Homemade Simple and Easy Refried Beans

At our house, we love Mexican food. It is our go-to meal. Tacos, enchiladas, nachos, you name it, we eat it. I am originally from Kansas City, Kansas and grew up within a stone’s throw to some of the best authentic Mexican food, both restaurant and homemade, you can imagine. My wife grew up in Hutchinson, Kansas, home of the Anchor Inn, one of the finest Mexican restaurants I have ever stepped into. We love Mexican food.

When I started working at Kansas State University in Manhattan in 1988, I quickly scouted the town and found Vera’s, a little family owned hole-in-the-wall restaurant off the beaten path. Mama Vera made the best pan fried tacos in North America, but her homemade refried beans were remarkable. My mouth waters to think about them they were that good. Unfortunately, Vera’s closed down in the mid-90’s and Mama Vera’s refried bean retired with her.

For years, we settled on store-bought canned refried beans. Sure, they tasted fine, but nothing ever quite reached the pinnacle of Mama Vera’s beans. A couple summers ago, we went on this homemade food kick. Jams, tortillas, bread, etc. It was fun and a reminder of the joy in making things from scratch. My wife found this recipe for Refried Beans Without the Refry one day on allrecipes.com. It sounded too simple, it sounded too easy, but we gave it a try.

Oh, boy! They were wonderful! The closest thing to old Mama Vera’s specialty I have found in twenty years. And the best part? No lard or added fat. Almost a health food, wouldn’t you say? If you like Mexican food and are looking for a cheap, easy and tasty way to make a batch of refried beans, then check this out.

Refried Beans Without the Refry
Ingredients
1 onion, peeled and sliced
3 cups dry pinto beans, rinsed
Jalapeno pepper or pickled jalapeno (to taste)
2 tablespoons of minced garlic
1 tablespoon of salt
1 ¾ teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
⅛ teaspoon ground cumin (optional)

Dash (or a DASH!!!) of red pepper flakes
9 cups water

Directions
1. Place the onion, rinsed beans, jalapeno, garlic, salt, pepper and cumin into a crock pot slow cooker. Pour in the water and stir well.
2. Cook on high for 8 hours (we use medium setting on our crock pot which I think models the surface temperature of the sun.)
3. Add water if necessary to keep beans covered.
4. After beans are cooked, mash with a potato masher. Smash, smash, smash then stir and repeat until achieve desired consistency.
5. Serve immediately and/or separate into containers for freezing. These freeze very well.

I wish I had a good picture to show you, but I don’t have one. I can tell you that not only do these beans taste fantastic.You can season them as you wish, make them standard beans or make them flamethrowers. I personally like mine with extra black pepper to go with ample jalapeno. And the wonderful smell that fills the house is bonus. Enjoy!