When cooking beans, never add the salt
until the end. It keeps the beans from softening.
You can use these beans for dip, burritos or just fix a bowl of beans, top with
chopped onions and serve with cornbread.
Need beans in a hurry and don't have time to wait overnight? Place beans in a
pot after cleaning, cover with water and bring beans to a boil. Take off the
heat and let sit 1/2 hour. Drain off the water and continue cooking as usual.
Or an even quicker method is to buy cooked pinto beans in a jar and proceed to
the refried beans part of the recipe.
Mexican Refried Beans
2 C. dry Pinto Beans
7 C. water or more as needed
2 t. lard or peanut oil
1 C. onion chopped
2 garlic cloves
1 t. chili powder
1 t. salt
Pick thru the beans watching for gravel and grit. Rinse them and put them in a
pot covered with water overnight. Drain beans.
Put in a stockpot or dutch oven and add the water. Bring to a boil and then turn
down to medium heat, add onions, oil and garlic. Stir beans often and cook for
about 1 1/2 hours until beans are tender. Add water as needed. Add the chili
powder and salt. The beans are done when the are soft and creamy. Cool.
To make refried beans:
Add 2 T. lard or peanut oil to a skillet, add 2 more minced garlic cloves. Add 3
C. of the beans and mash. Add 1 C. of the bean liquid until you reach a fairly
smooth and moist consistency.
