I put some lovely dried pinto beans on to soak for dinner tonight. Got me thinking: what does the collective DoperMinds have to say on the subject? Tell me: how do YOU think is the best way to cook them?
Low and slow, or rapid boil? Just some garlic and onions, or do you add half your spice cabinet? Bay leaf: required, or sacrilege? Do you add cumin and chili powder, as Mr. Horseshoe does?
Low and slow with a ham hock.
Any pinto beans that enter my home are destined to become refried. Dry beans, water or stock, onions, garlic, jalapenos, chili powder, cumin, and either a ham hock or salt pork all go into the pressure cooker. 45 minutes later cooked beans come out. Mash them, fry them, and serve them with queso fresco on homemade corn tortillas if you felt like making an effort, or store bought if it’s a lazy day.
Basic beans are cooked low and slow with a ham hock or whatever pork I have on hand. Then I usually toss in a diced onion, some garlic and maybe a bay leaf. A couple of shots of pepper sauce and we are gtg. If I’m going to go Cowboy, I then add browned hamburger and a can of crushed tomatoes. No cumin, no oregano, no chili powder. When I make chili, I make chili. When I make beans, I make beans. Never the twain shall meet, spice-wise or otherwise.
I figured there’d be love for the pig here. 
Two more things I’m particularly wondering about:
Does anyone cook them in broth instead of water? (I see Terraplane mentions either/or.)
Does anyone add sugar or some other source of sweetness without doing full-on Boston baked beans? (or … is that the style you go with?)
I eat massive amounts of pinto beans. Usually I make frijoles de olla using a pound of beans, a diced onion, and salt. When the beans are cooked, I take half the pot and refry them and leave the rest whole. I like my frijoles de olla with pico de gallo and maybe some sour cream. The refried beans are good with chips, mixed up in a salad with lettuce and tomato, as a side dish, or with a fried egg on top.
Yay! I’ve been thinking about pinto beans and a thread magically appears!
I’m a terrible, horrible, cook, but I really want to make the type of beans that soak overnight and then brew with all the good stuff.
Will a kindly soul either post or PM me a very explicit recipe for doing this? I’m talking directions like "pour beans in a big pot . . . "
Thank you in advance
Standard basic recipe:
If they’re dried: soak for an hour in near-boiling water or overnight in cool water. I’m currently testing out the Cook’s Illustrated theory that adding salt to the soaking water (as opposed to the cooking water) makes then more tender and creamy. Anyone else want to chime in on that, I’m all ears. (Well, eyes.)
Be aware that they will plump up. When I was younger, more inexperienced, and a lot dumber, I’d often use a too-small bowl and too little water. They’ll at least double in size and will drink up a LOT of water.
Drain the soaking water, pour the beans into a big pot (the heavier-bottomed the better, but even thin nonstick is OK here) and cover them with a couple inches of fresh water. Don’t add anything yet - no salt, no seasoning. Bring to a boil, turn down to a simmer, and give 'em 30-60 mins. Add salt, chopped onion, garlic, a bay leaf, what have you, and give 'em another 30-60 mins. Whatever you do, don’t go off to the store and let them boil dry. (See above: younger, dumber.)
Freshly dried beans are done before you know it, but older beans (ahem, supermarket) can take a while. Up to four hours in some cases, but most often quicker than that. They’re usually even better the next day.
It’s the variations on this that I was hoping others would want to chime in about, but it never hurts to brush up on the basics.
It’s not actually necessary to soak pinto beans. Opinion is very divided on whether soaking increases or decreases the gassiness of the beans, but you can still cook them no problem. Here’s my recipe for frijoles de olla (pot beans):
1 lb pinto beans
1 half of an onion, diced
1 1/2 tablespoons salt
Wash and pick over beans, removing discolored and broken beans. Put in pot, add several inches of water to cover beans. Add diced onion. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low and cover. Boil for two hours, occasionally stirring and checking water level. At two hours, or when bean skins having begun to break, add salt and stir. Cook for 30 more minutes, until beans are tender.
In my opinion, beans don’t need all that much seasoning. Maybe I just love beans! Like I mentioned in my earlier post, I like to mix in fresh pico de gallo and sour cream.
Salt them before you boil them. This is one area Grandma got it wrong. Beans also work well in a slow cooker, but only if you have one that gets hot enough. If you cook them at too low a temperature, they’ll never get done.
