These Frijoles Refritos are all you need to complete your Mexican meals. Nothing fancy, nothing fake, just great tasty beans from an easy recipe.
Mexican Beans
Mexican cuisine is known for its rich flavors and diversity, and one of the most beloved dishes is refried beans. This staple food is versatile, easy to make, and can be enjoyed in many ways. Mexican refried beans are a delicious and nutritious dish that can be served as a side dish, dip, or main course.
Frijoles fritos are a traditional dish made from cooked and mashed beans. The beans are cooked with onions, garlic, and spices until they are tender, and then mashed with a potato masher or immersion blender. The mashed beans are then fried in oil or lard until they are nice and flavorful.
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Ingredients
Making these beans from scratch is easy and requires only a few ingredients. Here is my step-by-step guide on how to make this delicious dish:
- The Beans: My preferred beans are pinto beans but this recipe will work with white or black beans or any other similar bean.
- Kosher salt – It tastes better kosher salt but you can also use iodized salt. Just use a little bit less of it as it is more “salty”.
- The fat: this ingredient is important to add some flavor to the beans so I never skip it!! I use vegetable shortening or vegetable oil even though traditional recipes use pork lard.
- White or yellow onion and a garlic clove, optional but highly recommended.
How to make Frijoles Refritos
It all starts by making delicious Frijoles De La Olla. You can follow that post or just stay in here for the steps by steps instructions.
- Rinse the beans thoroughly under running water and place in a large bowl. Add enough water to cover them by at least 2 inches. Set aside to soak at room temperature for at least 3 hours and up to overnight.
- When ready to cook, drain the soaked beans and rinse them again under running water.
- In a large pot, Mexican olla, or dutch oven, add the beans, water, garlic and onion.
- Bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce to a low simmer.
- The beans are cooked thru when tender and creamy but not falling apart, about 2 hours total. To test when the beans are done, remove 2 or 3 beans from the pot and taste them or squeeze with a spoon. They will be done when the entire bean is tender.
- Using a bean/potato masher, smash to purée the beans to form a chunky consistency- alternative, use a stick blender to make a smoother puree.
- Add the 1 tablespoon of salt.
- In a small skillet, heat the oil or lard until shimmering over medium-high heat.
- Add the hot oil slowly to the beans (being careful not splash the oil outside of the pot) and mix well until it’s integrated into the beans.
- Cook for another 10 minutes on low.
Technically, this recipe only “fries” the beans once (when I add the hot oil into the mashed beans). To refry them, heat up oil or lard in a skillet and only reheat all of the beans at once or as you consume them. You only need to refry them in about 2 tablespoons of oil per 3 cups of beans. This is the technically correct method.
Soaking the beans
You don’t have to soak the beans but I highly recommend it. If you have the time please do so! Here are a few good reasons for soaking the beans before cooking:
- Reduces cooking time: It helps to soften them and reduce their cooking time, which can save you time and electricity!
- Reduces gas and bloating: Soaking helps to remove some of the complex sugars that can cause these digestive issues.
- Enhances nutrient absorption: It helps to enhance the absorption of certain nutrients, such as iron and calcium, which are important for overall health.
Serving Suggestions
There are certain Mexican dishes that Frijoles Refritos are the PERFECT side dish for! It’s a great base for tostadas, enchiladas and to make enfrijoladas.
Pair as a side dish with:
Chef’s Tips & Notes
- Cover – When cooking on the stovetop, always keep the lid on while simmering. This helps to generate & trap more heat while minimizing the amount of water that evaporates.
- Important! When adding more water (if needed to keep the same level), make sure it’s boiling water. Otherwise your beans may turn into a blackish color and the water will look muddy.
- Cook on medium low to keep the beans whole and they don’t turn black.
How to store refried beans
This recipe makes 6 cups of beans and that is a lot for two people! Since my hubby and I don’t eat them everyday, I freeze some for later and keep about 2 cups of made beans in the fridge to eat for the next few days.
In the fridge
Choose an airtight container that is the right size for the amount of refried beans you have. Glass or plastic containers with tight-fitting lids are a good option, as are resealable plastic bags. Store the refried beans in the refrigerator for up to 7 days.
For the rest I use two 1-quart freezer bags and add two cups of beans or so. I freeze them and use as needed.
In the freezer
Freeze in plastic containers with tight-fitting lids or resealable plastic bags. It’s a good idea to divide them into smaller portions so you can thaw only what you need.
Reheating
When you’re ready to use the stored refried beans, simply thaw them in the refrigerator overnight or defrost them in the microwave on a low setting. Once they’re thawed, you can reheat them on the stove or in the microwave and use them in your favorite dishes.
