Bisabuelitas Crock Pot Refried Beans Vegetarian Food

REFRIED BEANS WITHOUT THE REFRY

Steps:

• Place the onion, rinsed beans, jalapeno, garlic, salt, pepper, and cumin into a slow cooker. Pour in the water and stir to combine. Cook on High for 8 hours, adding more water as needed. Note: if more than 1 cup of water has evaporated during cooking, then the temperature is too high.
• Once the beans have cooked, strain them, and reserve the liquid. Mash the beans with a potato masher, adding the reserved water as needed to attain desired consistency.

BISABUELITA'S CROCK POT REFRIED BEANS (VEGETARIAN)

Steps:

• Soak beans at least 4 hours or up to 12 hours in plenty of water. (I soak the beans in the crock pot.).
• Add to the beans one of the garlic cloves, finely minced, 2 tablespoons of the onion, bay leaf and a dash of black pepper.
• Cover and cook on HIGH for 2-3 hours (or until beans start to boil) then cook on LOW for approximately 5-6 additional hours. Or cook on LOW all day for about 9-10 hours.
• Once cooking time has commenced, check to see if beans are soft. DO NOT drain!
• Heat a cast iron skillet* on medium heat and saute the onion, other garlic clove, cumin powder, and oregano in a little bit of oil. With a slotted spoon, transfer the cooked beans to the skillet and begin by mashing using a potato masher. Add some reserved cooking liquid to help mash; mashing to desired consistency. (I puree most of the beans as we like our beans on the soupy side.).
• Once the beans are mashed to your liking, stir in the liquid smoke and butter, and about 1 teaspoon salt. Cook, stirring constantly until butter is melted. Taste and adjust all seasonings. You will probably need more salt.
• Serve and garnish each serving with a sprinkle of grated cheddar cheese and some green onion slices.
• Save about 2 cups of the reserved cooking liquid for reheating the refried beans. DO NOT use water to rehydrate!
• *Cast iron will alter the color of the beans. This does NOT effect the taste.

EASY VEGETARIAN CROCK POT REFRIED BEANS (WITHOUT LARD!)

Steps:

• Rinse beans under water and pick through, discarding any weird broken bean pieces or other debris. Place beans in a 3-quart or larger Crock Pot and fill Crock Pot with water to about 2 - 3 inches above the beans. Cover and let sit overnight, or for at least 8 hours.
• Discard soaking water by pouring beans into a colander. Rinse beans. Return beans to the Crock Pot.
• Add vegetable broth, olive oil, garlic, onion powder, cumin, chili powder, and salt.
• Cook on low for 8 - 10 hours, until beans are cooked through.
• Turn off Crock Pot and remove lid to allow beans to cool a bit so that they're safer to handle. Using an immersion blender, blend beans to desired consistency (you might like your beans to be 100% smooth, or chunky with a few beans still left whole). A note on liquid level: Crock Pots can vary, so if before blending, the liquid is still above the level of the beans, you may want to skim a little off and reserve the liquid for possibly thinning later on. Mine cook down and end up at the perfect consistency with exactly 3 cups vegetable broth, and I don't need to remove any of the liquid before blending.
• Turn Crock Pot back on to low and let pureed beans sit and cook for another 30 minutes or so. This will help the beans to thicken up and the flavors to develop.
• Taste and add additional salt if desired. I actually like to use 2 teaspoons kosher salt up front, but I like mine a bit salty. If beans are too thick, add additional vegetable broth and stir. If beans are too thin, let sit for a little longer and they will thicken up nicely.
• Squeeze half a lime over the top of the beans before serving, if desired.
• These keep in the refrigerator in an airtight container for 2 - 3 days, or you can keep them frozen for several months. They will thicken after sitting. Just thin with vegetable broth or water to the desired consistency.

REFRIED BEANS (CROCK POT)

Steps:

• Sort and rinse dried beans; place in crockpot and cover with water (by several inches) and soak overnight.
• In the morning, drain and rinse beans (discarding soaking water).
• Return beans to crock pot, and add 6 cups water and the salt.
• Cover and cook on low for 10-12 hours or until beans are nice and tender.
• Drain cooked beans, reserving cooking liquid.
• Mash beans and return to crock (or may mash in the crock pot).
• In a small skillet, saute onion and garlic in lard or butter until tender and lightly golden; add to crock pot.
• Stir in chopped green chillies and ground cumin, adding some of the reserved cooking liquid to adjust the consistency as desired.
• Cover crock, and cook on high for 15-30 minutes or until heated through nicely, stirring occasionallly (may add additional liquid if needed).
• Adjust salt, if necessary, before serving.
• Garnish with cheese or chopped onion, if desired.

VEGETARIAN REFRIED BEANS

Steps:

• Place the beans in a large saucepan, and cover with an inch of water. Place over high heat, and bring to a boil. When the beans have come to a boil, drain, and return them to the same pot. Cover the beans with 2 inches of water, and stir in 1 tablespoon of garlic, the tomato, cumin, and chili powder. Bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce heat to low, and simmer until the beans are very soft, about 3 hours and 45 minutes, adding water as needed.
• Once the beans have cooked, mash them with the remaining tablespoon of garlic, the oil, and salt to taste; use additional water as needed to achieve desired consistency. Place over low heat for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. Serve.