Long and behold my mother’s beloved bean recipe. You’re welcome folks. You didn’t know you needed this but you will thank me later. My mother is the best Dominican cook of all the land and I don’t say that because she’s my mom, it’s just pure fact. I’ve searched high and low from your local Dominican spot, fancy, or cousin’s grandfather’s house, nothing compares. I told her if I had the money I would invest in her restaurant but she just loves cooking for my dad ,sister and I. MORE FO ME.

During quarantine, I facetimed with my mother and she coached me into cooking these beans. She doesn’t use any measurements but I got you peeps, I measured everything as I went along. If you just pressured cook some beans or have a spare of Goya cans you want to zhuzh up, please try this recipe. Ingredients go well with either red kidney or pinto beans. Recipe is tailored to beans already pre-cooked at home but if you want to use cans, I would suggest using 2 cans of red kidney or pinto beans and adjusting the seasoning to your liking once you add the water. Here are the ingredients:

• 1/2 small red onion thinly sliced
• 2 garlic cloves minced
• 3 strands of recao or cilantro
• 3/4 of boullion cube
• 2 tsp of tomato paste
• 1 Italian bell pepper cut into fours
• 2 cups of cooked red kidney or pinto beans
• 2.5 cups of water

Directions:

1. Lightly oil a sauce pan and place over low heat. Add minced garlic and cook until they become aromatic and slightly golden. Add red onions and stir for another 3 minutes over low heat until onions sweat a bit.
2. Once onions are a bit soft add the boullion cube and let it sit in the center of the pan for a minute or too until it softens. Mix the bullion with the onions and add the tomato paste.
3. Add water and beans to the pot. Scrape the bottom of the pan and mix everything together. Turn the heat up and boil.
4. Stir the beans every 5 minutes scraping the bottom of the pan so nothing sticks. Beans will take about 25-30 minutes to cook. The liquid in the pan will reduce in half and yield super creamy results. Enjoy over rice, potatoes or carbs of choice.