Sometimes my mouth flaps faster than my brain. That’s OK. Keeps people on their toes around here.
A few weeks ago, when I mentioned on the TV show (Sundays, 12:30pm WJCL-TV) that I would share my black bean recipe, it seemed pretty cut and dry. Until I arrived at the conclusion that I don’t have it written down anywhere. Maybe I should, I don’t know. But I don’t.
Most of you by now know that I am of Cuban descent. My dad was Cuban, my mom was Puerto Rican. I was raised largely in Miami with my dad’s family. So, for the record, I always claim Cuban first. I share all of that in the same way our friends from Jersey or Brooklyn like to start any conversation about pizza or pasta with where they are from. Badges of honor and all. I get it and I sport my own. Aquí en el corazón.
I know what good-authentic-Cuban black beans should taste like. I also know what they shouldn’t be.
All that to say, I’ve been making and tweaking my black bean recipe for 30 years plus. They’ve been great for probably 20 of those years, but they weren’t always exactly what I wanted them to be. I can’t tell you the number of times I’d make black beans, have everyone around me rave about them, but ultimately walk away knowing they weren’t exactly what I wanted them to be. I can happily say that now they are, but a lot of what I’ve done is by feel. Like anyone in a kitchen with any decent amount of skill, recipe shmecipe, I’m going to tweak seasoning until it’s where I reach a sweet spot. If there is one recipe I can say is closest to mine it’s the one I am linking you to below. Three Guys from Miami are an exceptional Cuban food resource. I have 2 of their cookbooks in my kitchen. I’ve based a lot of what I do with Cuban food on their style. That is, before I start free-styling in my own kitchen like Pitbull. Because I do. A lot. My tweaks are below.
*Please please please….Dried beans only please. The soaking at the beginning is essential. That’s how my mom and grandmother taught me to do it. If you are handy with your pressure cooker, do that. But try it a few times the long way. It does matter. It does make a difference.
*When it comes to the sauteé of the onions and green peppers, I do mine in bacon fat. Yes, freshly rendered bacon. The bacon gets chopped up tiny and tossed into the finished product. A couple of times the last few years I skipped this step out of respect to any vegetarians that may be attending my gathering and both times I was called out by my teenage daughter. “What did you do different?” “No bacon.” “Don’t do that anymore.” It matters. Similarly, the sauteé of those veggies are a low and slow. We are not frying. I also salt and pepper my veggies for a sautee. I like to take them a couple of steps beyond ready to a deeper color. Like a roux. A beat or 3 short of caramelized. We don’t want burnt onions or peppers in the beans. It’s a fabulous depth of flavor. It matters.
*I always add more garlic than it calls for. I also do not add sugar. Never have and I don’t miss it.
*Finally, that ‘thicken’ phase I also do, but differently. My mom taught me to take a wooden spoon and mash some of the beans up against the inside of the pot they are simmering in. The starches release and make for a beautiful thick, rich broth. How much should you mash? I’d start with 2-3 times over 30 minutes and then judge for yourself. If you’d like it thicker, mash and simmer some more. And don’t forget to check your seasoning. If you’ve done it right, you should be down to salt at this point.
*Speaking of ‘if you’ve done it right’… if you’ve not done it before, you probably won’t get it right your first time or two out. Don’t be discouraged. As I said it took me a longggggg time to get it right. In all fairness though, it’s not like I was making them once a month trying to get it right. Black beans are something I’d make maybe twice a year. So be patient. And if you get in a jam….shoot me a note. Tips@eatitandlikeit.com
*Garnish? Sour cream is popular in my house, but I am purist. Cilantro is popular as well. Given the choice of something, I’d likely go thinly sliced green onion or nothing at all.
# # #
