Refried Beans

Ingredients

• 2 cup dry pinto beans (Sort through to remove stones or debris, then rinse.)
• 8 cup water (Plus more as needed during cooking.)
• 1 white onion (Half cut into wedges and half diced.)
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• 0.75 tsp sea salt (Plus more to taste.)
• 0.5 tsp dried oregano
• black pepper (Freshly ground; use several grinds.)
• 2 tbsp avocado oil
• 2 garlic cloves (Chopped.)
• 2 tbsp fresh lime juice (Plus more to taste.)

Steps

1. 1

   Place the beans in a colander. Sort through them to remove and discard any stones or debris, then rinse them well.

2. 2

   Place the rinsed beans in a large pot. Add the water, onion wedges, ground cumin, sea salt, dried oregano, and several grinds of black pepper.

3. 3

   Bring the pot to a boil and skim off any foam that rises to the surface. Reduce the heat to low and simmer for 1 hour.

4. 4

   Check the beans. If they are not fully tender, continue simmering and check them every 15 minutes until tender, for up to 90 minutes more. Add water as needed if the pot begins to dry out.

5. 5

   Place a fine-mesh strainer over a large bowl. Drain the beans into the strainer, reserving the cooking liquid in the bowl.

6. 6

   Heat the avocado oil in a large skillet over medium heat.

7. 7

   Add the diced onion and chopped garlic. Cook, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes, or until the onion is soft and translucent.

8. 8

   Stir in the cooked beans and reduce the heat to low.

9. 9

   Add ½ cup of the reserved bean cooking liquid. Use a potato masher to mash the beans to your desired consistency, adding more cooking liquid ½ cup at a time as needed. The recipe typically uses 1 to 1½ cups of cooking liquid in total.

10. 10

    For smoother refried beans, blend them with an immersion blender, or transfer them to a food processor and process until smooth.

11. 11

    Add the lime juice. Taste the beans and add more salt and lime juice as desired; the author typically adds another 1 teaspoon salt and ½ tablespoon lime juice.

12. 12

    Serve as a side dish or use in burritos, taquitos, quesadillas, bean dip, tacos, enchiladas, or chilaquiles. Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days; the beans also freeze well.

Notes

For a faster alternative, use 3 (14-ounce) cans of pinto beans, drained and rinsed. Skip the dried-bean cooking steps; add 1 teaspoon ground cumin, ¾ teaspoon sea salt, and ½ teaspoon dried oregano to the skillet with the beans, and use water or vegetable broth instead of bean cooking liquid while mashing. Cooked pinto beans can be prepared in advance and stored in their cooking liquid in the refrigerator for up to 4 days or frozen for up to 3 months. Suggested garnishes include fresh cilantro, jalapeños, Cotija cheese, or queso fresco.

Nutrition per serving

• side dish
• vegetarian
• vegan
• gluten-free
• Mexican
• Tex-Mex
• stovetop
• make-ahead