Recipe: Black Beans and Rice

One of my favorite dishes and quite possibly one of the best things I make are black beans. For the past 5 years or so I've followed just about the same recipe every time with little tweaks here and there to satisfy my palette. Unfortunately, all this time I've been using canned black beans, typically Goya brand and most recently Bush's brand (they seem to be firmer). That all changed recently with the usage of dried black beans from the Whole Foods Market. Now I always make my lima beans from dried beans and they always turn out excellent. The last time I used a smaller bean was when I made BBQ backed beans 3 years ago. They turned out awful and I've stayed away from smaller beans until now.

Ingredients:

• 1/2-3/4 lb. dried black beans
• 1/2 of a red pepper
• 1/2 of a poblano pepper
• 1 onion
• 1 clove of garlic
• 2 packets of Sazon
• 1 tsp dried oregano or Italian herb blend
• 1 Tbsp vinegar (cider or malt work well)
• 1 Tbsp olive oil
• salt and pepper to taste
• chicken stock or water

Directions:

1. The night before I make the beans, I wash them and spot check for rocks and debris
2. Place the beans into a large pot and cover with chicken stock or water, add in a packet of Sazon and bring to a boil
3. Boil for 10 minutes and then remove them from the heat
4. Once cooled, place the beans in the fridge until the next day
5. Now the next day, I like to cook the beans for a good couple of hours if not more, so plan accordingly. Also, some folks would recommend draining off the liquid the beans have been soaking in. I typically do that for lima beans, but find the black beans to not be as grainy tasting so I leave the liquid in the pot
6. Finely chop your vegetables (peppers, onion and garlic)
7. In a skillet, heat your oil and sauté your veggies for 10 minutes or until tender
8. Dump the veggies into your pot of beans and add some more water or stock to make sure everything is covered and throw in the second packet of Sazon
9. Bring to a boil, cover and reduce to a light simmer
10. I let it simmer for a couple of hours (the longer the better with beans IMHO) checking and stirring periodically, adding water as necessary. Add salt & pepper to taste as well
11. 10 minutes or so before serving I add in the oregano and vinegar and turn the heat up a bit

You can pull off the same recipe with canned beans, just omit the longer cooking times, and prep work for the beans. The poblano can be omitted if you're scared of any heat at all (I find the poblano imparts more flavor than actual heat, which works for my wife and daughter) or hotter peppers can be substituted as well. It's like chili, play with it until you're happy with it.

Serve over a bed of rice. I occasionally top with chopped white onion and sometimes some Louisiana hot sauce. Last night I pulled a habanero out of my pickle jar and enjoyed that for some added heat. My wife likes the beans with cheese, not my cup of tea, but you may try it and like it!