Refried beans (fromSpanish:frijoles refritos,lit. 'well-fried beans') is a dish of cooked and mashedbeans that is a traditionalstaple ofMexican[1] andTex-Mex cuisines, although each cuisine has a different approach when making the dish. Refried beans are also popular in many otherLatin American countries. In this dish, after being boiled and then mashed into a paste, the beans are fried or baked (though they are fried only once).
The English "refried beans" is a mistranslation, since the essence of "frijoles refritos" is the reheating and mashing of the beans; the term "refried" is misleading.[2] As described byRick Bayless, "they'rerefritos—not friedagain, as you might assume, but 'well fried' or 'intensely fried'."[1]
InNorthern Mexico andTex-Mex cuisine, refried beans are usually prepared withpinto beans, but many other varieties of bean are used in other parts of Mexico, such asblack,Peruano, orred kidney beans.[3] The raw beans can be cooked when dry or soaked overnight, then stewed, drained of most of the remaining liquid, and converted into a paste with a masher (such as apotato masher), or pressed through a fine mesh sieve (to remove the skins). Some of the drained liquid, or chicken or vegetablestock, is added if the consistency is too dry. The paste is then baked or fried, usually with onion and garlic in a small amount oflard,vegetable oil, bacon drippings orbutter, and seasoned to taste with salt andspices.[4][5] In Mexico, lard is most often used, and this has a large effect on flavor.Epazote is a common herb used to add flavor to the dish;[6] it is also acarminative (i.e. it reduces the intestinal gas associated with beans).[7]
In home cooking, refried beans are often served as aside dish accompanying a larger meal or rolled in atortilla to form a beanburrito.
In the United States, refried beans are most commonly made from pinto beans. They are served as a side dish with most Tex-Mex restaurant meals. They also have become very popular as adip for maizetortilla chips. Refried beans are also a primary ingredient in manytostada,chimichanga, andpupusa recipes. Additionally, they are a typical ingredient in layered dips, such asseven-layer dip,[8] or innachos.
