Amazing Black Beans
Submitted by I love cookies
Cuban-style black beans simmered with bay leaves, then enriched with a sofrito of onion, green pepper, garlic and oregano. Naturally vegan, gluten-free and high in fiber. Serve over rice.
YIELD
6 servingsPREP
15 minCOOK
2 hrsREADY
8 hrsThese are classic Cuban-style frijoles negros, the building block of a thousand Caribbean and Latin American dishes. The technique splits cooking into two stages. First, dried black beans simmer with bay leaves until tender. Then a sofrito of onion, green bell pepper, garlic and oregano gets fried separately and added at the end. The two-stage approach builds layered flavor that single-pot cooking can’t match.
Sofrito is the soul of this dish. The aromatics cook in olive oil over medium-high heat for 6 to 8 minutes until softened and fragrant. That brief saute concentrates the flavors and develops sweetness in the onion before it joins the beans. Adding it raw would leave a bitter bite.
Pressing some of the beans with a slotted spoon after adding sofrito is the chef’s move. The crushed beans release starch that thickens the broth into a glossy, almost creamy sauce. This is what separates Cuban-style beans from plain bean stew. The final pinch of sugar balances the acidity and rounds out the flavor.
Pro Tips
- Soak the beans for the full 6 to 8 hours, not just 2 or 3. Properly soaked beans cook evenly and have a creamier interior.
- Add salt only at the end. Salting too early toughens bean skins and prevents proper softening.
- Cover the beans with at least 2 inches of water at all times during the simmer. Beans absorb water dramatically as they cook.
Variations
- Add a splash of red wine vinegar or sherry vinegar at the end for brightness.
- Stir in a teaspoon of ground cumin with the sofrito for Mexican-style black beans.
- Serve over fluffy white rice with sliced avocado and a wedge of lime.
Ingredients
Directions
Soak beans in a large soup pot, with enough water to cover the beans, for at least six to eight hours.
Add two bay leaves and a few drops of olive oil to the water. Cook the beans over high heat for 90 minutes, checking frequently to see that there is enough water in the pot. The water should always cover the beans.
Once the beans are tender, prepare a sofrito by combining the onion, green pepper, garlic, oregano, ground pepper and olive oil in a small frying pan.
Cook over medium-high heat for six to eight minutes, stirring frequently. Add the sofrito to the black beans, reducing the heat on the beans to low.
Mix the sofrito well with the beans, pressing some of the beans with a slotted spoon so that the flavors will soak in.
Add the salt and sugar to the beans and simmer for half an hour. Remove bay leaves and serve.
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