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How to Make Homemade Refried Beans in a Slow Cooker
Refried beans are delicious. Especially refried beans made from scratch, in a slow cooker. I have spent many years working on making the perfect refried beans. I have tried adding a little of this, a little of that. Finally, I believe I have come up with a recipe that is not only easy, but is mouth watering good.
Cook Time
Ingredients
- 1lb 8oz bag Pinto Beans
- 1 stick butter or margerine
- 1 tbsp. salt
- 1 1/2 tsp. garlic powder
- 1 1/2 tsp. onion powder
- This is a two-part recipe. The pinto beans need to soak overnight (at least 8 hours) and then the cooking begins the next morning. Sort the beans. Pour some onto a plate and pick out the bad-looking ones, the little gray rocks, the ones that are split in half. Do this for the whole bag. Place the beans in a strainer. Rinse them well, mixing them with your hands a few times. Put the beans in a large pot or the dish of your crock pot. Fill the dish to the top with hot water. Cover, and let soak for at least 8 hours. This will allow the beans to soak up the water and become softer, allowing them to cook the next day.
- In the morning, pour the beans into the strainer again and rinse well. They are much larger now; you may need to do this in two stages. Put the beans into the crock pot dish and add enough water to just cover the beans. Add the butter, salt, garlic salt, onion powder and if you like, pepper to taste. Put the crock pot on high. This is where the crock pot part is deceiving.
The reason this one allows you to leave them is because the handles hold the lid down tight, keeping in the moisture and for some reason, it is the only crock pot where I have not burned the bottom of anything regardless how long I leave it.
So, if you do not own this crock pot, stir the beans once an hour. At around five hours the beans are finished cooking, but the longer you cook them the less gassy you will be later. You also want to let the moisture cook down, to about the amount shown in the picture at the top. If you need to refry them before it has cooked down, you can strain some of the water out, but it is better to let it cook itself down.
Now, transfer the beans into a large pot. Pull out your bean masher and turn the heat to medium-high. Mash, mash, mash! You want to leave very few whole beans in your pot. Here, you can begin tasting and adding more salt, butter or pepper if you would like. Once the beans are mashed let them simmer for about 20 minutes, stirring frequently.
Once they have simmered for a while, they are ready to eat! If you let them sit for a few minutes they thicken up, if you prefer them that way. They refrigerate well, and even freeze. To reheat, put some in a pan, add a little water to thin it down, and stir consistently while heating. These beans are great in burritos, tostadas, tacos, anything you can think of!
