A big pot of vegetarian beans

I may have mentioned that I am fond of beans. Usually when I post bean recipes, I link to Rancho Gordo's instructions for making a basic pot of beans. There is not a thing wrong with those instructions. They are reliable, simple, and good. Lately, though, I've been doing something slightly different for my "basic" beans -- the beans that stand on their own but still feel like just plain beans, in a bowl beside some cornbread or tortillas, or alongside a plate of enchiladas, the ones I bring to a potluck when my friend F. warns, "No fancy stuff, now."

Usually beans of this sort would involve some pork, but they don't need it, which is fortunate for our vegetarian selves. Sometimes I add some Bragg's Liquid Amino, which if F. knew about it, she'd definitely class as "fancy stuff." It just adds a little umami, though, and doesn't make things taste any less traditional, I promise. It is also fully optional.

The secret, crucial ingredient is jalepeño brine. It does a magical delicious something without disrupting the essential Big Pot of Plain Beans quality of the thing. Try it and see!

A BIG POT OF VEGETARIAN BEANS

12-16 oz. of Rio Zape beans or the pinto-type bean of your choice
1 medium onion, chopped fine
3 cloves of garlic, minced
1 Tbsp olive oil
2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. Bragg's (optional)
1/4 cup brine from jarred or canned jalepeños, or the same amount of juice from a jar of pepperoncini, or even kosher pickles
2 Tbsp. of jarred jalepeños, minced very very very fine (optional)

1. Soak the beans overnight.

2. Drain the beans and put them in a pot with fresh water, enough to cover them by at least an inch. Add the onion, garlic, oil, salt, and Bragg's, if using. Don't add the brine and peppers yet. Cover.

3. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to a simmer. Cook until tender -- this could be as little as half an hour, or as much as an hour and a half, depending on the size and freshness of your beans.

4. Add the brine and minced peppers. Taste for salt and adjust if necessary. Eat right away or reheat later. (I find that the latter results in something that is somehow even more tastier; I don't know why.)

Comments

[maryn]

Jalapeno brine. Genius.

[redfox]

Thanks! It's an extension of the general notion that something a little acidic at the end of cooking complements all beans (which is quite true) plus the results of some fridge scavenging a while ago. Thus a glorious child is born.

[Another Anna]

I've been looking for an excellent basic bean recipe, and so I got excited as I started to read your post. So excited, I resigned myself (normally quite lazy and can-prone) to making this exotic-sounding "jalapeno brine" that you mention.

And then... yay! Crap out of a jar! Even more excited.

[redfox]

Three cheers for crap out of a jar! Do be sure the beans are as tender as you want them before you add the brine, because the acidity will prevent them from getting much, if any, softer after that.

[jeb]

I was reading the wikipedia page for soy sauce yesterday, and they said something about how, in other countries, there's all this low-grade "soy sauce" that is not made with soy or fermentation at all, its wheat-based, but then its colored and salted to make it more like soy sauce. The point of it is the same, it just adds free glutamate to your food, along with salt, and in liquid form.

Anyway, the 'pedians mentioned that this product is more or less the same thing as what is sold here as liquid aminos, for certain values of liquid aminos. So maybe if F gets ornery, you can just spin it and say "oh, its not fancy stuff, its actually just really cheapo imitation soy sauce."

(Sweet idea though, PS how dank is Rancho Gordo? I love that guy, and I love his blog)

[invierta proyectos]

Those beans looks great!