Refried Beans

A staple in Mexican cuisine, refried beans were not easy for me to learn to make. It took me years of experience and learning to cook with love to finally get these right. Serve these with your main dishes or as a quick snack in a corn tortilla with salsa and cheese. Provecho!

Ingredients

1 cup pinto beans

1 cube Knorr Suiza bouillon or couple strips of bacon

half onion

salt

Directions

Wash pinto beans and soak overnight.

Place beans in a pot cover with water by over 1 inch. Add bouillon or bacon, onion and salt. Cook over medium heat until water boils. Lower heat to low and cook for 2 hours. Test consistency of beans, when al dente, they’re ready. Make sure you’re checking on the beans and add water as needed.

Alternatively, you can add the same ingredients to a slow cooker and cook on high for about 4 hours. Also keep an eye on the beans and add water as needed.

Once the beans are cooked, add 1/4 cup of oil (I’ve been using Sunflower oil as of late) and cook on medium until hot. Pour beans into the pan, the oil will splatter so add in spoonfuls carefully. Use a splatter shield if you’d like to be more careful. Make sure to add some of the bean juice in there too, so it just barely covers the beans.

Cook to a boil and lower the heat. Mash the beans until almost smooth. I use a bean masher because it allows for better mashing. A potato masher works, but will leave the beans more chunky.

Cook on low for 20 minutes. Taste and add salt if needed.

You’re ready to enjoy your tacos de frijolitos. Yum!