Basic Black Beans and Refried Beans Recipe

Instructions

1. 1

   Pick through the beans, removing any imperfect beans, place in a colander and rinse under cold water until the water runs clear.

2. 2

   Place in a large bowl and cover by double the volume, soak overnight. You don’t actually need to soak them overnight but if you do, it significantly shortens the cooking time the next day.

3. 3

   The next day, place the beans and the soaking liquid in a pot with the onion and garlic and bring to a boil for about 10 minutes and then lower the heat to simmer for about 1 hour or until the beans are tender to bite. Add the salt and cook until the beans are really creamy on the inside, about 10-15 minutes more. Do not drain

4. 4

   Make the sofrito. In a large pot or large pan, heat the oil, add the onion and cook until translucent, about 10 minutes. Add the minced garlic and cook for 1 minute.

5. 5

   With a slotted spoon start adding the beans by spoonful until all the beans have been added and incorporated into the onion-garlic mixture, stirring as you go. Once all the beans have been stirred in add the salt and whole jalapeno. Cook for 3 minutes.

6. 6

   Add the bean cooking liquid by spoonful until you have added about 1½ cups. Add the cumin, bay leaf and more salt to taste. Cook for 10 minutes or so, so that all the flavours come together. At this point you can mash some of the beans so that you have a traditional refried bean texture. Makes about 5 cups beans. Note: You can freeze the beans at the end of Step 3, save the water and freeze that separately.