5 Minute Refried Beans Recipe - Build Your Bite (2024)

FAQs

Why are Mexican restaurant refried beans so good? ›

Why Do Restaurant Refried Beans Taste So Good? Most authentic Mexican restaurants use lard in their refried bean recipes which adds another layer of flavor and helps achieve the ideal creamy texture.

If you're wondering what is the secret ingredient for restaurant-quality refried beans, the answer is fat. Restaurant-made refried beans honor traditional Mexican culinary practices by adding a hearty helping of lard or bacon fat drippings to their recipe.

Yet, since refried beans often contain added fat and salt, they may be higher in calories, saturated fat, and sodium than other beans. These factors may impair your weight loss goals, raise your risk of heart disease, and increase your blood pressure levels.

Beans contain raffinose and other oligosaccharides (a type of carbohydrate) that our digestive system can't break down because we lack the enzyme alpha-galactosidase. This can increase gassiness.

Most Mexican restaurants buy their refried beans already canned, so it's likely they contain lard. It's very easy to buy canned refried beans without lard, but you have to do it on purpose. If you are concerned about lard or no lard, you will have to ask the server at the restaurant.

Frijoles are eaten with almost every main course alongside arroz. In many Mexican restaurants in America, refried beans are served with a layer of melty, gooey, shredded cheese on top.

2. Beans & Legumes. These foods combat inflammation because they're loaded with antioxidant and anti-inflammatory compounds, fiber, and protein.

"Refried" doesn't mean the beans have been fried twice. The word comes from the Spanish name for the dish—frijoles refritos. In Spanish "refritos" means "well fried". To make the beans you have to cook them in water first to soften them.

Lard is high in calories and fat, so if you're looking to lose weight, you may want to stick with traditional pinto beans. However, refried beans are still packed with fiber, magnesium, iron, and zinc. Refried beans, like other beans, have several health benefits.

Smaller beans like adzuki, lentils, mung beans and peas digest more easily. Pinto, kidney, navy, black-eyed peas, garbanzo, lima, and black beans are harder to digest and should be eaten only occasionally. Soybeans and black soybeans are the most difficult beans to digest.

What is in beans that damages your gut? ›

Castor beans, for example, contain a potent lectin poison called ricin. Certain types of lectin may bind with the walls of your digestive system which can lead to serious problems. Eating one particular lectin, phytohemagglutinin, can lead to severe abdominal pain, vomiting, and diarrhea.

While any legume has the potential to cause gas, certain varieties are notorious for their gassiness. "Soybeans, pinto beans, black beans and lentils are most likely to cause gas because of the amount of fermentable sugars and fiber," says Kunik.

The secret to creating beans that taste like they're from a restaurant is a long simmering time. This softens the beans and brings out all the flavor as well as marries the flavor from the add-ins into the beans. Mixing with a hand mixer softens the beans and gives them an authentic texture.

As mentioned, while beans can be a great source of protein, fiber, and other nutrients, refried beans also contain lard and salt. If you're watching your diet, you may want to keep this in mind before ordering a burrito or a side of refried beans.

Mexican beans are a cornerstone of vegetarian diets and of veganism. Since they're rich-in proteins they're ideal to replace meat and animal proteins. Besides the unlimited Italian traditional recipes, there are many traditional Mexican dishes that ignore meat to the benefit of a wide choice of vegetal food.