How to Make Refried Beans in the Crockpot

In my how to prepare dried beans hub I explained the unhealthy benefits of consuming canned beans. I've cooked black beans, garbanzo beans and kidney beans in the past, but had not tried refried beans, until now.

Turns out it's even easier than any of the other beans I have cooked that require boiling, soaking, draining, washing etc. Refried beans can be made right in the crockpot (slow cooker).

I love cooking with my crockpot, some of my favorite vegetarian crockpot recipes include: lentil sloppy joes, vegan mac & cheese, and vegetarian split pea soup. The most convenient recipes follow the set it and forget motto and this refried beans crockpot recipe does just that.

Tonight for dinner we ate the most amazing burritos with our homemade refried beans. Follow the steps below to cook up your own pot of beans and then check out my hub for creating a delicious & super quick Refried Bean Burrito.

1. 4 cups dried pinto beans (approximately 2 pounds)
2. 1 onion
3. 3 cloves garlic
4. 1 jalapeño pepper
5. 1 tablespoon sea salt
6. 1 teaspoon dried cumin
7. 12 cups water (3:1 ratio with beans)

1. Sort and rinse pinto beans well
   Tip: Place beans on a cookie sheet for sorting. This is a fun task to get kids involved in. Look for any beans that are wrinkled or small stones that may have slipped in
2. Chop onion, garlic & jalapeño pepper
3. Layer the beans, onion, garlic, & jalapeño pepper in the crockpot
4. Add sea salt and ground cumin
5. Top with water (approximately 3 cups of water per 1 cup of dried beans)
6. Cook on high for 6-8 hours
7. Remove any excess liquid on top with a ladle (save aside if needed for blending)
8. Using an immersion blender, blend all ingredients until desired consistency is achieved (add any of the reserved liquid as needed)
9. Ready to eat! Serve up your homemade beans in some burritos or Mexican pizza.
10. Once cooled you can bag and freeze for later use. I was able to divide this batch of refried beans into a burrito dinner for this evening and froze approximately four 2-cup servings.

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