We have been making vegan refried beans, Full of Beans-style, since, well, the beginning at least, since we got married and before we became vegan. So it’s been a while!
Vegan Refried Beans Go With Everything
OK, maybe not everything, but refried beans are not only delicious, but they can be used in so many ways: in our Crispy Burritos, as a dip, on chips, on tostadas (like in the photo at the top of this post), in a pita with greens and dressing – almost anything you can think of. Vegan refried beans are that hearty, tasty player that adds high-quality protein and healthy fiber to all sorts of dishes.
Vegan refried beans on tortilla chips with vegan shreds, guacamole, and non-dairy sour cream. Yum!
The Back Story of Our Vegan Refried Beans
These Vegan Refried Beans began with a date. This was the first real dinner date that I asked Georgia out on. So of course, I was going to try someplace that would really impress her and show her how infatuated I was with her. That meant I picked The Raven. This was a place that we would nowadays call a bougie restaurant. Of course, being a teenager, I figured we could walk in on a Friday night. Not so fast – the place was popular, so it was completely full, and I had no reservation. Briefly, it appeared the date was falling apart.
But Georgia saved my ass, and the date, by pointing across the square and suggesting a funky place called the Taco Emporium. We walked in, sat down, and enjoyed delicious, inexpensive Mexican food on paper plates that we have been trying to re-create ever since. It rapidly became one of our favorite places, and we had many meals there while we were falling in love.Sadly, one night, the owners of the Taco Emporium disappeared. Apparently, they had fallen behind on their taxes or something, and they split. We loved all their food, of course, including their refried beans.
The Healthy Alternative
Now, traditional refried beans are absolutely not vegan! They often have lard or bacon fat, sometimes cheese, in them. But, for us, even from the beginning, as non-vegan, we weren’t interested in that. Also, we took our typical approach and put our own spin on it.
The simple ingredients for vegan refried beans
We started making these refried beans just about when we got married (pre-vegan). It was always the same ingredients we are sharing with you today. Over time it had tweaks and changes, but it was always one of those things we made by feel and taste. but, a short time ago, we realized that this was the OG vegan recipe from us, and it wasn’t even actually a recipe that we could share with anybody! Challenge accepted. I got busy figuring out exactly what made the best vegan refried beans, Full of Beans-style so that we could share it with all of you and spread the vegan refried beans love. 🙂
Refried Beans Full of Beans-style
If you have had refried beans in a restaurant or bought them at a store, you’ll know that they are usually very creamy and smooth. We like a little more texture than that and don’t care for the extra step of blending.
Smooth but with texture – that’s how we like to make refried beans!
So, our refried beans have a little more character to them. (However, if you like smooth and creamy, go right ahead and blend away!) We try to use beans that we have cooked ourselves in our Instant Pot, so we have a lot of control over how tender the beans are. Soft beans work best in this recipe since we mash them by hand. Canned beans (always try to get organic!) work fine, they just may take a bit extra mashing and a little more time cooking. OK, on to the recipe!
1 tsp oil (grapeseed, peanut, avocado or other high-heat oil)
1 small onion, diced
2 large cloves garlic, diced
1.5cups kidney beans (or 1 can, drained and rinsed)
1.5cups black beans (or 1 can, drained and rinsed)
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp chili powder
salt, to taste
1/2cup water (added as needed)
optional: 1/8 tsp cayenne
optional: diced jalapeno (to taste)
Instructions
Heat a skillet on medium high heat
add the oil
once the oil is warmed, add the onion and cook until translucent
add the garlic and cook for a minute or two
add the spices and combine all ingredients
immediately add the beans and stir all ingredients together. add some of the water to keep it all from being dry and sticking to the pan
Using a masher (like for mashed potatoes) or the back of a large spoon or ladle, start mashing the beans
reduce heat to medium, or medium low
alternate mashing and stirring, adding water to keep everything moist, until most of the beans are mashed. We like to leave bits and pieces of beans for texture.
Once the beans start to mash sample the taste and add salt, if needed (or cayenne if you want the refried beans to be spicier)
remove from heat and serve or transfer to a container
Notes
We like our refried beans just slightly spicy and let other ingredients of dishes add heat as we desire(like salsa, or hot sauce etc). Occassionaly we add cayenne and/or jalapeño pepper to add some fire. Its up to you!
The water is added in small amounts to keep the mixture from drying out as you cook and mash. If the mixture is WET as you’re cooking don’t fret. Simply keep mashing and cooking – it will quickly evaporate
Greg is the other half of Full Of Beans. He loves to be active, particularly outdoors. If he had his way, he would be on a warm beach at least part of every day. He works as a Graphic Designer, Photographer, and Personal Trainer. In his opinion, Georgia is the best thing that ever happened to him.
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