Refried Black Beans

• Beans - part 1
• 1 cup dry black beans
• 1 dry ancho chili
• 3 tablespoons cumin
• 1 tablespoon salt
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• Beans - part 2
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1/2 medium yellow onion
• 2 cloves garlic
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh oregano
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro, plus more for serving
• juice from 1 lime
• queso fresco
• corn tortillas
• olive oil non - stick spray
• chili lime salt or cumin and kosher salt

1. soak the beans for 6-8 hours (or overnight - extra time won't hurt them) with 2 tbs cumin
2. remove the stem and seeds from the chili and coarsly chop it
3. drain the water from the beans and put all of the ingredients in a pot, cover with water and simmer until very soft. ** NOTE - I got a pressure cooker for Christmas and it cooked my beans in SEVEN, yes SEVEN minutes. Get a pressure cooker is my advice. ** NOTE 2 - if you haven't the time or patience to cook dry beans, just simmer 3 cups of canned beans with the above ingredients for a few minutes, using only 1 tbs cumin, and proceed.
4. heat olive oil to medium and saute onions til they sweat. add the garlic and saute a couple more minutes.
5. add the black beans and oregano. Saute for 2-3 more minutes.
6. turn off the heat. Add the cilantro and lime. Using a potato masher or big fork, mash the beans to a coarse texture (you want them to retain some "beaniness").
7. serve with crumbled queso fresco, cilantro, and chili lime chips (see below) . A good Mexican beer is highly recommended.
8. CHILI LIME CHIPS: heat the oven to 400. Spray a sheet with non-stick spray. Cut the tortillas into quarters and lay them on the sheet (the number depends on how many chips you want), spray them again with non-stick. Sprinkle them with chili lime salt (see my TRIO OF CITRUS SALTS recipe) OR salt and cumin. Bake until golden and crunchy.

beans, black beans, ancho chili, cumin, salt, olive oil, beans, olive oil, yellow onion, garlic, fresh oregano, fresh cilantro, lime, queso fresco, corn tortillas, olive oil, chili lime salt

Taken from food52.com/recipes/2409-refried-black-beans (may not work)