Black beans, home-made, low fat, high fiber, high protein. These are so good for you and a pressure cooker makes them a cinch to make.
I buy the dried black beans and cook them in my pressure cooker. Soaking dried beans overnight is supposed to remove most of the sugar molecules that cause gas and digestive issues for many people. Sometimes I soak them but if I didn't think of it a day ahead I just go ahead and cook them.
You will need to follow the specific instructions for your pressure cooker. In general you want to use 4 cups of water or broth and 2 teaspoons of oil for each cup of beans. The oil is necessary to prevent foaming in the liquid while the beans are cooking. You don't want to clog the inside of the steam valve of your pressure cooker.
When the beans are cooked you can set some whole beans aside to use in salads of chili or whatever recipe you want. I like to mash them with some spices and cream to make the equivalent of Mexican refried beans.
In Mexico they eat a scoop of the mashed beans as a side dish to any meal. You can use them in burritos, spread them on tostadas, use them as a layer in the Mexican Seven layer dip, or even dab them on a plate of nachos.
The spices I add to the mashed beans make for a very subtle flavor. You are free to increase the cumin or chili powder if you want them to taste stronger.
I freeze small serving size portions and pull them out to defrost whenever I want.
Ingredients
Basic Beans
- 2 cups dried black beans
- 8 cups water
- 4 tsps vegetable oil
Refried beans
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder (not salt)
- 1 teaspoon onion powder (not salt)
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ⅓-1/2 cup 5% cream
Instructions
- Rinse and sort beans. Discard any shriveled or broken beans. Soak covered in cold water overnight. (Optional)
- Drain beans and cook according to your pressure cooker instructions. My pressure cooker cooks the beans to bursting soft in 30 minutes.
- Allow pressure to release naturally. Drain beans. Mash beans with a potato masher. Add the spices and the cream and incorporate them evenly. I like a coarse texture but if you want a creamy consistent texture like the canned refried beans you may want to pulse in your food processor for additional smoothness.
- Serve as a side dish or incorporate into your recipe of choice.
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