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    Home » Most Recent

    How to Make Refried Beans

    August 9, 2018 By Patrick 48 Comments

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    This is probably the easiest way to make a killer batch of refried beans without spending a couple hours cooking the beans.

    If you want to read about cooking up some beans from scratch see our Frijoles de Olla post.

    But this version starts with cooked beans -- and you can get away with using a can of store-bought beans because you're loading them up with authentic flavors.

    This is a delicious, fiery version of Chicken Tinga. The key is to use both tomatoes and tomatillos, along with plenty of chipotles! mexicanplease.com

    How to Make Refried Beans

    Before we get to the recipe, it's worth heading back in time to see what refried beans were like a few hundred years ago...

    Pot beans get mashed up and cooked in some fat, most likely lard.  Plus maybe a bit of seasoning.

    You really don't need much more than that for a satisfying batch of frijoles refritos, but if you bypass the lard like we're doing today then you gain quite a bit by adding in some additional flavors.  And note that the accepted term "refried" can be a little misleading; you'll only need to cook them off once to make an authentic batch.

    And since this recipe produces such a flavor-bomb, I'm more likely to build a meal out of these beans instead of just serving them up as a side dish.  (See our Nachos, Molletes, and Enfrijoladas for some ideas.)

    Start by cooking 1/2 onion and 2 garlic cloves in some oil over medium heat.  (What kind of onion should I use?)

    This is a delicious, fiery version of Chicken Tinga. The key is to use both tomatoes and tomatillos, along with plenty of chipotles! mexicanplease.com

    You can roughly chop the onion because all of this is going in the blender eventually.  Similarly, I tend to just peel the garlic cloves and plop them in whole.

    The onion will need about 5-8 minutes to soften and that will give you plenty of time to gather the other ingredients.

    I usually drain and rinse the canned beans, so we'll do that with a single can of black beans.

    Homemade Mexican Refried Beans mexicanplease.com

    But keep in mind that you can use pinto beans and get an equally good batch.

    I've also used Peruano beans with a similar recipe and had good results.  Peruanos are also known as Canary beans or Mexican yellow beans.

    Once the onion softens (5-8 minutes) we'll add:

    1 can black beans (drained and rinsed)
    2 chipotles in adobo
    1 tablespoon adobo sauce
    1/2 teaspoon cumin
    1/2 teaspoon salt
    freshly cracked black pepper
    1/2 cup stock (or water)

    This is a delicious, fiery version of Chicken Tinga. The key is to use both tomatoes and tomatillos, along with plenty of chipotles! mexicanplease.com

    I usually cut off the stems and scrape out the seeds of the chipotles.  (More info on working with chipotles in adobo.)

    Let this simmer for a few minutes until everything is at a uniform temp.

    For speed I usually just give this a whirl in the blender, but of course you are welcome to finely dice the ingredients and use a potato masher to mush up the beans directly in the pan.

    After blending, definitely give a taste for seasoning.  Beans are finicky when it comes to seasoning and having the proper level of salt will really make them come alive.  You can also add a bit more heat if you want by adding another chipotle or some more adobo sauce.

    It's tough to beat the combo of warm tortilla chips, melted cheese, and spicy black beans. In other words, NACHOS!! These beans have some kick built into them from chipotles in adobo and they are beyond delicious. mexicanplease.com

    You can use these straight out of the blender, but if your blended batch comes out thinner than you want, simply put it back in the saute pan and cook over medium heat for a few minutes until they thicken up.  If starting over with a dry pan I would probably add some oil to it first (or lard!).

    Similarly, if your batch is having trouble combining in the blender, simply add a splash of water until it combines well.

    You'll end with an addictive batch of refried beans that you can use to make all sorts of on-the-fly meals.

    Serious reward to effort ratio here! We're crisping a corn tortilla and loading it up with spicy black bean puree and a refreshing guacamole. So good! mexicanplease.com

    Even beans and cheese heated up in a corn tortilla will be massively satisfying because the beans already have so much flavor.

    You can also add Guacamole to this combo as seen in our Black Bean and Guacamole Tostadas.

    Serious reward to effort ratio here! We're crisping a corn tortilla and loading it up with spicy black bean puree and a refreshing guacamole. So good! mexicanplease.com

    And as mentioned, you can use these beans in an epic batch of Nachos...

    It's tough to beat the combo of warm tortilla chips, melted cheese, and spicy black beans. In other words, NACHOS!! These beans have some kick built into them from chipotles in adobo and they are beyond delicious. mexicanplease.com

    Or top them with some freshly made Pico de Gallo in some Molletes...

