Chef John's Refried Beans

Name: Chef John's Refried Beans
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 2 h
Total time: 12 h 10 min
Yield: 8 servings
Ingredients: 1 pound dry pinto beans, soaked overnight; 4 whole garlic cloves, peeled; ½ teaspoon dried epazote; 9 cups cold water; ½ cup lard; 1 ½ cups diced onions; 2 teaspoons kosher salt; 2 tablespoons minced serrano chili pepper; 1 teaspoon ground dried chipotle pepper

Rating: 4.88 stars

72 Ratings
79 Reviews
26 Photos

I don't think I would ever sit down to eat just a bowl of refried beans, but they make everything they're served on, with, or in, infinitely better. Just as long as you use lard to make them.

By Chef John

Gallery

Read the full recipe after the video.

Recipe Summary test

prep:

10 mins

cook:

2 hrs

additional:

10 hrs

total:

12 hrs 10 mins

Servings:

Yield:

8 servings

Nutrition Info

Ingredients

Original recipe yields 8 servings

The ingredient list now reflects the servings specified

Beans:

1 pound dry pinto beans, soaked overnight
4 whole garlic cloves, peeled
½ teaspoon dried epazote
9 cups cold water

Refried Beans:

½ cup lard
1 ½ cups diced onions
2 teaspoons kosher salt
2 tablespoons minced serrano chili pepper
1 teaspoon ground dried chipotle pepper

Directions

Step 1
Drain soaked beans and transfer them to a stock pot. Add garlic, epazote, and cold water. Place pot over high heat and bring to a boil. Stir. Reduce heat to low. Simmer uncovered until beans are soft, 1 1/2 to 2 hours. Drain the beans and reserve all the liquid.

Advertisement
Step 2
Melt lard in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add onions and salt; cook until onions start to brown, 10 to 12 minutes. Stir in serrano pepper and chipotle powder; cook 1 minute. Transfer drained beans into skillet. Mash about half the beans with a potato masher or back of a spoon. Ladle some bean cooking liquid to skillet. Continue to mash and stir beans as you gradually add more liquid. Mash until the beans have reached your preferred consistency and texture. Taste and add more salt, if desired.

Chef's Note:

You can substitute 1 teaspoon dried oregano for 1/2 teaspoon epazote.

If you want the beans loose enough to spoon over tortilla chips for nachos, you'll probably need to add all the cooking liquid. But that's up to you.

Nutrition Facts

Per Serving:

317 calories; protein 12.2g; carbohydrates 37.7g; fat 13.7g; cholesterol 12.2mg; sodium 490.9mg. Full Nutrition

Reviews (79)

Most helpful positive review

wittymagpie

08/07/2017

OK, the lard is IT. I could wax poetic about the interesting way lard can take heat (medium high), the wonderful smell while frying, the insane flavor of the refried beans, and on and on... I followed this verbatim and usually I use recipes as more of an 'idea'. So, having had lots of homemade refried beans, let me say that these are spot-on. I do love Chef John's recipes. Bravo!! Read More

Helpful

(49)

72 Ratings

5 star values: 63
4 star values: 9
3 star values: 0
2 star values: 0
1 star values: 0

Reviews: Most Helpful

Most Helpful Most Positive Least Positive Newest

wittymagpie

08/06/2017

Helpful

(49)

michell

10/08/2017

These were by far the best refried beans ever. I will never eat them from a can again. Chef John is my new cooking guru. Read More

Helpful

(20)

Ryanne

04/25/2019

Way better than caned beans!!! We loved it a lot. But instead of the leafs on top we put Mexican sour cream and it was DELICIOUS! Read More

Helpful

(9)

LeeGosney@mac.com

09/12/2017

My family will never eat canned refried beans again. This was excellent. Read More

Helpful

(6)

studmuffin

10/12/2017

Chef John ROCKS!! Used canned beans and hid the can of lard (what they don't know...) Read More

Helpful

(6)

Kim Casey Nugent Roberds

02/18/2018

I have been trying to make beans for 10 years and they have been so so. I stumbled on to this recipe and tried it and it is to die for. It has to be the lard that makes the beans so good. I have made this according to the recipe and once I used green chiles and it was just as good. I would rate this 10 stars if I could. Read More

Helpful

(5)

c.crowley

01/26/2019

These beans turned out so yummy! I used bacon fat I had stored because my store didn't have lard. Online people said bacon fat works so I went for it, not disappointed at all. I want to say this is either the 6th or 7th recipe of Chef Johns I have tried, not a single one has been disappointing, they've all been great so far. Got so many more to try next. Read More

Helpful

(5)

Michael D Johnson

04/19/2018

It's personal, but for my next batch I'll probably drop to one Serrano instead of two. Of course, the Serrano's I bought we're rather large. Excellent and easy recipe. I doubt we'll ever eat canned again. I cooked the beans in a pressure cooker, so I didn't need to soak them overnight and it only took 45 minutes to cook the beans. I highly recommend a pressure cooker. My wife is still raving about how delicious this recipe is. Read More

Helpful

(4)

Cheri Rose Caire

06/14/2017

Wayyyy better than the canned stuff, and super easy. I love homemade options over store bought. After we ate dinner I froze smaller portions for future taco nights, nachos, or whatever we may want received beans for. I love chef John's recipes, keep up the good work. Read More

Helpful

(4)

More Reviews

Back to Chef John's Refried Beans

All Reviews for Chef John's Refried Beans

- of Reviews

Chef John's Refried Beans

Servings Per Recipe: 8
Calories: 317.2

% Daily Value *

protein: 24 %

carbohydrates: 12 %

dietary fiber: 50 %

sugars:

fat: 21 %

saturated fat: 26 %

cholesterol: 4 %

vitamin a iu: 1 %

niacin equivalents: 23 %

vitamin b6: 23 %

vitamin c: 8 %

folate: 58 %

calcium: 8 %

iron: 16 %

magnesium: 26 %

potassium: 18 %

sodium: 20 %

thiamin: 26 %

calories from fat:

*Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Your daily values may be higher or lower depending on your calorie needs.

**Nutrient information is not available for all ingredients. Amount is based on available nutrient data.

(-)Information is not currently available for this nutrient. If you are following a medically restrictive diet, please consult your doctor or registered dietitian before preparing this recipe for personal consumption.