How to Make Refried Beans with Black Beans

I realized this week I am out of pinto beans!  Calamity!  I felt like my Taco Tuesday night and entire week would fall apart without beans.  Fortunately, my sister Becca was able to spend the weekend in Cancun (so jealous!!) and was reminded that black refried beans are more common in most parts of Mexico.  Duh!!  I forgot!! Adriana always made us black refried beans to go with quesadillas, tamales, tacos, huevos rancheros, chilaquiles, sopes… So for the next several weeks we will be chipping away at the 50lb bag of beautiful Idaho-grown black beans.  Traditional refried beans are cooked with a bit of lard and seasoned with epazote, avacado leaves and dry chiles.  I will keep this recipe “pantry friendly.”  Garnish with fresh cilantro and Cotija, Mexican crumbling cheese. Provecho!  P.S. this side dish #looksgrosstastesgreat

Refried Black Beans

• 4 cups cooked blacked beans in cooking liquid
• 1 Tablespoon olive oil (or other fat)
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 1 teaspoon knorr powdered chicken bouillon (optional)
• 1 Tablespoon Valentina brand hot sauce (optional)
• 1/8 teaspoon chipotle powder

Carefully remove cooked black beans from the pressure cooker and add to the blender with the cooking liquid.  For information on how to cook black beans in the pressure cooker please refer to this post.  Blend the beans and the cooking liquid.  Heat oil or fat in a heavy duty saucepan on medium heat.  Carefully add the pureed beans to the hot oil.  Use caution as the oil will splatter if it is too hot.  Bring to a gentle boil and decrease heat to low.  Allow mixture to reduce for 10-15 minutes.  When the beans are a little runnier than you like them served turn off the heat.  They will continue to reduce upon standing.  If you boil the beans too long you will have dehydrated bean paste.  Season the beans with salt, knorr chicken bouillon (optional), hot sauce of your liking (optional), chipotle or other chili powder.  Garnish with fresh cilantro, and Mexican crumbling cheese, cotija.  For refried beans using pinto beans please refer to this post.  

For more photos keep reading

Preparing refried beans out of dry black beans is so simple!  Step 1: cook beans in a pressure cooker.  Please refer to this post.  Step 2: place beans and cooking liquid into a heavy duty blender and puree.  Step 3: “re-fry” the beans – meaning cook the beans a second time in a pot with some oil.  Step 4:  allow the beans to reduce and thicken.  When the beans are at a thick custard like consistency season with salt, knorr chicken bouillon and chipotle powder.

Enjoy!

As I stated earlier…. #looksgrosstastesgreat