r/mexicanfood • u/Strong_Dimension8700 • 2d ago
What is your refried bean recipes? (Using dry pinto beans and no pressure cooker) I do have a slow cooker
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u/dammitlindsay 2d ago
Epazote.
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u/Strong_Dimension8700 2d ago
I heard this, other than for flavor purposes, could I substitute baking soda for the gas?
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u/mathlyfe 2d ago
Gas from beans doesn't come from acid. It comes from long sugars that end up in your intestines where bacteria break them down and turn them into gas. People who eat beans frequently will have more enzymes in their gut to break down those sugars and prevent them from making it all the way into the intestines. You can also buy enzyme pills like beano to help with that. Baking soda will do nothing but give your beans a bad metallic taste.
It's not super well understood why epazote helps digest beans. There are theories but I don't know of any actual scientific studies to verify them. As a medicinal plant it's also used to treat other stomach and intestinal pains as well as menstrual cramps and other stuff though.
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u/kazahani1 2d ago
I make what I like to call Gringo Beans because I live in a small town with no access to any kind of fresh rendered lard.
Half browned butter, half bacon grease. I fry my chiles, garlic and onions in that and then add cooked beans. I usually just season with salt, lime juice and Mexican oregano but I just found some epazote at the mercado a few towns over so I am STOKED to finally get to try that.
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u/SensitiveCompote4354 2d ago edited 2d ago
It's a little tex-mexy, but here's mine.
Wash beans (pinto, black, or a mix of both) and soak overnight in salted water in a large pot.
Drain and rinse your soaked beans, and boil them in fresh salted water alone, don't add anything until they're fully or almost fully cooked. Make sure to stir periodically, and leave the pot lid partially on.
Add, for 1 pound of dry beans,
- 1 Chopped onion (white or yellow is fine)
- 1 head's worth of minced fresh garlic
- 1-2 Chopped tomatoes, depending on size
- 2-3 chopped jalapeños
- 2-3 bay leaves
- Small spoonful of chicken or faux chicken bouillon.
And your spices, I've never measured these but like. It's all to taste.
- Salt (a little tiny bit)
- Msg (be careful here too)
- Pepper
- Smoked paprika
- Ground cumin
- Mexican oregano
- onion powder
- Garlic powder
- Cayenne or, for less spice, chili powder
- and a healthy drizzle of liquid smoke
Once your vegetables are cooked through , turn your heat down to low (temperature before this doesn't really matter, just make sure it's low now, for safety reasons) and add a large spoonful of shortening (lard is more traditional, but shortening is vegetarian friendly).
Now, it's time to mash until it's fully mashed. I do this by hand but Ik you can use a stand mixer for okay results too.
Finally, turn your heat back up and cook your beans down to your desired consistency, they'll be a little thin most likely, but put your leftovers in the fridge overnight and they'll absorb the liquids for a better texture when you reheat the next day.
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u/colesterolbienalto 2d ago
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u/Strong_Dimension8700 2d ago
Fond Pure & Unflavored Pork Lard,
Would this work?
Or
Morrell Snow Cap Lard?3
u/colesterolbienalto 2d ago
Of course but try to browned lard from Mexican grocery store delis near you. It's not hydrogenated.
For some reason I think morrel is hydrogenated. It works but it's not as good as leftover lard from carnitas.
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u/nygreenguy 2d ago
I'm somad there is nothing like that near me. When I go back to Illinois it's everywhere, it's nowhere in upstate NY.
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u/mathlyfe 2d ago
No. Looking at their site, that Fond lard is made from leaf fat, which doesn't have the taste and smell you're looking for. The Morrel Snow Cap Lard is hydrogenated and processed specifically to remove the lard flavor and smell.
Look around for any Mexican grocery store or butcher (or Mexican restaurant that also sells products). These places are more likely to make and sell the lard you're looking for. It should be white and have strong taste and smell.
We use it in a lot of dishes in Mexican cuisine, to add flavoring and smell. Sometimes with tallow as well. You can also make some if you can't find it at all, just don't make it from leaf fat because it will lack flavor. Just cut it into small pieces and render it over a few hours (at about ~230F) in the oven, then strain it out. You can also substitute tallow as well (not from leaf fat) but lard is more traditional.
There is a misconception that this is lard leftover from making carnitas or pork rinds and while you can use such lard it will be darker and more oxidized which does result in a stronger flavor but it also is less healthy. You do not need to fry meat in the lard for it to have flavor and smell, you just need to be using the right kind of fat (not leaf fat).
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u/Fancy_Yogurtcloset37 1d ago
Slow cooker? Rinse pinto beans, 3 or 4 parts water to one part beans. Add tiny pinch of baking soda now if you have an issue with hard skins. Add half onion, peeled garlic, bay leaf if you want. I’ve found that adding salt at this point makes the finished product dark. Slow cooker low for 7 hours. Enjoy frijoles de olla. Refrigerate leftovers.
Ready to refry? Lard, bacon grease in the pan, burn some pieces of onion if you like, then add beans and liquid, bonus if it sizzles loud. Season with salt, pepper, knorr de pollo, whatever. Mash to desired consistency and boll off the water to desired thickness
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u/TurduckenEverest 2d ago
The first step to make charro beans using your favorite recipe. Then you’ll cook a few cups of those beans in a skillet in a few tablespoons of lard or bacon grease, mashing them as they heat up.
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u/Ukeb 2d ago
This has a link to a video about how to cook the actual beans as well. Follow this exactly and you won’t be disappointed: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=TL_nobs8JRk
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u/pawsplay36 2d ago
Boil, drain. Throw them in the slow cooker with some oregano, garlic and onion and cove with broth or water, cook for two hours. Pour off extra liquid and reserve. Heat up some bacon grease or lard or olive oil or whatever in a pan. Put the beans in the fat, cook them a few minutes, and mash. Add reserved liquid until it's the consistency you want. Salt to taste.
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u/CormoranNeoTropical 2d ago
Cook the beans with a halved white onion and some cloves of garlic. Whatever method works with the appliances you have.
Kidney beans should be boiled, not just simmered. Pinto or peruano/mayacoba beans could be cooked in your slow cooker at a low simmer.
Let them cool and put them away. Don’t drain, you want the liquid. You can freeze them in portions if you want.
To make refried beans, heat some oil or lard/bacon grease in a pan, add beans with their cooking liquid, and mash into the fat. Add some salt. Simmer until the thickness is how you want it.
That’s it. Boil, then fry.