If you've never had frijoles de la olla, your life is about to be changed. We’ve experimented with enough variations to know that the ultimate Mexican-style brothy beans comes from a two-step process: 1) cook up a well-seasoned pot of beans, and 2) fold in a caramelized sofrito. As far as fat is concerned, choose lard for an amped-up porky flavor, bacon fat for smokiness, or oil for playing it neutral. Make plenty– at your next DIY taco party you’ll find yourself reaching for the beans more than anything. 

Which beans to use? Any bean from our Not-a-pinto set works great: Negro, Flor de Junio, or Bayo. Also try our Cranberry (known as Cacahuate beans in Mexico).

What you’ll need

• A batch of beans in their broth, cooked according to our guide (for flavor, try Mexican)
• Some neutral oil
• Coarse kosher salt
• ½ white or yellow onion, diced
• A couple of minced garlic cloves
• A jalapeño or serrano, mostly seeded, stemmed, and finely chopped
• A few cilantro sprigs

Assembly

Keep beans warm or reheat. Make the sofrito: sauté onion in a little oil with a pinch of salt until golden. Then, stir in garlic and pepper and sauté until soft. Fold the sofrito and cilantro sprigs into beans and simmer for 10-20 minutes to let the the flavors meld. Taste for salt before serving. 

We imagine this with...

Fresh corn or flour tortillas. Smoky charred salsa. Salty crumbled cheese. Grilled scallions. Carne asada. Melty cheese in a warm tortilla. Arroz verde. Arroz rojo. Pickled red onion. Lime. Cilantro. Vinegary hot sauce. Escabeche. Avocado. You get the picture!