    You probably already have all the ingredients you need for these Molletes (Mexican Bean and Cheese Sandwiches). Try them with some freshly made Pico de Gallo -- so good! mexicanplease.com

    But however you serve them up, they will deliver some real deal flavor and they are a great addition to your kitchen repertoire so please consider making a batch!

    Feel free to use the comments section below if you have any questions about them.

    Buen Provecho.

     

    This is a delicious, fiery version of Chicken Tinga. The key is to use both tomatoes and tomatillos, along with plenty of chipotles! mexicanplease.com

    Easy Refried Beans

    This is a great way to add authentic flavors to a homemade batch of refried beans.
    4.53 from 40 votes
    Print Pin Rate
    Prep Time: 5 minutes minutes
    Cook Time: 10 minutes minutes
    Total Time: 15 minutes minutes
    Servings: 4
    Calories: 89kcal
    Author: Mexican Please

    Ingredients

    • 1 can black beans (or pinto beans)
    • 1/2 onion
    • 2 garlic cloves
    • 2 chipotles in adobo
    • 1 tablespoon adobo sauce
    • 1/2 teaspoon cumin
    • 1/2 teaspoon salt
    • freshly cracked black pepper
    • 1/2 cup stock (or water)

    Instructions

    • Start by peeling 2 garlic cloves and roughly chopping 1/2 onion.  Cook the onion and garlic in a dollop of oil over medium heat (you can leave the garlic cloves whole). 
    • Once the onion is starting to brown, approximately 5-8 minutes, add 1 can beans (drained and rinsed), 2 chipotles in adobo, 1 tablespoon adobo sauce, 1/2 teaspoon cumin, 1/2 teaspoon salt, freshly cracked black pepper, and 1/2 cup stock (or water). Let simmer for a few minutes until heated through and then add everything to a blender, combining well.  
    • Take a final taste for seasoning and heat.  Add more salt if necessary and if you want more heat you can add more chipotles (or adobo sauce).
    • Serve as is or saute them in some oil (or lard!) over medium heat for a few minutes to thicken them up.
    • Store in an airtight container in the fridge.  (Keep in mind that beans don't last long so eat 'em up soon!)

    Notes

    You can always adjust the consistency of the beans by either adding water to thin them out, or if they are too thin you can saute them in some oil over medium heat for a few minutes to thicken them up.
    3 Bean Varieties I Use the Most
    Like this recipe?Click the stars above to rate it or leave a comment down below! @mexplease

     

    We just used these beans to make a batch of Huevos Rancheros.

    If you have some homemade Salsa on hand then you don't need much else for an authentic batch of Huevos Rancheros. We're adding some freshly made refried beans to this batch -- so good! mexicanplease.com

     

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    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Ben

      March 30, 2024 at 7:01 pm

      5 stars
      Money. Made it this morning to use in a breakfast burrito. So good. Thanks!

      Reply
      • Patrick

        April 12, 2024 at 5:07 pm

        Thanks Ben!

        Reply
    2. Robert

      December 04, 2023 at 4:00 pm

      5 stars
      Just a quick question. How big is the 'can of beans' you use in your recipes. Thanks

      Reply
      • Patrick

        December 06, 2023 at 3:34 pm

        Hi Robert, I typically use the 15 oz. cans. Cheers.

        Reply
    3. Luctor Non Mergor

      July 20, 2023 at 4:54 pm

      4 stars
      Made this as part of a first attempt at Tinga de pollo. The most challenging, as I live in Switzerland, was finding the ingredients, especially the chipotle en adobo which I had to mail order... Your refried balck bean recipe was easy and delicious. Thanks!

      Reply
      • Patrick

        July 21, 2023 at 5:59 pm

        Ahh great news, so glad you were able to get some chipotles over there in Switzerland 🙂 I get tons of mileage from this refried beans recipe, hope you do too. Cheers.

        Reply
    4. Cheryl

      June 10, 2023 at 9:37 am

      5 stars
      I made a double batch and used one heaping tablespoon of the chipotle peppers/sauce (all blended into a thick sauce and frozen in a ziplock bag). I thought it might be too spicy for my guests, but they loved them! I also added some shredded Mexican blend cheese while sautéing the blended puree in a bit of oil. Yeah, my Ninja blender made quick work of the beans and perhaps I would leave it a little chunkier next time. Thanks for a great, easy recipe!

      Reply
      • Patrick

        June 12, 2023 at 8:57 pm

        Ahh good to hear, so glad you tried this one out Cheryl! Cheers.

        Reply
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    Hey, I'm Patrick! I spent 2 years living in Cozumel and got obsessed with Mexican food. I built this site to share all the recipes and techniques I've learned along the way. Read More…

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