Authentic Homemade Refried Beans
User Reviews
5
Authentic Homemade Refried Beans
Description
Authentic Homemade Refried Beans rely on dried pinto beans cooked together with bay leaves, chopped onion, garlic, and cilantro stems to develop deep flavor. Cooking can be done in a pressure cooker for convenience or slowly on the stove to tenderize the beans until the skins just start to burst. The addition of bacon drippings adds a subtle smokiness while ground cumin and salt season the dish. Rather than pureeing completely smooth, the beans are blended just enough to keep some bean pieces, giving a pleasing texture that enhances the eating experience.
The final beans have a thick, creamy consistency with occasional soft bean chunks, making them ideal as a side for meats, rice, or in tacos and burritos. The gentle cooking process extracts flavors from the herbs and bacon fat, producing a satisfying savory dish.
To achieve the best results, use dried beans rather than canned, as the longer slow cooking infuses flavors fully. When blending, use short pulses to keep textural interest rather than over-processing to a paste. This recipe demonstrates a traditional approach to making refried beans from scratch.
Ingredients
- 2 cups pinto beans rinsed and sorted, dried
- 6 cups water
- 2 bay leaf
- ¼ cup bacon drippings
- 1 bunch cilantro stems chopped, portion below leaves
- ½ cup onion chopped
- 3 teaspoons garlic chopped
- ½ teaspoon cumin ground
- 1 teaspoons salt
Instructions
Instant Pot or Pressure Cooker Directions
- Put the beans, bay leaves, water, bacon drippings, cilantro stems, chopped onion, and cloves of garlic in the pressure cooker. Stir to combine.
- Lock the lid on the pressure cooker, and bring the cooker up to high pressure.
- Cook on high pressure for 30 minutes in a stovetop pressure cooker or 36 minutes in an electric pressure cooker.
- Turn off the heat and let the pressure come down naturally for about 10 minutes.
- Remove the lid and discard the bay leaves.
Stovetop Directions
- Put beans into a pot and cover beans with at least 3 inches of water - about 3 quarts for 2 1/2 cups of dry beans.
- Bring to a boil and then lower heat to simmer, covered, for about 2½ hours. The cooking time may vary, the beans are done when the skins just begin to burst.
- Saute the bay leaves, cilantro stems, chopped onion, and garlic cloves with the bacon drippings. Saute until the onions and garlic are softened, and the onions are translucent.
- Discard the bay leaves and add the mixture to the beans.
Mashing the Beans
- Drain the beans, and reserve the water.
- Use an immersion blender to mash the beans. Pulse gently, add some of the water that was reserved back to the beans. The amount of water that you will add will depend on how thick you want the beans. I recommend starting with 1/2 cup of water, and adding additional water until you get the consistence you desire.
Notes
- Use dried pinto beans for best flavor and texture over canned beans.
- Pulse the beans with an immersion blender in short bursts, preserving some bean pieces for texture.
- Allow natural pressure release when using a pressure cooker to let flavors develop fully.
Nutrition Information
Show DetailsNutrition Facts
Serving: 8Serving
Amount Per Serving
Calories 134 kcal
% Daily Value*
| Calories | 134kcal | 7% |
| Carbohydrates | 12g | 4% |
| Protein | 4g | 8% |
| Fat | 7g | 11% |
| Saturated Fat | 2g | 10% |
| Cholesterol | 7mg | 2% |
| Sodium | 312mg | 13% |
| Potassium | 205mg | 4% |
| Fiber | 4g | 16% |
| Sugar | 0g | 0% |
| Vitamin A | 15IU | 0% |
| Vitamin C | 1.6mg | 2% |
| Calcium | 32mg | 3% |
| Iron | 1.1mg | 6% |
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet.
User Reviews
Overall Rating
5
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