bean dip over the cheese and finish with the rest of the shredded cheese.
6Bake until hot throughout, and the cheese melted, for 20 to 25 minutes. Serve warm with a spritz of fresh lime juice and any optional toppings.
Adam and Joanne's Tips
- Make-ahead: Make the dip as directed in our recipe below, and then add the dip and cheese to a baking dish. Cover the dish, then refrigerate for up to 3 days until you are ready to bake.
- Diced green chilies: Small 4 ounce cans are sold at the supermarket. We love the Hatch brand and usually purchase mild.
- Vegan adaptations: Use vegan refried beans, vegan sour cream, and vegan cream cheese (a combination of or use just one), as well as vegan shredded cheese or substitute with 4 to 5 tablespoons of nutritional yeast for sprinkling in the middle and on top.
- Slow cooker version: Cook the onions, garlic, and spices as directed in the recipe below, and then add them along with the remaining ingredients to your slow cooker. Stir until well combined, then cook on LOW for 2 to 3 hours or until the cheese melts and the dip is heated throughout.
- The nutrition facts provided below are estimates.
I was given a recipe for white bean hummus and when I shared it I was told by a commenter that it was dip, not hummus. All the ingredients were the same except the beans.
Tried the pork chop recipe and was absolutely delicious. Look forward to trying so many more.
Glad you found us, Vickie!
Wow that’s was amazingly delicious. The spices were well balanced. Had my own ancho chilli powder, ground from dried whole peppers. Only used fine chopped sliced jalapeños & preferred to avoid the cilantro. My taste, but we thank you for always giving us great deals to enjoy & share.
Glad you gave it a try! Thanks for coming back and letting us know how it turned out!
Just made this dip! So so so so so good!!!! I’m writhing this while eating it. I had to. I wasn’t sure if my kids would like it, but they did! Thanks for r awesome recipe!
That’s amazing! So happy you (and your kids) enjoyed it!
Sounds delicious BUT too much for 2 people. Can it be frozen?
Hi Len, You can freeze it. I’d place it into an airtight, freezer-safe container and freeze a month, maybe more.