Cuban Bean Food

CUBAN BLACK BEANS I

Steps:

• In a large bowl, soak beans in water to cover overnight.
• Rinse beans, and transfer to a large stock pot. Add onion, bell peppers, bay leaves, paprika, cumin, oregano, and chile peppers, along with water to cover. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer for 1 1/2 hours.
• Test beans for tenderness, and when tender add garlic and balsamic vinegar. Salt and pepper to taste.

POTAJE DE GARBANZOS (CUBAN GARBANZO BEAN STEW)

Steps:

• Heat the oil in a medium heavy pot or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add the onion, green pepper, Sazón seasoning, 1 1/2 teaspoons salt and a few cracks of freshly ground black pepper. Cook, stirring and scraping the bottom of the pot occasionally, until the onions are soft, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add the tomato paste and cook, stirring occasionally, until slightly darker in color and thickened, about 1 minute. Add the vino seco to deglaze the pan, scraping any browned bits with a wooden spoon.
• Add the garbanzo beans, potatoes, chorizo and 5 cups of water. Turn the heat up to high and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low, then cover the pot and simmer until the potatoes are tender and the chickpeas are very soft, about 20 minutes. Once the potatoes have softened, use the back of a wooden spoon to crush some of them against the side of the pot to thicken the stew. Serve the stew over hot rice, if desired.

INSTANT POT CUBAN BLACK BEANS

Steps:

• Combine the bell pepper, yellow onion and garlic in a food processor or mini food processor and pulse until finely chopped, working in batches if necessary (see Cook's Note).
• Set a 6- to 8-quart Instant Pot® to saute and add the olive oil (see Cook's Note).
• Transfer the green pepper mixture to the pot. Add the oregano, 1 tablespoon salt and season with black pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the peppers are soft and the onions are translucent, about 5 minutes.
• Add the beans, vinegar, vino seco, bay leaves, sugar and 5 cups water to the pot. Follow the manufacturer's guide for locking the lid and preparing to cook. Set to pressure cook on high for 30 minutes. (It will take about 10 minutes to come up to pressure.)
• After the pressure-cook cycle is complete, follow the manufacturer's guide for natural release. After 20 minutes, being careful to release any remaining steam, unlock and remove the lid. Remove and discard the bay leaves. Scoop out 1 cup of the black beans into the food processor and pulse until almost smooth (see Cook's Note). If using a mini processor, be careful of any steam.
• Return the beans to the pot and stir. Set the pot to saute and continue to simmer until thickened, about 10 minutes. Serve over white rice.

CUBAN BEANS

Steps:

• In a large pot add water, beans and ham hocks. Boil for 45 minutes until tender.
• In a medium saucepan add oil, onions, garlic, peppers, cumin, paprika, oregano, pepper and saute until translucent, do not brown.
• When bean mixture has reduced by 1/2, add the onion saute mixture and the salt. Continue to reduce until water is level with bean mixture. Hold warm for service.

CUBAN-STYLE BLACK BEANS

Steps:

• Soak the beans with the baking soda in 10 cups of water for about 3 hours. Rinse and drain.
• Add the beans to a Dutch oven and add 10 cups fresh water, along with the olive oil, cumin, oregano, sugar, vinegar, cilantro stems, bay leaves and onion. Simmer until the beans are soft, about 2 hours. Add 2 teaspoons of salt (or more to taste) and freshly ground black pepper to taste.

CUBAN BLACK BEAN SOUP

Steps:

• In a large stockpot, cover the beans with water, covering them by 2 inches. Add bay leaf, cumin, oregano, and Italian pepper. Simmer until the beans are tender, about 45 minutes.
• After 45 minutes, remove the pepper.
• In a saute pan, saute onions, red, and green peppers until translucent. Puree in a blender, this is the sofrito.
• In the same pan, saute the garlic. Add to the beans, along with the sofrito, 1/4-cup olive oil, sugar, and vinegar. Season with salt and continue to cook until very thick, about 45 minutes. Garnish with finely chopped red onion.

CUBAN BLACK BEANS

Steps:

• Cut 1 green pepper into 1-inch squares. Smash and peel 4 of the garlic cloves. Put the green pepper and garlic into a large pot with the beans, ham hock, bay leaves and 1 tablespoon salt. Add 2 quarts water and bring to a boil. Cover the pot and simmer until the beans are tender, an hour or more.
• Meanwhile, make a sofrito. Cut the remaining ½ green pepper into ¼-inch dice. Peel and finely chop the remaining garlic. Heat the olive oil in a very large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the bacon and cook, stirring occasionally, until it starts to brown, about 5 minutes. Add the green pepper and onion and cook, stirring, until slightly softened, about 3 minutes. Add the garlic, jalapeño (leave out the seeds if you don't want it too spicy), oregano, cumin, black pepper and 2 teaspoons salt and stir for another minute. Pour in the vinegar and scrape any browned bits from bottom of pan with a wooden spoon. This is your sofrito.
• When the beans are cooked, discard the bay leaf. Remove and set aside the ham hock and let it cool. Transfer 1 cup of beans to small bowl, mash them into a paste with the back of a fork and return to the pot. Add the sofrito, then the sugar. Pull the meat from the ham hock, leaving behind any white sinew or gristle. Chop the ham into ½-inch pieces and return it to the bean pot.
• Stir the beans well and bring to a boil over medium heat, then lower to a simmer and cook, uncovered, for 20 minutes or so, skimming any foam from the top. Taste for salt and serve with white rice.

CUBAN RICE AND BEANS

Steps:

• 1. Heat oil in medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Add tomato sauce, garlic, sofrito and sazon, cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. 2. Transfer liquid from can red beans to measuring cup; add enough water to measure 3½ cups. Add liquid to pot; bring to boil. Add beans, rice and sugar; stir. Bring rice mixture to a boil; reduce heat to medium low and cook, covered, until water is absorbed, about 20 min 3. Remove rice from heat. Let sit until rice becomes tender, 5 minutes. Fluff with fork. Divide evenly among serving bowls.

CUBAN BEAN SALAD

Steps:

• Mix oil, cilantro. lemon juice, vinegar, cumin, jalapeno pepper and oregano in large bowl until well blended.
• Add remaining ingredients; mix lightly.
• Cover and refrigerate 2 hours or overnight.
• Stir gently just before serving.
• NOTE: Salad may be prepared the day ahead. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.
• SUBSTITUTE: Lime juice may be substituted for lemon juice if desired.