I recommend to double the quantities when making Refried Beans. Freeze most of it and defrost as needed. It saves a lot of work and time!
FAQ
Cooked beans that have not been fried, only last about 3 days in the fridge before they get spoiled. Refried beans last up to 10 days in an air tight container stored in the fridge.
Refried beans can be left out for a couple of hours at room temperature. Leaving them at room temperature longer could make them spoil faster.
When the beans are spoiled, they develop a white film texture on the surface and begin to smell “gassy”. If they become spoiled, just toss in the trash as they could make you sick.
Seriously guys, I can’t live without my refried beans! They are comfort food for me. I even like the smell while cooking them at home. Weird huh? I hope you get to make this easy recipe and enjoy how delicious they will turn out.
Enjoy…..
More Mexican Beans Recipes
I hope you like this recipe! Share it, or leave a rating and comment below. For questions that need an answer right away, please contact me and I’ll get back to you asap. Gracias!!!! xx, Ana
Print Recipe:
Frijoles Refritos (Refried Beans) Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 pound dried pinto beans
- 1 tablespoon kosher salt
- 2 tablespoons vegetable shortening or vegetable oil
- ¼ medium white onion, peeled optional
- 1 garlic clove, peeled optional
Instructions
Soak the beans (optional to cut cooking time)
- Rinse the beans thoroughly under running water and place in a large bowl. Add enough water to cover them by at least 2 inches. Set aside to soak at room temperature for at least 3 hours and up to overnight.
- Stove top directions:
- When ready to cook, drain the soaked beans and rinse them again under running water.
- In a large 4-quart pot, Mexican olla, or dutch oven, add the beans, 8 cups water, garlic and onion.
- Bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce to a low simmer.
- Reduce heat to medium-low and cook for 2 hours or until soft and can break easily with a spoon
- Using a bean/potato masher, smash the beans to form a chunky puree – alternative, use a stick blender to make a smoother puree.
- Add the 1 tablespoon of salt.
- In a small skillet, heat the oil or lard until shimmering over medium-high heat.
- Add the hot oil slowly to the beans (being careful not splash the oil outside of the pot) and mix well until it’s integrated into the beans.
- Cook for another 10 minutes on low.
- Slow-cooker directions:
- Rinse beans.
- Place beans in a 4-quart slow cooker with 6 cups of water.
- Cover and cook on high for 4 to 5 hours or low for 8 to 10.
- Once the beans are soft and can break easily with a spoon, add the 1 tablespoon of salt.
- In a small skillet, heat the oil or lard until shimmering over medium-high heat.
- Add the hot oil to the beans and mix well until it’s integrated into the beans.
- Using a bean/potato masher, smash the beans to form a chunky puree – alternative, use a stick blender to make a smoother puree.
- Cook for another 30 minutes on high.
Muy Delish Notes:
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Nutrition
The nutritional information and US conversions are calculated automatically. I cannot guarantee the accuracy of this data. If this is important to you, please verify with your favourite nutrition calculator and/or unit conversion tool.
“The mashed beans are then fried in oil or lard” But the recipe seems to omit this key step. The recipe adds oil to the bean mash, it does not fry the bean mash in the oil.
Hi Matt, you are correct! I only “fry” them once when I add the hot oil into the mashed beans. To refry them, it’s when you reheat them in hot oil. I’m adding this to the notes and post to stop the confusion. Thanks for the heads up!
Love this recipe! It’s so easy to make and I love that it calls for vegetable oil instead of lard. Thanks so much for sharing!
I have never had homemade refrieds without lard, but this came out really well- so tasty too! Thank you! Will make again.
This was incredible. A great way to bulk out tacos.
A delicious recipe to try with beans. Thanks a lot for sharing.
I love these beans and what a fantastic way to use them.
Homemade refried beans are surprisingly easy to make and always blow the store bought stuff right out of the water!
I’ve been searching high and low for an authentic yet easy enough refried beans recipe. Esta receta es deliciosa!
I have been doing a lot of Indian cooking so the simplicity of this recipe is great; it lets the beans shine, just as in Indian cooking. Thanks! It turned out great. I added some turmeric while pressure cooking, and some asafoetida for umami.
I love these refried beans!!!
Thank you so much Brenda!
Do you drain the water from the beans after cooking and before adding the oil.
Hi Jackie, I don’t drain then since the water ratio will be perfect to keep the juicy enough. The first day may be a little more runny but as they days go by they tend to dry out. That’s why I don’t remove any of the bean liquid. Great question! I hope you have a great day!
Finally a good recipe for beans! I love to eat some with Mexican rice too
Thanks so much Monica! I really appreciate your input!
Pinto bean are feijao catarino in Portugal.