Mexican-style frijoles charros, or “cowboy beans,” don’t ask for much in the way of ingredients but deliver great flavor with just some basic pantry staples. Feel free to add ham, chorizo, pork sausage, and other meats to the pot before you cook the beans for additional flavor. If you really want to go wild, though, be sure to add a little Mexican beer to the pot to get borracho (drunken) beans.
Ingredients
- 1 cup dried pinto beans
- 3 cups hot water
- 1 (14.5-ounce) can fire-roasted diced tomatoes, undrained
- 1 cup finely chopped onions
- ½ cup chopped fresh cilantro
- ½ green bell pepper, finely chopped
- 4 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 to 2 teaspoons ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 3 cups cool water
How to Make It
- In a medium bowl, soak the beans in the hot water for 1 hour. Drain.
- In the Instant Pot, combine the beans, tomatoes and their juices, onions, cilantro, bell pepper, garlic, cumin, and salt. Add the cool water.
- Secure the lid on the pot. Close the pressure-release valve. Select manual and set the pot at high pressure for 30 minutes. At the end of the cooking time, allow the pot to stand undisturbed for 10 minutes, then release any remaining pressure.
- If you’d like, blend with an immersion blender directly in the pot for 10 seconds to mash some of the beans and thicken the broth slightly.
