Help with Frijoles Refrito

Larry, are you still awake?

Guys, I need some help. I'm putting some turtle beans on to soak now, with the aim of cooking them in the pressure cooker (thanks again to Howie and Ms Vickie). How do I turn the cooked beans into a frijoles refrito dip?

Thanks in advance, especially to anyone who can help me out in the next couple of hours! (Ok, I have more time now - see below..)

Celia

I suppose I'm no help, I do mine using a can opener.

Yep, that's what we usually do too, Frank.

Ok, I have more time now. The beans have been cooked in the pressure cooker until soft, but it's too late to make anything for dinner, so I've stashed them in the fridge until tomorrow. Now what do I do?

From memory, the dip my son used to like at the Mexican restaurant was called "Frijoles Con Queso" - does anyone have a recipe for that please? Must find that Rick Bayliss book I bought on Jenise and Barb's recco...

I have to admit I usually open a can, but for frijoles refritos from scratch:

1. Reserve liquid from cooked beans (4-5 cups of beans).
2. In heavy skillet, heat 1/4 cup lard (authentic) until it smokes or oil. Reduce heat. Add 1 cup beans and mash thoroughly.
3. Add crushed clove of garlic (optional) and stir.
4. Add additional beans, 1 cup at a time, mashing thoroughly.
5. Reduce heat heat, allow beans to cook into a thick paste (10-15 min). If too dry, stir in small amts of reserved liquid.
6. Season to taste.

For the queso variation, add 1-1/2 cups grated cheese (sharp cheddar or queso fresco) and stir in, cooking for 2-3 minutes at low heat.
Or just add cheese as a garnish.

[Jenise]

Celia,

Hopefully someone has a recipe for you. I do not--never made it myself. And of course we know nothing about the flavor and texture of what your son enjoyed. But you can easily back into something delicious (Chili or Frijoles con Queso is, so far as I know, Tex-Mex, which btw is not Bayless' Mex so his book might not help you) knowing that the base would be refried beans (well-cooked beans somewhat mashed and mixed with sauteed onions, milk and lard or bacon fat) combined with a good melting cheese (or, I suspect, even a cheese product like Velveeta or Cheez Wiz, which are less elastic and so provide cheese flavor while cutting down on the loogie factor) and seasoned with some or all of: ground beef, green chiles, powdered or flaked red chiles, sauteed onions, garlic, cumin and oregano. I would guess the bean to cheese ratio to be about 1:1. If using cheddar, I'd counsel you to use a young (vs. aged) cheddar and be prepared to thin down the bean-cheese mixture if it's too thick with a bit of cream, water or broth.

Now you've made me hungry.

I did this myself a while back for a gathering...I used this method

4 tablespoons lard
2 cups cooked pinto beans beans
2 tablespoons onion, grated
1/4 cup grated cheese, Mexican white melting
1 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons grated cheese, Mexican white melting

Directions
Melt the lard in a heavy iron skillet.
Fry the cooked beans, stirring and mashing to form a large cake-like mass.
Grated onion, white Mexican cheese may be added while cooking. Add broth if beans dry out.
Adjust the salt and garnish using a little grated white cheese.
Note: "Frijoles Refritos" does not mean "re-fried beans" since the beans are only fried once. The proper translation is "well-fried beans."

I always have to mess with recipes, I added fresh garlic, jalapeño, and Chipotle Tabasco. I've even added crisp bacon on occasion.

Translation of refrito, yes and no:

The name is based on a mistranslation.[1] In Mexican Spanish, the prefix re- is an informal form of emphasis meaning "very" or "well," not to be confused with the English re- and formal use of the Spanish prefix re-, which indicates repetition. Thus, frijoles refritos, the Spanish name of this dish, would translate to English as "well-fried beans," not "twice-fried beans."[2] (Wikipedia)

However, if you look in virtually any Spanish dictionary, refrito is defined as refried. It's understood that way here in NM, even though the beans are fried only once.

Thank you all!! I have to head out this morning to the cheese shop, so I'll try and hunt down a suitable cheese..

Celia

Ok, I have more time now. The beans have been cooked in the pressure cooker until soft, but it's too late to make anything for dinner, so I've stashed them in the fridge until tomorrow. Now what do I do?

From memory, the dip my son used to like at the Mexican restaurant was called "Frijoles Con Queso" - does anyone have a recipe for that please? Must find that Rick Bayliss book I bought on Jenise and Barb's recco...

"C" we have done these (refried beans) many time in my house, and what Larry told you is pretty much smack on. I like to add a little cumin to the last bit of cooking the beans, and then I usually take about half of the beans and put them through the blender or food processer making a paste. I then take the rest of the beans and lightly smoosh them but leaving them a little more chunky. Just before dinner I put them in a cast iron skillet with a bit of lard (pork fat) and when they get hot, I add enough cheddar or colby cheese (I like cheddar best) to make them pretty stringy. I like these either as a side dish with other Mexican food. I also have them as a dip with corn chips. Yum, now I am hungry!

"Beans that are fried a lot" is probably a good literal translation. The "re-" prefix in this case implying "over and over" rather than "a second time".

-Paul W.

Salt pork.

Thank you all for your advice. Here's what we ended up making tonight :

Frijoles Con Queso dip for Small Man :

030709 059.JPG

We took everyone's techniques and amalgamated them with our available ingredients. I know it's unauthentic, and I apologise in advance. The beans were fried in a mix of pancetta fat and olive oil, then Manchego cheese was added, with water and tomato to loosen the mix. I also added a couple of tsps of Herbie's Mexican Spice Blend (paprika, cumin, sea salt and coriander).

We then used the frijoles in burritos, with some shredded beef, tomatoes and cooked rice. These were layered into a dish, covered with cheese, and baked :

030709 062.JPG

[Jenise]

Thank you all for your advice. Here's what we ended up making tonight :

Frijoles Con Queso dip for Small Man :

030709 059.JPG

We took everyone's techniques and amalgamated them with our available ingredients. I know it's unauthentic, and I apologise in advance. The beans were fried in a mix of pancetta fat and olive oil, then a mix of parmesan and Manchego cheese was added, with water and tomato to loosen the mix. I also added a couple of tsps of Herbie's Mexican Spice Blend (paprika, cumin, sea salt and coriander).

We then used the frijoles in burritos, with some shredded beef, tomatoes and cooked rice. These were layered into a dish, covered with cheese, and baked :

030709 062.JPG

Sounds delicious to me, Celia! You can call it Aus Mex.

Were we able to buy Mexican cheeses here, I would have used them. The beans turned out very much as Small Man remembered them, so he was very, very happy. Just edited above, because I remembered Pete wouldn't let me use parmesan...