Refried Beans

Since beans are only fried once, it seems a misnomer, but somehow they have come to be known as re-fried beans. Eschewing the lard unless you live on a rancho and that is what you have, either put a little butter, corn oil or rendered bacon fat in a skillet (or not, if using a teflon pan) and sauté half of a finely chopped onion, minced garlic to taste and (optional) a diced serrano chile or two. Remove the white membrane and seed the chilies When this mixture is soft and golden, add 3 or so cups of the beans from the olla and about one cup of the broth. Use the back of a wooden spoon or a potato masher to turn this mixture into a creamy paste as you mash and as the broth evaporates over medium heat. You can then serve refried beans as a side dish with either an uncooked tomato salsa or crumbled queso fresco topping, or as a bocadillo (a little mouth-full) flipped from the "pancake" out of the skillet into a roll, and served with tortilla-chips and salsa.

Don Genaro, a veteran of the revolution, and no stranger to famine, says that there is no such thing as "bad beans." He demonstrated by taking a batch of beans that had started to go "off" by putting them in a colander and rinsed, rinsed, rinsed, and rinsed them until the water ran clear and there was no odor to the beans. (This wouldn't work if meat had been used in the preparation.) Then, he popped them in the skillet with the lard, onions, garlic and chili mixture and fried them up! Try that next time your in the middle of the desert and the beans in your saddlebag are going "bad" on you.

Do you know what famous fresh condiment is on most Mexican tables, both at restaurants and at home, from first egg in the morning right through the evening meal yet shouldn't be refrigerated and is at its best immediately after it is prepared? Find out next Thursday in Comida Mexicana.