frijoles (beans)

My husband tells me that growing up, they had beans with every meal.  Not the kind normally served as refried beans, that are a glop on your plate covered with melted cheese, but, the really delicious kind that are slow cooked and seasoned with salt & garlic. My mother in law taught me the key and I'm going to share it with you.

The easiest way to cook beans is over night in a crock pot, if you don't have one, no problem, cook them on your stove top on low to medium heat.  If you're going to cook them on the stove do it during the day so that you can keep an eye on them.

Start with 6 cups of pinto beans, check them over, sometimes there are small stones or small clumps of dirt in with the beans, wash them well,

before

 put them in the crock pot with salt & garlic, cover with enough water so there is around 2 inches of water above the  beans.

during, add water

Put the lid on the crock pot, turn it on medium, and go to bed. Or cook for 9-10 hours, stirring occasionally,
  as the beans cook, if you notice the water is low, just add more to cover the beans,

cooked

 you'll know they're done first of all by the smell, you'll notice a difference, they'll start to smell really, really good.  Secondly, smash a bean with a fork, if it's soft, they're done.

So, now comes the key to really great beans,  put some oil in a   frying pan and fry 3 cups of the beans.
For a delicious option: fry beans in bacon grease

When they're fried, a little toasty, smash them

stir in some of the broth from the pot of beans until it's soupy

then stir this back into the beans in the crock pot, taste then add a little more salt, if needed

Remember, it's easier to put more salt in then to take it out

Finished pot of beans

 

 

Now, serve these with anything, they're so good, or just enjoy a bowl of beans with some tortillas,

 add a little salsa if you like