Recipe

Refried Black Beans

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Photo by aargersi

This recipe was entered in the contest for Your Best Recipe for Beans
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aargersi's Notes: Here in the Southwest we eat a LOT of beans of all sorts - as a side dish, main dish, dip, breakfast lunch or dinner, stuffing for a tamale or empanada, BBQ, south of the border - you get...
Here in the Southwest we eat a LOT of beans of all sorts - as a side dish, main dish, dip, breakfast lunch or dinner, stuffing for a tamale or empanada, BBQ, south of the border - you get the idea. Think Bubba and his shrimp in Forrest Gump. These beans are a great dip or side, or a starting place for .. (see above)

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Serves 4-6

Beans - part 1:

1 cup dry black beans Ask a question about this ingredient

1 dry ancho chili Ask a question about this ingredient

3 tablespoons cumin Ask a question about this ingredient

1 tablespoon salt Ask a question about this ingredient

1 tablespoon olive oil Ask a question about this ingredient

soak the beans for 6-8 hours (or overnight - extra time won't hurt them) with 2 tbs cumin
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remove the stem and seeds from the chili and coarsly chop it
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drain the water from the beans and put all of the ingredients in a pot, cover with water and simmer until very soft. ** NOTE - I got a pressure cooker for Christmas and it cooked my beans in SEVEN, yes SEVEN minutes. Get a pressure cooker is my advice. ** NOTE 2 - if you haven't the time or patience to cook dry beans, just simmer 3 cups of canned beans with the above ingredients for a few minutes, using only 1 tbs cumin, and proceed.
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Beans - part 2:

2 tablespoons olive oil Ask a question about this ingredient

1/2 medium yellow onion Ask a question about this ingredient

2 cloves garlic Ask a question about this ingredient

2 tablespoons chopped fresh oregano Ask a question about this ingredient

2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro, plus more for serving Ask a question about this ingredient

juice from 1 lime Ask a question about this ingredient

queso fresco Ask a question about this ingredient

corn tortillas Ask a question about this ingredient

olive oil non - stick spray Ask a question about this ingredient

chili lime salt or cumin and kosher salt Ask a question about this ingredient

heat olive oil to medium and saute onions til they sweat. add the garlic and saute a couple more minutes.
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add the black beans and oregano. Saute for 2-3 more minutes.
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turn off the heat. Add the cilantro and lime. Using a potato masher or big fork, mash the beans to a coarse texture (you want them to retain some "beaniness").
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serve with crumbled queso fresco, cilantro, and chili lime chips (see below) . A good Mexican beer is highly recommended.
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CHILI LIME CHIPS: heat the oven to 400. Spray a sheet with non-stick spray. Cut the tortillas into quarters and lay them on the sheet (the number depends on how many chips you want), spray them again with non-stick. Sprinkle them with chili lime salt (see my TRIO OF CITRUS SALTS recipe) OR salt and cumin. Bake until golden and crunchy.
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4 Comments on Refried Black Beans

onesweepotato added about 1 year ago

I made a variation on this recipe this week to create black beans and have used them in several dishes (quesadillas, huevos rancheros, taco salad, nachos).

Loved the suggestion to use cumin infused water to soak the beans.