Oct 2011

Crockpot Refried Beans

My husband is a huge fan of refried beans, so much that he insists on putting them on every kind of Mexican food that he eats. The poor man has never had homemade refried beans before, only because every recipe I found seemed somewhat daunting. I don’t own a pressure cooker, so most recipes required you to boil the dry beans for up to 3 hours. Who has time for that? Certainly I don’t.

That was, until I recently for a recipe for refried beans made in the crockpot. Genius! Simply add the beans, onions, and spices to the crockpot, fill it with water and let the crockpot do it’s magic for 8 hours. It cooks the beans beautifully, and the combination of the onion and spices makes the house smell awesome while it cooks. There is also no need to add any lard or fat, so the beans are healthier than the canned variety. My husband declared at dinner that these beans were better than the refried beans at a certain Mexican chain restaurant (you know, the one that rhymes with Jipotle ). That my friends, makes this recipe a winner in my book.

Crockpot Refried Beans
Yields: About 6 cups of beans

Ingredients:
3 cups of dry pinto beans (rinsed)
1 onion, diced
9 cups of water
2 teaspoons salt
2 teaspoons pepper
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/8 teaspoon ground cumin

Directions:
Put all the ingredients in a crockpot and cook on high for about 8 hours.

When they are done cooking, drain all of the liquid and set aside. Using a potato masher, mash the beans until they reach your desired consistency. (If you prefer them really smooth, you can also run them through a food processor). Add the reserved liquid until you reach your desired consistency.

*Freezer Friendly Tip* - This recipe makes a lot of refried beans, so freeze leftovers in a freezer safe container, and reheat as needed.

Source: Real Mom Kitchen