Crockpot Bean Recipe

Haaaaappy Fridaaaaay!

OK, here is a fact...

I don't consider myself a cook by any means. My rice always turns out either undercooked or overcooked, my chicken is always dry, my eggs are never fluffy, and my cakes are far from moist. My husband would probably disagree, but that's just a reflection of what a polite man he is and not a sign that I'm being too hard on myself.

I suck.

FACT!

However, last weekend I hosted our first party in our new home and I decided to try making my Grandma's "Re-fried but not fried BEANS!" No, they're not really called that but I needed to point that out before you said "ew, fried... next!"

I was so scared of how they would taste and even more terrified when the chef, known as Grandma, tried them.

And would you believe it?

They were fantastically yummy!!!!

I didn't even take a single picture because I was sure the entire thing would be another cooking disaster that ended up being given to the dogs. Next time I try this, I'll remember to take pics.

For this recipe, I used a crockpot (sssh, don't tell Grandma!), but any large pot on the stove will be fine. My 1 year old can reach the knobs on our stove and likes to adjust the flame when we step away for a second. Then, I have to figure out why my chicken isn't cooking. Yes, I blame her when meals turn out bad.

Here is what you will need:

Crockpot (or large pot)

2 lb. of Pinto Beans

1/2 lb. of chorizo, cooked

1 package of American Cheese

1 onion cut in half

1/2 tsp of ginger

4 large garlic cloves

1 red bell pepper, diced

First, you want to discard any cracked, or shriveled beans and small rocks. Then, rinse them really well to remove any dirt. Next, soak your beans in cold water for 6 hours. This step is optional but beans cook a lot faster if they are soaked first. Word of caution: place the beans in a LARGE bucket pot for soaking. They will become 3x their original size and you don't want them spilling over.

Next, drain the water and rinse them once more. Place the beans in the pot they will be cooked in and fill the water close to the top. For crockpots, place the setting on "high." For a regular pot, you want them to simmer for 3 hours or until they are easy to mash. Throw in the onion, ginger, garlic cloves, and bell pepper. Leave the beans alone to cook. For the crockpot, this took about 5 hours. You want the beans to be soft and easy to mash.

Once the beans are done, remove the onion pieces and garlic (if you wish) and drain the water from the beans. Next, add the cooked chorizo to the beans and mash with a potato masher. While mashing, add 12 slices of American Cheese.

In my opinion, the cheese really didn't make a difference. My beans weren't "cheesy" so you can skip the cheese if you want to make this healthier.

The finished product, once all the mashing is done, will look like "refried beans" and you didn't even fry a thing!

The beans were a hit at our party and even the next day as a chip dip for football games.

I'm sorry for the lack of pictures. I will try this again soon and will document.

Enjoy and let me know how it turns out!