This Cuban Black Bean Recipe tastes like you spent hours in the kitchen, but they're ready in 25 minutes! Made with simple ingredients and canned black beans (no soaking), these cuban-style beans are the perfect weeknight side dish. Serve these beans over white rice and transport your tastebuds to the heart of Cuba! (Healthy, Vegetarian, Vegan)Recipe can be scaled up or down by using the slider if you hover your mouse over the number of Servings.
Optionalto Finish Beans:1 TBS White or Red-Wine Vinegar + 1 tsp Brown Sugar, or more to taste (SEE NOTES)
Serving Suggestions:White Rice, Lime Wedges, Tabasco Hot Sauce or Cayenne Red Pepper
Instructions
Saute vegetables: Heat oil in a large pot or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the onions, scallions, jalapeno and bell pepper. Season with salt and pepper. Sauté until soft, about 4-5 minutes.
Add seasonings: Add in the garlic, cumin, oregano, coriander and smoked paprika. Sauté until fragrant, about 1 minute.
Add beans, liquid, and bay leaves: To the pot, add in the beans, water, and bay leaves. Season again with salt and pepper.
Bring to simmer: Bring the black beans to a boil and then immediately reduce the heat to a simmer.
Cover and cook: Cover the pot of black beans and let them simmer for 5 minutes.
Remove cover and continue to simmer: Remove cover and continue to simmer the beans, stirring occasionally, for 7-10 minutes, or until most of the water has evaporated.
Optional - Adjust consistency: Taste the beans and adjust the consistency as you see fit using one of the methods below:Soupy black beans: If you would like your black beans to have a more “soup-y” appearance, adjust consistency with a bit more water. Thick black beans: If you would like to thicken the black beans, remove about 1/4 of the beans from the pot and use potato masher or food processor to mash them. Once mashed, stir the mashed beans back into the pot.
Add herbs and adjust to taste: Stir fresh cilantro into beans. Taste and adjust for seasoning with salt and pepper, plus vinegar and sugar if using.
Serve Cuban beans over rice and garnish with more cilantro, green onions, and with lime wedges, if using. Enjoy!
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Notes
Traditional Cuban black beans do not have jalapenos. If you would like this to be a more authentic recipe, feel free to omit the jalapeno peppers!
To thicken Cuban Black Beans, mash them! Mashing the beans can be done two different ways:
Remove a cup (or a 1/3rd) of the beans, mash them with a potato masher or the back of a large spoon or fork, and stir them back into the pot.
Remove a cup (or a 1/3rd) of the beans, transfer them to a food processor, process until a paste forms and then add them back to the pot.
Optional to finish beans: Cuban black beans are traditionally finished with a drizzle of vinegar and a small sprinkling of brown sugar. This step is completely optional and should be done to taste!
Storage: Cuban black beans will keep in the freezer for up to 3 months. Allow the beans to cool completely before transferring them to an air-tight container or freezer-safe zip-closure bag. Pro-tip: Freeze the Cuban black beans in cup-sized portions for easy re-heating and serving!
To reheat, you want to make sure you avoid the black bean splitting or turning to mush by reheating them on the lowest temperature possible, while still maintaining a very gentle simmer.
Nutritional information is an estimate based upon 12 servings. Exact information will depend upon the brands of ingredients and precise measurements used.