Smoky Garden Beans ( or Pinto)
One of the things we grow every year, in our curry garden is beans. We usually have enough left over for dried beans. I use them all through winter making these versatile smokey garden beans. These smokey garden beans can be any bean that you can think of, but the closest substitute is pinto beans.
My Smokey Garden Beans Story
These beans are so flavorful, and a big pot puts you in good shape for the week. I cook these in a large batch and eat some as is and then make refried beans out of the rest.
The beans have a few basic spices, and therefore are super versatile. We enjoy them over steamed rice, love them in quesadillas and tacos. I tend to make them a little on the drier side. This gives me the flexibility to add or subtract water as needed by the dish.
These beans i do not take a lot of time to cook but do need soaking. I made a bunch of tostadas, loosely following this recipe.
However, the deal here is pretty simple, before I get to the tostadas you need these beans, then the refried beans and finally the tostadas.
Well, I cook my beans in a pressure cooker or instant pot, which as we know is an electric pressure cooker. The smokiness in this dish is from smoked paprika. You will be amazed at the lovely deep smokey taste it infuses.
I am happy that my large batch of beans is all done and ready for all the myriad layers of cooking that the weeknight needs. Camp starts tomorrow. The daughter is super excited that she will be a counselor in training, and I sigh as I see another milestone pass us by.
Other interesting rice and beans and similar recipes include this recipe for Gallo Pinto and Smokey Roasted Eggplant.
If you like this recipe and want more ideas, do join my Indian Instant Pot Facebook group and Legume Love Group. Of course Instant Indian my new Indian Instant Pot Cookbook is ready for order, joining its siblings The Bengali Five Spice Chronicles and Spices and Seasons.
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I also have a little video for this.
This is a very versatile recipe for smokey garden beans (or pinto) and is a perfect basic recipe for almost anything.
Ingredients
- 1 cup dried pinto or garden beans
- 3 tablespoons oil
- 1 medium sized red onion, diced
- 4 cloves of garlic, minced
- 2 tomatoes, diced
- 1 teaspoon salt or to taste
- 1 and 1/2 teaspoons freshly ground cumin
- 1 tablespoon smoked paprika
- 1 teaspoon red cayenne pepper
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 2.5 cups water
- 1 tablespoon fresh lime or lemon juice (optional)
Instructions
- Soak the beans for at least 4 to 6 hours or overnight.
- Turn on the saute mode and add in the oil with onion and the garlic and saute for about 3 minutes.
- Add in the tomato, salt, cumin and smoked paprika and cook for another 2 minutes.
- Add in the soaked beans with the oregano and 2 and 1/2 cups of water.
- Turn off the saute mode. Cover and cook set on 17 minutes.
- Do a natural release or let it rest for 10 minutes and release the pressure.
- Add the lemon juice and serve as needed with rice or tortillas