Frijoles Refritos (Refried Beans)

[Raine]

Frijoles Refritos
(Refried Beans)


4 Cups pinto beans -- cooked & mashed
12 Ounces evaporated milk
2 Tablespoons shortening -- melted
1/2 Pound cheddar cheese -- shredded
Salsa De Chile Colorado

Mash beans in skillet and add hot oil. Mix well. Stir in evaporated miklk. Cook over very low heat, stirring frequently.

Before serving, refry beans by adding 2 tablespoons smoking hot fat, shredded cheese to taste and some Salsa and stir briskly over high heat.

[Lugaru]

Hmm.. what you've got there is practically what we call Frijoles Puercos in mexico (pork or fat beans) with the adition of cheese and so on. The only thing I would add to your beans to finish the conversion into frijoles puercos would be a little bit of meat (idealy northern chorizo, if not diced breakfast sausage patties give great results).

For refried beans as simply refried beans what I do is get some oil REALLY hot in the skillet pour in most of the liquid from my cooked beans (I go canned a lot, goya is trustable) and let that change color, next I add the actual beans and once they have fried a little I mash them in the skillet with the heat still going using a potato or bean masher. The important thing is to keep the heat up so the bottom keeps forming crusts that you keep mixing into the beans making it thicker and giving it a strong, ritch taste.

BTW Rainee thank you so much for posting all these bean recipies! I think beans is one food many people need to discover, most people have a bad impresion of them but they are REALLY good for you and delicious when made right. I've had quite a few people tell me they didint like beans before they tasted mine because well... most poeple are just used to canned baked beans which do neither real baked beans or any other kind any justice.

[mudbug]

Lugaru, let me ask you - aren't "traditional" refried beans cooked with lard?

[Lugaru]

Originally Posted by mudbug

Lugaru, let me ask you - aren't "traditional" refried beans cooked with lard?

Yes and no. Frijoles puercos in the traditional sense where always cooked with lard but refried beans kinda depended from grandma to grandma, kinda like asking if grits are traditionally cooked with lard. Personally Im pretty delicate when it comes to fats and oils so I tend to avoid the heavier stuff but any one who dosent mind using lard in another dish would love it for beans.

[mudbug]

Thanks. I don't use lard, but I think it gets a bum rap sometimes. And, BTW, we LOVE beans here - just about any kind. I agree with the health aspects.

[mudbug]

Lugaru, try this recipe of middie's for white bean soup. Really good!

http://www.discusscooking.com/viewto...t=sausage+soup

[Michael in FtW]

I have a few neighbors that are from Mexico and according to them "frijoles refritos" are basically mashed cooked beans cooked a second time in lard.

Of course, just like any Italian Grandma's cooking, there are variations on the theme .... with garlic, onion, cummin and/or oregano, chiles ..... but the basic theme is mashed beans cooked in a cast iron skillet with lard.

[Pam Leavy]

I add garlic and onions to canned.


Pam

[jpinmaryland]

I sort of do it like Lugaru says, really scorching the beans in the hot bacon fat.

I definitely like to add garlic, I love garlic and so for me, you have got to have it in this dish.

I dont know if it's traditional to add piquante or hot sauce but I do. I think the trick here is timing, add hot sauce near the end of the cooking, cook long enuf to bring the hot spiceness out but too long and you will lose this taste. About 2 or 3 minutes I guess. Use your nose to tell you when the hot sauce is in "full bloom" and then stop the cooking process.