Add to: Recipe Box | Grocery List | Meal PlannerRecipe submitted by
kupstas@cs.unc.edu (Eileen Kupstas)
Refried Beans 2/3 cup pinto beans
1/3 cup kidney beans
2-3 large onions (or more), chopped
4-6 cloves garlic (or more), chopped
2-3 bell peppers (or more), chopped
1-2 hot peppers (more or less, to taste), chopped
Soak the beans overnight (or use favorite soaking method). I use 4 cups to 2 cups of beans -- yes, this makes a lot of beans, but they freeze well.
Change water, if desired, and simmer until beans are mashed easily by a fork (check after 1 hour, they'll probably be done by 1-1/2 hours).
Meanwhile:
Saute in olive oil (separately or together, you decide) onions, garlic, bell peppers, and hot peppers.
Now drain the beans fairly thoroughly. Mush (I use a hand mixer - take about 2 cups at a time in a bowl and pulverize with mixer. Put the mush back and get another two cups. Continue until you get desired consistency. I like mine slightly chunky. You could also use a potato masher,fork, food processor; whatever is at hand will probably work.) If you like thinner refried beans, add some of the cooking water as you mush.
Add the sauteed vegetables and mix. Add hot salsa (about 1/2 cup for this amount of beans) or chopped, fresh tomatoes. Add salt and pepper. Add anything else that strikes your fancy - parsley, cilantro, tabasco sauce, dill, black olives, cinnamon (Not ALL of these, of course...)
Purists may now put the beans in a frying pan (probably in several batches) and thicken up - I eat them as is.
The main fat in this comes from the olive oil used in saute-ing. You can use as much or as little as you want. (I generally use 6-8 tablespoons for this amount of stuff - not a whole lot in a gallon of refrieds..)
Source: The original author of this recipe is unkown.
