Spiced Black Beans

chef blade's Note:

Really good and spicy bean dish that goes well with grilled beef and pork. Add a few splashes of hot sauce towards the end of cooking time.( Without the bacon, this is very good as a vegetarian dish; OR, an ounce or two of chorizo sausage can be used instead of bacon)

• Total Time: 40 mins
• Prep Time: 20 mins
• Cook Time: 20 mins

Ingredients:

Serves: 6

Yield: 6.0 cups

• 3 (16 ounce) cans black beans, 2 cans drained and rinsed, 1 can undrained
• 4 slices bacon, chopped
• 4 garlic cloves, minced
• 1/2 small onion, chopped
• 1/2 small red bell pepper, chopped
• 3 jalapenos or 3 serrano peppers, chopped
• 1 stalk celery, finely chopped
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 tablespoon cajun seasoning
• 1/2 teaspoon curry powder
• 1/2 cup fresh brewed coffee
• 1/2 lime, juice of
• 2 teaspoons dark rum
• salt and pepper
• 1/2 cup chopped cilantro (optional)

Directions:

1. Sauté the bacon until almost crispy, don't drain.
2. Add vegetables, spice blend, garlic and bay leaf. Stir and simmer until veggies are tender.
3. Add the beans, coffee, rum, curry, lime juice.
4. Simmer until hot.
5. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Reviews

[Susie D]

I made adaptations to the recipe by using dried black beans. I put everything into a crockpot & added 12oz of dark beer (replacing the rum), 1 t cumin, 1/2 t liquid smoke, and then added enough water to cover the beans. Cooking everything in the crockpot left it colorless so I served alongside bowls of chopped tomatoes, green onions, cilantro, and rice for each person to assemble their own. The dish isn't "hot", but does have a spicy taste. There was a welcome hint of the exotic from the curry powder. Thanks for sharing your recipe!

[Queen Dana]

This was amazing! The dish has a good amount of heat but is not too spicy. DH and I both really enjoyed this dish. Made for Comfort Cafe winter 2010.

[Aunt Cookie]

This was a good, uncomplicated bean recipe. I made the vegetarian version, but I think next time I'll add some liquid smoke to give it that bacony flavor. Also, I second Chef Blade's suggestion to add hot sauce towards the end of the cooking time (the recipe is pretty mild otherwise, even with the addition of the three jalapenos). Thanks for the recipe!