A couple of years ago, my husband and I went to Mexico on holiday. The food was good at the hotel, though it was all aimed at tourists. There was a vast difference between the ‘posh’ version of Mexican food we were served in the hotel, and the street food we ate in the towns and villages we visited during our stay. The street food was amazing – huge trays of blackened, locally caught fish, pots of fragrant, spiced rice, bean stews and delicious dips and sauces. The only thing I found that was the same inside the hotel, as outside was the Refried Beans, and I absolutely loved them! I ate refried beans every morning, for breakfast with tortillas, followed by fresh fruit and a mimosa. An odd combination, but I was on holiday, anything goes and that’s what I wanted.
A local tour guide recited his mother’s Refried Beans recipe to me after I gushed about how good they were. We were walking around a town square at the time so I couldn’t write it down, but I started working on the recipe as soon as I got home, and I think I’m pretty close to the taste I experienced over there. So, unfortunately, this recipe isn’t authentic, but that is entirely the fault of my memory. This is my version, so feel free to add chilli flakes if you want it spicy, or use a smoky paprika to get a slightly different flavour.
It stores really well in an air-tight container in the fridge. It might dry out a little, but if that’s a problem, just mix a tablespoon of water into the beans and re-heat in the microwave for a few mins.
Serve with tortilla dippers as a snack or starter, or on a wrap or in a Quesadilla for lunch. These Refried Beans go great with my Smashed Avocado recipe .
Ready in 20mins (10mins prep, 10mins cook) – serves 2
Ingredients:
- 1 tablespoon of olive oil
- 1 red onion, finely diced (See my How to here)
- 1 large clove of garlic, crushed and finely chopped
- 1 teaspoon of paprika
- 1 teaspoon of cumin
- Half a teaspoon of cayenne pepper
- A good pinch of black pepper
- A good pinch of salt
- 1 table spoon of lemon juice
- 1 tin of black beans
Method:
- Put the oil and onion in a pan, on the hob over a medium/high heat.
- Fry for a few mins until the onion is soft, then add the garlic.
- Fry for 2mins, then add the rest of the ingredients, apart from the beans.
- Fry for 2mins, stirring often to infuse the spices, then add the black beans, including the juice from the can.
- Once the mixture is bubbling, turn the heat down and simmer for 10mins, stirring regularly.
- Take the pan off the heat and with a potato masher, mash up the mixture. It wont end up completely smooth, you’re just breaking the beans down a bit.
- Serve hot.
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