Frijoles Charros

These beans are best made with dried pinto beans which will give you the creamiest texture and best flavor. You can use canned beans as well - I do it frequently - the dish just won't be quite as cohesive.

Many versions of charro beans add more meat, such as slices of sausages, chorizo, ham, or pork (similar to the way I made pork and beans in this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f0Kn2_0OdT4).

You can use as many or as few as you want!

Yield: Serves 8

Total time: 24 hours (if using canned beans)

Active time: 20 minutes

Ingredients:

1 pound dried pinto beans (see note)

6 to 8 ounce chunk of salt pork (see note)

6 to 8 whole fresh Anaheim, New Mexico, or Hatch chiles (about 1 pound, see note)

3 medium plum tomatoes (about 1/2 pound, see note)

1 large yellow onion (about 10 to 12 ounces, split in half, one half left intact and the other finely diced)

3 cloves of garlic

A tablespoon of lard or vegetable oil

Handful minced fresh cilantro leaves

Salt

Notes: The recipe calls for diced onions and minced garlic, but I would not dice or mince alliums too far in advance. Wait until you are ready to start cooking the flavor base in step 6 before dicing the onion or mincing the garlic.

You can use four (15.5-ounce) cans of canned pinto beans in place of dry beans. If using canned beans, add the beans and the liquid from the can directly to the pot in step TK. You can use slab bacon in place of salt pork. You can use frozen roasted chiles or canned diced or whole green chiles in place of fresh chiles if you’d like. Skip steps 3 and 4 if using canned diced or whole chiles. You can use a (15.5-ounce) can of diced fire-roasted tomatoes or Ro*Tel tomatoes in place of the fresh diced tomatoes. Skip steps 5 and 6 if using canned tomatoes.

For the frijoles de olla:

1. Soak the beans: Place the beans in a large bowl. Cover with cold water, allowing room for the beans to expand by at least double. Season the water lightly with salt. Set aside at room temperature overnight. The next day, drain and rinse the beans.
2. Cook the beans: Place beans in a large pot and cover with cold water by two inches. Add the chunk of salt pork. Split the onion in half from pole to pole and add one half to the beans. Bring the pot to a boil, reduce to a bare simmer, and cook, topping up the water as necessary to make sure the beans stay submerged until they are fully tender, 1 to 2 hours. When finished the beans should be quite soupy, not thick. Discard the onion from the pot. Remove the salt pork or bacon and let it rest on a cutting board until cool enough to handle. Cut it into small cubes, about 1/2 inch to a side.
3. For the chiles: Roast the chiles directly over the flame of a gas burner or gas grill, turning occasionally until blackened on all sides. The timing here can vary a great deal depending on the heat output of your grill or burner. (You can also blacken the chiles on a sheet tray under a preheated broiler, turning occasionally.) Transfer the chiles to a cutting board and place an overturned mixing bowl on top of them. This traps steam and helps soften and loosen the burnt skins.
4. Peel and chop the chiles: Carefully remove the skins, stems, veins, and seeds from the chiles and discard. Chop the roasted chile flesh into 1/2-inch pieces and set aside.
5. Char and chop the tomatoes: Char the tomatoes on all sides directly over the flame of a gas burner or gas grill until the skins are blackened in spots and are cracking and pulling away from the tomato. This should take less than a minute. Peel the tomatoes by rubbing off their skins, then chop the flesh into 1/2-inch dice.
6. Cook the flavor base: Heat the lard or oil and thee chopped salt pork pieces in a large Dutch oven or saucepan over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until the pork is well browned on all sides, about 5 minutes. Add the chopped onions and cook, stirring frequently, until the onions are softened but not browned, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook, stirring, until aromatic, about 1 minute. Add the chopped chiles and tomatoes and continue cooking, stirring frequently, until the mixture starts to thicken and the flavor intensify. You should be able to pick up a spoonful of the contents with a spoon without it being soupy or very drippy by the time it’s done. This should take about 10 minutes.
7. Add the flavor base to the beans and stir to incorporate. Bring the mixture to a simmer. Stir in the cilantro and season to taste with salt. Serve on their own with fresh corn tortillas, or as a side for grilled meats or vegetables. The beans can be cooled and stored in the fridge for up to a week. They taste great reheated and the beans will get creamier as leftovers.