The Trials and Tribulations of Pinto Beans

This recipe came about from my stubbornness in buying canned pinto beans. Nothing wrong with it (heck, I buy canned black and white beans all the time), but it was always something my family did, making pinto beans from the dried version. However, I have failed at this quite a few times. My first attempt was mushy, the second pithy, and the third had no bacon. Yep, utter failure. However, much to the chagrin of my girlfriend, I wanted to try them again. I had tried the stove before, but this time I was going to take the super slow cooking method, the crock-pot. Sweet.

First thing is first, buy a pound of dried pinto beans. If they come with "ham flavoring packets", THROW IT OUT. If I want that kind of flavor, I will buy ramen. Sort through the beans to make sure there are no stones, then place in a big pot and cover with water at least 3 inches above the beans. Soak overnight. This was the first mistake I had; I did not soak them the first time I made them. Do not skip this step; the beans need to take on a lot of water. In the morning, drain the beans and place in a crock-pot. Next comes the best part, throwing everything in and walking away. You will need:

1 onion, peeled and quartered
1 jalapeno cut in half
2 cloves of garlic, peeled
1 smoked ham hock (or a few slices of bacon)
Salt
Pepper
Cumin
Cayenne
Water

Add the first four ingredients to the pot, and then add water. And ahem, the ham hock or bacon is not optional; you need the smoky flavor to round out the beans. Trust me. Add enough water to cover the beans by about 4 inches. Season heavily, stir, cover, and turn the crock-pot on low. Walk away for about 8 hours. That easy. Taste your beans after about 8 hours, they should be tender but still have a little firmness, and they should not be pithy, but moist on the inside. Fish out the onion, jalapeno, and bacon, discard. Serve the beans with steak, chicken, tortillas, rice, or whatever you feel like. If you enjoy chiles as much as I do, add a can of diced green chiles after the beans are done cooking.

So there you have it. After my mistakes, you benefit by knowing it is really hard to screw these up (because I have not done it yet). Not only are these tasty, but really good for you and quite economical. I have not gone back to canned beans since; hopefully you can do the same.

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Beans!

I have to say, beans are not usually followed in any recipe with an exclamation point. In fact, the foods that have a "!" on the end are usually processed bags of blah. Next time you peruse through the grocery store, watch out for them.

But I'm getting off topic. This is about beans, or rather, beans! More specifically refried beans. A staple to many Mexican dishes but probably only found in your diet as a side at a Mexican restaurant or in a Taco Bell burrito. Not the way they were originally intended. Taking a page from my pseudo Hispanic heritage (I grew up near Mexico) I like to put beans in lots of foods. More importantly, my girlfriend loves them. Why? Because they are simply delicious!

Refried beans come from re-cooking pinto beans and mashing them into a kind of paste. While this sounds mildly displeasing, they are actually quite tasty. I have made my own before, and while they are quite good, they take a bit of time with the soaking, the cooking, the cooling, the mashing, and anything else I can think of to get a smooth texture. In my opinion its much better to go with the canned variety. I like Rosarita Fat-Free. Yes, I said fat free, so deal with it. I promise you will not be disappointed.

A small tangent I would like to go for is the wonderful health benefits of beans. Full of fiber, vitamins, and protein while being devoid of fat, cholesterol, and loads of calories, pretty much every other country in the world eats more beans than we do. And most of them live longer. Get it? The refried variety show up in a lot of my dishes, so before I go off on those I have to explain how I make beans. So here we go.

Refried Beans

1 can Rosarita Fat-Free Beans
1-2 T bacon fat
1-2 oz shredded cheese (Cheddar and Colby-Jack work best)
2ish T of milk

Whoa, whoa, I know, I said buy fat free, and now I want you to add bacon fat? Yes, I do. First of all, 1-2 tablespoons of the stuff split between four people is much healthier than anything you shamelessly ate the last time you walked into a fast food joint. And more importantly, pork fat rules! It lends a smoky flavor that cannot be matched by any other fat put into beans. And if you do not have bacon fat, save some the next time you make bacon. I keep a small container in my fridge at all times. If you think about it, many great dishes would taste better with bacon fat than butter.

So back to our beans. Heat a small pot over medium-low heat, add the bacon fat until it melts, and add the beans, stirring to incorporate the two. Add the milk and cheese and stir. Vary the amount of each to accommodate your desired consistency. Heat until the cheese melts, and serve.

Yep, no seasoning. If you want some spice, you can add whatever you like. No need for salt thanks to the cheese. You can serve these on the side or use them for burritos, tacos, and many other goodies. They are the base for my Indian Fry Bread, which I will post in the near future.

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