Beans are a staple at my house. They’re cheap, healthy, and my kids love them.

I think my favorite way to eat them is in chili. Soak small red or black beans (or ideally half a pound of each) for a few hours.

Trim 1.5 pounds stew beef, add black pepper and salt. Brown in pan. Add in onion and fresh peppers (bell, poblano, jalapeno, serrano) and cook until onions are clear.

Pour a beer in there, Modelo works great. Add the beans. Add a can of chipotles in adobo sauce. Don’t bother chopping, they’ll break down. Add a jar of salsa. Add water to cover the beans. Add chili powder, bay leaves, oregano, cumin, and more salt & pepper to taste.

Simmer until the beans are fully cooked, probably around a couple hours. Serve with tortilla chips or corn bread.

And before anyone says “beans don’t belong in chili,” they absolutely do.

I’m always on the lookout for more ways to cook beans. What’s your favorite?

  • moody@lemmings.world
    2·
    8 days ago

    I got this recipe from a Sorted video. It’s not exact, cause I don’t remember the details, but I really like it. It’s a honey-harissa halloumi tray bake. I eyeball the quantities, but it’s always been good to me, exact quantities/ratios aren’t super important.

    Preheat oven to 400F/200C

    One large red onion, chopped pretty big. I quarter it, and then chop each quarter into 3 chunks, and break it all apart with my hands when saucing it up.
    About one can kidney or navy beans. I usually use a bit less than a full can, or I guesstimate the equivalent of cooked-from-dry.
    A handful of nice black olives, pitted. You want some salty savory ones, not the ones come from a can and taste like metal.
    One block of halloumi, about 200-250g, cut into large pieces. 6-8 pieces depending on the size.

    The sauce is as follows:
    2-3 tablespoons of harissa
    1 tablespoon of tomato paste
    2-3 tablespoons of honey or maple syrup
    2 ounces of olive oil
    You can vary the spiciness by changing the ratio of tomato paste to harissa.

    Chuck all the main ingredients in a baking tray, coat everything in sauce, stick in the oven. After 20 minutes, the onions are softened but still have some bite. If you want them softer, bake a bit longer. Serves 2-3, but it makes a decent side in smaller servings.

    If you can get them, I like to add brined (not dried) peppercorns. But you can basically add anything to this and it’ll be good. It’s sweet, salty, savory, and spicy with pops of flavour from the olives. In the time it takes your oven to preheat, you should be done preparing everything and it should be ready to go in.