Easy Cowboy Beans Frijoles Charros Food

FRIJOLES CHARROS (COWBOY BEANS)

Steps:

• Measure out the beans. Spread the beans over your counter so you can look for beans that are broken, discolored, or shriveled and remove them. There will also be small stones or pebbles that should be sorted out of the beans during this phase. Discard all of the undesirable pieces.
• Place beans in a colander. Rinse the beans thoroughly with cool water.
• In a removable insert of a 6-quart slow cooker (or a large 10-inch skillet if your slow cooker does not have a stove-top safe insert) set over medium heat, cook the bacon several minutes, stirring regularly, until bacon starts to brown and renders its fat. Add the onion and cook until golden, about 6 to 8 minutes. Add garlic and jalapeños and cook until the garlic begins to brown and is fragrant, about 1 minute. Stir in the tomatoes and cook another minute.
• Fit the insert into the slow cooker (or transfer the mixture from the skillet to the slow cooker) and add the beans, 1 teaspoon of salt, and 7 cups of water. Cover and turn the slow cooker to high. Your beans will be done in 3 to 4 hours, though you can hold them for longer.
• When ready to serve, remove 2 cups of the beans and process in a blender or food processor until smooth. Add the smooth beans back to pot and stir in the cilantro. Taste and season with more salt if needed. Ladle into bowls and serve.

EASY COWBOY BEANS (FRIJOLES CHARROS)

Steps:

• Combine pinto beans, tomatoes with green chile peppers, ham, cilantro, red onion, garlic, black pepper, and hot sauce in a saucepan; bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for about 1 hour.

CHARRO BEANS (FRIJOLES CHARROS)

Steps:

• Place ham hocks into a large pot and cover with water; bring to a boil. Boil until meat pulls back on bone, about 2 hours. Remove meat from bones, cut into bite-sized chunks. Reserve the bones but discard any fat.
• Chop 1/2 of the white onion, and leave other 1/2 whole; set aside.
• Place bacon in a large skillet and cook over medium-high heat, turning occasionally, until evenly browned, about 10 minutes. Drain bacon slices on paper towels, and chop when cool enough to handle. Pour bacon grease into a small bowl.
• Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Cook and stir chorizo in the hot skillet until browned and crumbly, 5 to 7 minutes. Place chorizo into a bowl with chopped bacon, tomatoes, chopped onion, and jalapenos.
• Place ham chunks and bones into a large pot, pour pinto beans over top. Add water to cover and bring to a boil over medium or medium-high heat.
• Meanwhile, heat bacon grease in a large skillet over medium heat. Add chorizo and vegetable mixture and saute until vegetables are soft, 5 to 7 minutes.
• When beans boil, add the remaining onion half and garlic. Let boil for 3 to 4 minutes; add sauteed vegetables and meat. Return to a boil; add cilantro and chicken bouillon. Continue to boil for 15 to 20 minutes. Remove bones, season with salt, and serve.

FRIJOLES CHARROS RAPIDOS (QUICK COWBOY BEANS)

Steps:

• In a large (4 quart) saucepan, cook the bacon over medium heat, stirring frequently until crisp, about 4 minutes. Add the garlic and stir for a minute, then add the tomatoes with their juice. Cook, stirring regularly, for 3 to 4 minutes to blend the flavors. Add the beans, with their liquid, and simmer over medium low heat for about 15 minutes.
• While the beans are simmering, stem the chilis, cut in half lengthwise and scrape out the seeds. Chop into small pieces and add to the beans. Taste and season with salt, if needed. Ladle into small bowls, sprinkle with the cilantro and serve.

EASY COWBOY BEANS

Steps:

• Cook bacon until crispy. Drain and crumble. Put in large pot.
• Brown ground beef and onions together. Drain. Add to pot. (Bacon can be cooked with the ground beef and onions if cut into chunks. I use kitchen shears to just cut through all the slices--into about 1-1/2" chunks.).
• Add the rest of the ingredients to the pot. DO NOT drain the beans! Stir everything together.
• Bring to a boil, then turn down heat and simmer for about an hour. If you're going to let it simmer, don't add the lima beans right away, as they tend to fall apart.
• These are generally better the next day, but are might fine the same day!

FRIJOLES CHARROS

Steps:

• Place the beans in a large pot with half the onion, half the garlic, oil and epazote.
• Add 2 quarts water, bring to a boil, cover and simmer for 1 1/2 hours or until tender (35-45 minutes if done in a pressure cooker.)
• Add salt to taste.
• In a large saucepan or clay casserole, cook the diced bacon and chorizo until some of its fat is rendered, and add the remaining onion and garlic, and saute until the onion softens.
• Add the tomato and chile, and continue cooking until the tomato releases its juice (10 minutes).
• Add the cooked beans with their liquid and cook over a low flame for 20-30 minutes, stirring from time to time.
• Season with salt again to taste.