For the homeless.
In my book, pintos have such good flavor, they don’t need a whole lot of doctoring. I just cook 'em with some salt pork, then serve them over some home-made cornbread. Might add some hot sauce and/or chow-chow.
A baked sweet potato and maybe a few brussel sprouts or a bit of boiled cabbage complete the meal.
I usually do the quick soak with pinto beans. Bring to a low boil for 5 minutes. Cover, turn off heat and soak for an hour. Since I rinse them before, I use the same water and add sliced uncooked bacon and chopped onion. No salt added at this time as I was told salt slows down the cooking of the beans. Once they are almost soft I add salt in the form of beef stock. Leftover beans (after a meal with corn bread) then I make chili with the beans.
Also its a tradition here to make beans on NYE. We don’t like blackeyed peas so we use pinto.
Thanks for the reminder!
After that meal, you should be banished to the couch for the night. 
I usually do pintos as a side dish. Wash one cup of dried pintos, put in the 1.5 quart crock pot with 2.5 cups of water, some smoked pig part, ham seasoning (like bouillion, you get it at the Mexican market), some salt and pepper and if I’m feeling adventurous, a chili pepper. I turn the crock pot on high for about four hours before switching to low for the last 2-3.
Serve with a skillet of cornbread, chopped onion, greens and a big glass of tea.
I’ve never found the need for stock when I use a ham hock, ham bone or smoked turkey leg. I can’t imagine how salty if would be with both smoked meat and stock.
(On a side note, I made vegan Hoppin’ John as a special request for New Year’s Eve. It’s amazingly good without the meat! I did cheat a little and add a bit of (vegan certified) MSG, and I’ll taste it again tomorrow after the flavors have had a chance to mingle tonight in the fridge, but I’m pleasantly surprised at how much I don’t miss the meat. The onions, chilis and tomatoes took up the slack.)
My SO does add a bit of brown sugar when he makes pintos. It plays with the sweetness of the pork in a nice way, while still staying a savory dish. We like to serve it with cornbread.
It does make for a musical evening. 
I love all kinds of beans. I cook them in my rice cooker. I soak overnight, then drain, then cook in the rice cooker.
I like to add flavour after the beans cook. Then I add the salt and onions or whatever I feel like. I found some chili spice mix at Aldi for 33¢ which is excellent.
But beans and a little salt is enough for me.
I’ve done both at once (I was in college and experimenting!) and it’s really not that bad, but you’re right, I think one or the other is plenty. I also have never once thought to try it with a smoked turkey leg but that really sounds perfect. Once it’s boiled in the chef gets a turkey leg! I might have to try that next time.
Yeah, it’s the smokey salty flavor more than the pork that you’re tasting anyhow. In our current belt tightening situation, I’ll use whatever flavoring agent is cheapest! I got some smoked turkey *necks *for 29 cents a pound last week! They’re still in my fridge waiting for pinto bean night, but they’ll work just as well.
I work in an office with many Hispanic women (I’m Anglo) and they all RAVED about my pinto beans when I brought them to a potluck.
I soak them overnight in salted water. (Saw this on the food network- does not make the beans salty, but seems to tenderize them.) Dump out this water and rinse the beans the next morning- or ~eight hours later.
Put in crockpot- amounts non-specific:
Soaked beans
Chopped onion
Chili powder (~teaspoon to ~tablespoon)
Ground cumin
Several cloves of garlic, crushed
Canned pickled jalapenos- MILD (whole can or half can)
A few dashes of soy sauce
Bacon, ham hock, ham (smoked turkey leg is a great idea, although I’ve never tried it)
NO BAY LEAF!!!
Add water… a lot. Fill to top of crockpot. You want lots of juice and we’re gonna cook them a long time and they will absorb a lot of water.
Turn crockpot on high. Leave for AT LEAST 12 hours. At that point, add half a can of crushed tomatoes. Turn crockpot to low. Cook for another six hours or so. No kidding. The L-O-N-G time in the crockpot is what gives them the deep, savory flavor. I just found out that 24 hours is probably too long. Eighteen hours seems to be about right. These beans are OUTRAGEOUSLY good.
You will NOT have gas when the beans are soaked and cooked for this long.