Through 11 years of living in debt and trying to scrape together enough money for groceries, my family has eaten a lot of beans. So, I consider myself to be a connoisseur of sort for recipes using the legume family. I mean, after a while, all beans start to taste the same if you don’t add different flavors to your cooking process.
Since my husband and I love flavor, I set out to capture the perfect Frijoles Negros recipe, or Cuban Black Beans. By sorting through recipes to find a combination of ingredients that would not break my grocery budget, I finally mastered the Cuban Black Beans that my tongue craved.
Freezer to Crock Pot Option
If you want to create a freezer bag, place the cooked beans (drained and rinsed) into a zip-top freezer bag with the peppers, onions, and seasonings. Free until ready to cook. Then, empty the contents of the freezer bag into your crock pot and add the chicken stock (just enough to cover plus about half an inch). Cook for 6 to 8 hours on low. Stir in sugar and red wine vinegar before serving.
Cuban Black Beans
- 2 pounds dry black beans, sorted and rinsed
- 9 cups water
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 onions, diced
- 1 green bell pepper, diced
- 1 red bell pepper, diced
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 teaspoon oregano
- 1 teaspoon cumin, ground
- 1 bay leaf
- 64 ounces homemade chicken stock
- 3 tablepoons red wine vinegar
- 2 teaspoons sugar
Place the black beans and 9 cups of water in large stock pot. Cover and bring to a boil. Allow to boil for about two minutes. Then, remove from heat and let stand covered for 1 hour. Drain and rinse the beans well.
To the stock pot, add olive oil and heat until shimmering. Add the onions and peppers, sauteing until softened. Stir in the garlic.
Place the black beans, chicken stock, salt, pepper, oregano, cumin, and bay leaf in the pot with the vegetables. If the chicken stock is not enough to cover the beans, add water just until covered.
Bring to a boil over medium high heat. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer for about 2 hours or until the beans are tender.
Remove the bay leaf. Stir in the red wine vinegar and sugar and adjust salt and pepper if needed.
Serve over rice and with cheese, salsa, green onion, sour cream, or your choice of toppings.
[…] Cuban Black Beans (gluten free) This is an inexpensive family meal from Meet Penny. […]