Taco Tuesday with Homemade Re-fried Beans

Almost every week we have Taco Tuesday. Sometimes we have it as a vegetarian meal or sometimes I’ll include some ground turkey or beef cooked with a bit of chili powder. It is a great meal that kids love because they can add all the ingredients themselves.

We fill the table with dishes of chopped tomatoes, lettuce, salsa, hot sauce, guacamole, plain avocado, black olives, sour cream or yogurt, grated cheese, flour tortillas, organic corn tortillas, limes, and re-fried bean (frijoles refritos).
  

I used to buy frijoles refritos but decided to start making them myself when I found out about BPA in the lining of tins. This is the easiest recipe that I have found for making re-fried beans from scratch. It really isn’t hard and you can even cook the beans the night before and just fry them up right before dinner. The beans take about 2 hours to cook so you can put on a pot right after dinner the night before and they will be ready to refrigerate before bedtime.

 

Homemade Refried Beans
(Easy Frijoles Refritos)

Because the beans will be mashed there is no need to pre-soak them. Just assemble the following in a pot, cover with water and bring to a boil:

• 1 cup dried black beans
• ½ onion chopped
• 2 cloves garlic chopped
• 2 bay leaves

1. Keep on a gentle boil for 1 - 2 hours, checking the water level and insuring that beans are always covered.
2. After an hour, test to see if they are done (eat one!). Check every 20 minutes or so.  When they are ready strain them and set water to one side.
3. Now you can refrigerate the beans overnight and do the next step before dinner or just continue.
4. In a large frying pan heat some olive oil over a medium heat.  Add the following,

• ½ chopped onion
• 2 med chopped garlic cloves
• ½ - 1 tsp cumin
• 1/2 tsp salt, more to taste

Fry together until the cumin is pungent about 2 mins. Add beans and mash them while frying. You can add some of the reserved water to get the right consistency. Add more salt to taste. Enjoy!

These guys freeze well so you can always double the recipe and freeze the leftovers for next time. Just add a bit of water as needed when reheating.
 

 

¡buen provecho