Authentic, briney Cuban Black Beans (Frijoles Negros) are a staple of Cuban cooking and possibly my all-time favorite black bean dish.
Before Joe entered my life I knew next to nothing about Cuban cooking. Fortunately for me, he has a loosely bound 3-ring binder that contains the secrets of all of his family’s best Cuban recipes. His mom wrote it out for him while he was in college! It’s about as homestyle as it gets, but a lot of it is extremely general information. There’s a lot of instructions that equate to “just put in the right amount”. That’s the art of cooking! That said, this recipe is the result of a lot of testing and tweaking to find out just what “the right amount” actually is.
Most of the ingredients in Cuban Black Beans (Frijoles Negros) pretty standard pantry staples except one that may look foreign- adobo con pimienta. Adobo con pimienta is an all-purpose spice blend and can be found in many grocery stores, under many brand names. You can find more information about it here. Adobo con pimienta is a dry spice blend, not to be confused with the canned chiles in adobo sauce sold in many grocery stores.
This is one of those dishes that gets better with time. You’ll see the last step says to add the vinegar, stir, and let sit for at least 20 minutes. I know it’s tempting but don’t skip this step! It really is important to help the flavors come together. And in the coming days – like magic – these beans get better and better.
This recipe feeds a crowd or can be easily frozen and saved for 1-2 months. As with all freezer meals, make sure to cool completely before freezing. I usually put individual portions in freezer-bags. When ready to eat defrost either on the stove or in a microwave-safe container.
Looking for more Cuban recipes? Try my Plátanos Maduros (Fried Sweet Plantains), Papas Rellenas and Ultimate Fricasé de Pollo (LINK) recipes!
Frijoles Negros (Cuban Black Beans)
Ingredients
- 4-5 cloves garlic
- 1 large yellow onion (about 2 cups after dicing)
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 2 8-oz cans no-salt-added tomato sauce
- 2 tsp cumin
- 1 tsp adobo con pimienta (see note above)
- 1/2 tsp oregano
- a few cranks of pepper
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder
- 1/2 tsp onion powder
- 4 cans no-salt-added black beans
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 6-oz jar pimento stuffed manzanilla olives (about 1 cup) + brine (about 1/2 cup)
- 3 tbsp white vinegar
- 2 cups uncooked white rice
Instructions
- Medium dice onion and mince garlic.
- Add olive oil to a heavy-bottomed pot and heat on medium high.
- Add onion and garlic to the pot and cook for 2-3 minutes, until just soft.
- Turn down the heat to medium; add tomato sauce, cumin, adobo con pimienta, oregano, pepper, garlic powder and onion powder. Cook for 10-12 minutes, stirring occasionally to keep from burning. Cook until sauce turns a darker shade of red and has reduced somewhat.
- Add 2 cans of beans with liquid (no draining) and 2 cans of beans drained but not rinsed. Add bay leaf and bring to a simmer. Simmer for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Add olives and brine and stir. Lower heat to medium-low. Let simmer for another 15-17 minutes.
- In a separate pot, begin heating 4 cups of water to cook rice.
- Turn the heat off of the beans and stir in vinegar. Let sit, covered to preserve the heat, for at least 20 minutes while the rice cooks. Don't skip this step!
- Once the rice has cooked, remove bay leaf from the beans and add another generous pinch of adobo con pimienta. Serve over rice.
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