Austin Style Black Beans

I'm still waiting for my advanced copy of The Homesick Texan Cookbook to arrive in the mail (Mexican mail takes a while.), but already Lisa Fain has managed to change my mind about a certain ingredient. 

Beans are probably the most important staple in the Mexican diet.  Depending on where you live in Mexico determines your bean of choice.  Here in Jalisco, the bean of choice is peruano (peruvian).  It's the bean my suegra (mother-in-law) and I always have on hand and it's my hubby's favorite.  But we also like Tejano and Flor de Junio.    

I was raised on pinto beans.  Both my Mexican grandparents and my Southern great-grandmother always had a pot of pinto beans brewing on the stove.  Pappy would serve his Frijoles de la Olla with chopped onion and dried oregano.  My great-grandma Pearl served her soupy pinto beans on top of a buttered slice of cornbread.  (Swoon!)

The one bean we weren't too crazy about was black beans.  My experience with black beans was limited to the 40-day period after my children were born.  My suegra would brew me a pot of black beans because it's believed that they're better for both the mom and the nursing baby during those crucial first weeks.  They were good, but nothing swoon worthy.  Hubby never even attempted to try them.

Occasionally a couple of stray black beans make their way into my Peruanos and I leave them in for good luck.  Whoever finds the "lucky" black bean gets to wash the dishes.  Oddly enough, none of my kiddies have ever found the "lucky" bean.

Enter The Homesick Texan Cookbook Spotlight & Cook-Off hosted by my friend, Girlichef.   When I saw that one of the recipe choices this week was for Austin Stlye Black Beans, I thought to myself that it was high time to give these little beans another chance.

The recipe sounded good enough.  Chipotle peppers, cilantro, onion and garlic.  You can't go wrong with ingredients like those.  The only thing I wasn't too sure about was adding lime juice to cooked beans, but I soon found out that there was nothing to worry about.  These Austin Style Black Beans were so amazing, I can't believe I ever underestimated their deliciousness.

Not only did I love them, but so did Hubby, the kiddies, my suegra AND my dentist!   (What?  You don't have breakfast with your dentist every morning?)  

I will definitely be making these again, soon!!!

Austin Style Black Beans
(from The Homesick Texan Cookbook by Lisa Fain)

Ingredients:

• 1 lb. dried black beans
• 1 tablespoon manteca (lard) or vegetable oil
• 1 medium onion, finely chopped
• 2 medium carrots, peeled and finely chopped 
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 canned chipotles
• 1/2 cup cilantro, finely chopped
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 tablespoon chipotle adobo sauce
• 1/4 cup lime juice
• Salt (to taste)

Directions:
Clean the beans by discarding any rocks or shriveled beans.  Rinse the beans with cold water to remove any dirt.

Place the beans in a large pot.  Cover with about 6 cups of water.  (You want enough water to cover the beans by one inch.)  

Bring to a boil over high heat and let cook for 15 minutes.  Drain and rinse the beans.

In a large pot  (I used the same one I cooked the beans in.) heat the manteca or vegetable oil.  Add the onion and carrot and saute for about 8 minutes or until the onion is transluscent.  Stir in the garlic and let cook 30 seconds.

Return the beans to the pot along with the chopped chipotle peppers and cilantro.  Cover with 8 cups of water and bring to boil over high heat.  (You want the beans covered with about 2-inches of water.)  Reduce heat to medium-low and let simmer for about 90 minutes.  (The instructions say to simmer uncovered, but I'm a rebel and went ahead and covered them anyway!)

Add remaining cilantro, cumin, adobo sauce and lime juice; season with salt.  Mash some of the beans with the back of a large spoon to thicken the bean broth.  Cook uncovered 30 minutes.  Enjoy!!!

*This post is part of The Homesick Texan Cookbook Spotlight and Cook-Off sponsored by Hyperion and hosted at girlichef.