georgiarose
Well-known member
Originally Posted by Michael in Phoenix
This is a very versatile recipe. Crumble some Mexican Cotija Cheese over the top of a large bowl (Feta is a reasonable substitute) or shredded Jack or Cheddar and you have a wonderful main dish! It can also be used as a side dish for a more substantial meat entree. Prepare it a day ahead of time, and it only gets better and better!
My Wife's Pinto Bean Soup
1 pound dried Pinto Beans
4 cups chicken stock
2 cups water
1/4 tsp red pepper flakes (optional)
1 tsp EACH: ground cumin, ground coriander, dried oregano (mexican oregano is best. Do not use ground oregano, use dried)
1 green bell pepper, stemmed, seeded, coarse chop
3 med. yellow onions, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 tsp. liquid smoke (hickory)
salt and pepper to taste
Place washed and sorted pinto beans in large stock pot with water and chicken stock. Bring to a full boil, boil for 2 minutes only. Remove from heat, cover and let soak for 1 hour.
Add remaining ingredients to pot except for salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, reduce to a very slow simmer, cover and cook, stirring occasionally, for 4 hours, or until beans are very tender. Add salt and pepper to taste.
Now you have some choices. You can serve it 'as is' if you like a lot of liquid in the soup. You can continue to simmer UNCOVERED, and reduce the liquid to a less soupy consistency, and call it 'Ranch Beans' (a great side dish!). Or, you can ladle about 1/3 of the soup and beans into a blender and puree until smooth. Then return this puree to the soup pot and stir into the remaining 2/3's of the soup. This will make a very rich and creamy soup. We've even pureed the entire dish for a totally smooth treat.
We serve this as a main dish with warm flour tortillas (or soft pita bread); cheese garnish and a dab of sour cream.
Added bonus: If you limit the cheese and sour cream garnish, THIS IS A VERY LOW FAT DISH, with no sacrifice on taste!
Enjoy!
Michael
This is a very versatile recipe. Crumble some Mexican Cotija Cheese over the top of a large bowl (Feta is a reasonable substitute) or shredded Jack or Cheddar and you have a wonderful main dish! It can also be used as a side dish for a more substantial meat entree. Prepare it a day ahead of time, and it only gets better and better!
My Wife's Pinto Bean Soup
1 pound dried Pinto Beans
4 cups chicken stock
2 cups water
1/4 tsp red pepper flakes (optional)
1 tsp EACH: ground cumin, ground coriander, dried oregano (mexican oregano is best. Do not use ground oregano, use dried)
1 green bell pepper, stemmed, seeded, coarse chop
3 med. yellow onions, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 tsp. liquid smoke (hickory)
salt and pepper to taste
Place washed and sorted pinto beans in large stock pot with water and chicken stock. Bring to a full boil, boil for 2 minutes only. Remove from heat, cover and let soak for 1 hour.
Add remaining ingredients to pot except for salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, reduce to a very slow simmer, cover and cook, stirring occasionally, for 4 hours, or until beans are very tender. Add salt and pepper to taste.
Now you have some choices. You can serve it 'as is' if you like a lot of liquid in the soup. You can continue to simmer UNCOVERED, and reduce the liquid to a less soupy consistency, and call it 'Ranch Beans' (a great side dish!). Or, you can ladle about 1/3 of the soup and beans into a blender and puree until smooth. Then return this puree to the soup pot and stir into the remaining 2/3's of the soup. This will make a very rich and creamy soup. We've even pureed the entire dish for a totally smooth treat.
We serve this as a main dish with warm flour tortillas (or soft pita bread); cheese garnish and a dab of sour cream.
Added bonus: If you limit the cheese and sour cream garnish, THIS IS A VERY LOW FAT DISH, with no sacrifice on taste!
Enjoy!
Michael