Gringo Refried Beans

Lizzymommy's Note:

As a bona fide Yankee of mixed Northern European extraction living in Central Texas, I could not, in good conscience, call these "authentic" Refried Beans. What they are, however, is heart-stoppingly delicious. Cooked from scratch, so you can control the amount of sodium (within reason, of course! There's BACON in here!) these beans outstrip anything you'll find in a can. If you want to skip the pressure cooker business (my favorite bean-cooking method), Go ahead and soak your beans and cook for 3-5 hours in 6 or so cups of water, or whatever method you use (I've heard terrific things about overnight bean cooking). I use Dry Adobo Seasoning (Adobo Seco) to mix up my own Dry Adobo Seasoning (Adobo Seco) Serve these beans with my "Better than America's Test Kitchen" Spanish Rice, and you'll think you've died and gone to heaven!

• Total Time: 1 hrs 20 mins
• Prep Time: 20 mins
• Cook Time: 1 hrs

Ingredients:

Servings: 6

• 3 cups pinto beans (soaked overnight, if desired)
• 5 cups water
• 1 large onion, quartered
• 6 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 large bay leaf
• 1 tablespoon oregano
• 1 teaspoon pepper
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 tablespoon liquid smoke
• 6 pieces bacon
• 1 cup onion, diced
• 2 tablespoons garlic, minced
• 1 -2 jalapeno, minced (seeds removed if desired)
• 1/2 teaspoon dry adobo seasoning (Adobo Seco)
• 1 lime
• salt, to taste
• oil, if needed

Directions:

1. Cook your Pintos:.
2. Wash beans and remove all gravel and such.
3. Place beans, water, onions and garlic in pressure cooker.
4. Add spices.
5. Close lid and bring to pressure.
6. Cook on medium heat for 55-65 minutes. Release pressure and test for doneness. Cook an additional 10 minutes, only if needed. Remove the onion and drain the beans, saving ALL of the cooking liquid.
7. Get down to the tasty business:.
8. Saute the bacon until crispy, remove and devour at will (chef's prerogative!).
9. Add the onion to the rendered bacon fat and saute until caramelized (about 8 minutes). Add garlic, jalapeno, and Adobo Seco and saute a couple more minutes, adding some oil if necessary.
10. Put sauteed onion mixture in food processor along with about 2 cups of the cooked beans, puree.
11. Add the puree to the rest of the beans in the cooking pot- stir to mix.
12. Add the juice of one lime and season with salt, stir. Taste the beans. (It can take a lot of salt as this makes a large batch of beans.) Adjust salt to taste. If the mixture seems dry, add a bit of the left-over bean water until you reach the desired consistency.
13. Serve topped with cheese. Lots of cheese. :).