My mom always made the best black beans from scratch.
Soaking the beans overnight. Separating the bad beans from the good ones. Cooking them in a pressure cooker (the old-style ones that had the weighted gauge that wiggled back and forth and dial gauge that lets you know when your house was about to blow up if you didn’t release the pressure in time).
I never learned how to make them from scratch, was always afraid to use those pressure cookers (I saw one where the lid blew off from improper use and NO it wasn’t me), and I certainly don’t have the patience of soaking the beans for any amount of time.
These days mom’s age and arthritis mean she can’t lift, close or use the pressure cooker anymore. But we’ve found an easy way to spruce up canned black beans and have them taste just as great as the ones made from scratch.
The most important thing is the brand of beans you use. For us, it must be either Kirby (frijoles negros) black beans or Bush’s Seasoned Recipe black beans. Both are already pre-seasoned, creole style.
You’ll need:
- 2 cans of black beans (15oz cans) Do not drain!
- A sliced side of green and red bell peppers further sliced into long thin slices
- ¼ cup sweet onion, sliced and diced into small pieces
- ¼ cup white wine
- 5-6 Spanish Olives
- 1 teaspoon Olive Oil
- 1 teaspoon of sugar
- 1 teaspoon minced garlic
- ½ teaspoon cumin
- 1 teaspoon adobo seasoning (we use Badia)
- Salt and pepper to taste
Cut a side slice of the green and red bell peppers, then slice those into long thin slices. Slice and dice your onions. Open the cans of beans and dunk those into your pot.
Add a little bit of water (a little more than a ¼ cup to a little less than half a cup) into one can as well as the wine and swish that around to gather anything left in the bottom of the can.
Dunk that liquid into the other can, swish it around and then add the liquid to the pot. Toss in all the ingredients, except for salt and pepper. Add just a little salt and pepper for now.
Cook on high and let the beans come to a boil. Let it boil on high for about two minutes and then turn the heat to medium, allowing the beans to come to a slow simmer.
Cover the pot with a lid for 10 minutes, checking and stirring frequently, so they don’t over boil and stick to the bottom of the pot.
You want the bell peppers to get soft but not completely mushy. Lower the heat to medium low and remove the cover. This allows the moisture to evaporate and thickens the bean sauce. You can lower the temp if needed. Add more salt and pepper, if needed.
The whole process from boiling, simmering, and reducing on medium low to low and ready takes only 30-40 minutes. If your sauce is too thick, just add a little more water. If you add too much water, let it reduce by cooking it for a longer period.
White rice and black beans are staples in Cuban cuisine. Serve that with pork, chops, breaded steak, roasted pork or chicken or any other protein and enjoy! Mom and I enjoyed our black beans with cubed steaks topped with grilled onions.