Ready for some south-of-the-border magic, try my charro beans with cilantro and bacon. A splash of Tequila helps to make this a flavor jamboree.
I absolutely adore this delicious bean dish. Made with dried pinto beans, pork shoulder, bacon, onions, and spiced with fresh jalapeño. These are slow-cooked on the stovetop in a wonderful, flavorful broth. This is authentic Mexican food at its best!
Try more of my delicious authentic Mexican recipes next: Sopes, Carne Picada, Pozole Verde, and Carne Guisada!
What I love about this recipe
- These are the perfect side dish with any south-of-the-border main dish.
- Crazy flavorful brothy beans!
- Super meaty.
What are Charro Beans?
Literally translated, charro beans means cowboy beans in Spanish. They’re a Mexican-style bean dish or soup, depending on the amount of broth. Made with pinto beans, multiple meats, onions, jalapeño pepper, a splash of tequila, then flavored with fresh cilantro. They’re very popular in northern Mexico and are often served with carne asada.
Charro Beans Ingredients
- Pinto Beans: I like to start with dried pinto beans. I think they yield the best flavor when the beans are cooked. They absorb all the delicious flavors of the meats and aromatics as they cook.
- Pork Shoulder: This ingredient adds tremendous flavor. The recipe only adds 1/2 of a cup but you can easily double it for meatier beans.
- Bacon: Adds great meaty flavor and a wonderful smokiness.
- Onion: I use white onion, which is often used in Mexican cooking. You can use a yellow onion instead if you like.
- Jalapeño Pepper: Most of the heat in a jalapeño is contained in the ribs and seeds of the pepper. You can adjust the heat of the beans as you like by removing some or all of them in.
- Salt:Â Dried beans need a good amount of salt to flavor them.
- Cumin: Adds a nutty smoky flavor.
- Oregano: Adds a strongly aromatic flavor that is used in many Mexican recipes.
- Paprika: Adds a mild, slightly sweet, and smoky flavor.
- Tequila: Adds a tangy flavor. You can omit it if you don’t drink alcohol.
- Cilantro: Adds a nice freshness and a lemony, peppery, pungent taste.
How to Make Charro Beans
- Rinse the beans thoroughly and scoop them into a medium-sized Dutch oven. Add 5 cups water, remove any beans that float, then add the pork shoulder (or extra chopped bacon) and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium-low, and very gently simmer, partially covered, until the beans are thoroughly tender about 2 hours.
- In a medium-sized skillet, fry the bacon (that is, the remaining bacon if you used some for the simmering), stirring regularly, until crisp, about 10 minutes.
- Pour off all but about 2 tablespoons of the drippings and return the pan to medium heat. Add the onion and chiles and fry until deep golden brown, about 10 minutes. Scrape the onion mixture into the beans, then taste and season it all with salt.
- Continue simmering, stirring occasionally, for 20 to 30 minutes to blend the flavors. If the beans seem soupy, boil over medium-high heat, stirring frequently, until the consistency of a thick bean soup.
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Just before serving, stir in the tequila and cilantro, then serve in warm bowls topped with the crumbled bacon.
More Mexican Side Dish Recipes!
Charro Beans
Ready for some south of the border magic, try my Drunken Mexican Beans with Cilantro and Bacon. A splash of Tequila helps to make this a flavor jamboree.
Servings: 4 servings
Ingredients
- 8 ounces, (about 1 1/4 cup) dried pinto beans
- 1/2 cup, (about 2 ounces) cubed pork shoulder or extra chopped bacon
- 4 slices thick bacon, cut into 1/2 inch pieces
- 1 small white onion, diced into 1/4 Inch pieces
- 1 jalapeno pepper, stemmed, seeded and finely chopped
- about 2-2 1/2 teaspoons salt
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1/2 teaspoon paprika
- 1 1/2 tablespoons tequila
- 1/4 cup cilantro leaves, roughly chopped
Instructions
- Rinse the beans thoroughly and scoop them into a medium-sized Dutch oven. Add 5 cups water, remove any beans that float, then add the pork shoulder (or extra chopped bacon) and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium-low, and very gently simmer, partially covered, until the beans are thoroughly tender about 2 hours. You'll need to gently stir the beans regularly and add water as necessary to keep the liquid a generous 1/2 inch above the level of the beans.
- In a medium-sized skillet, fry the bacon (that is, the remaining bacon if you used some for the simmering), stirring regularly, until crisp, about 10 minutes. With a slotted spoon, remove the bacon, leaving behind as much of the drippings as possible. Pour off all but about 2 tablespoons of the drippings and return the pan to medium heat.
- Add the onion and chiles and fry until deep golden brown, about 10 minutes. Scrape the onion mixture into the beans, then taste and season it with salt, cumin, oregano, and paprika.
- Continue simmering, stirring occasionally, for 20 to 30 minutes to blend the flavors. If the beans seem quite soupy, boil over medium-high heat, stirring frequently, until the consistency of a nice, brothy bean soup. (An alternative here is to puree 1/4 of the beans in a food processor or blender, returning them to the pot to thicken the broth.)
- Just before serving, stir in the tequila and cilantro, then serve in warm bowls topped with the crumbled bacon.
Fans Also Made:
Nutrition
Serving: 1serving | Calories: 387kcal | Carbohydrates: 38g | Protein: 19g | Fat: 16g | Saturated Fat: 5g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 3g | Monounsaturated Fat: 7g | Cholesterol: 31mg | Sodium: 1709mg | Potassium: 954mg | Fiber: 10g | Sugar: 2g | Vitamin A: 254IU | Vitamin C: 9mg | Calcium: 84mg | Iron: 4mg
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Source: Rick Bayless
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[…] -Drunken Mexican Beans with Cilantro and Bacon […]
Question: Do you cook the bacon first before adding to the beans?
Hi Kam. No I don’t cook it ahead of time.
I made this recipe yesterday & it was so yummy! All the flavors came together so nicely. It was a little soupy, but, that was ok & worked great with the cornbread to sop it up.
Hi Angela. So glad you enjoyed 🙂
Since most of the comments are related to the look, I figured another that addressed the taste would be helpful.
My mother told me to soak beans overnight (like all good southern men, I listen to my mom) so these beans may be softer than the ones prescribed above . I followed the recipe step for step with a few alterations. I added a serrano pepper, ~2tsp of cumin, bell peppers, and opted for extra bacon instead of ham.
The beans were, obviously, a bit spicy but that’s how I like them. My grandmother, a Spanish chef if there ever was one, swears by the sanctity of limes, so I squeezed some over the top and the flavor was phenomenal. This really is a fantastic recipe and I appreciate Kathleen and Rick Bayless for making it accessible to the public.
“Pura Vitamina C,” as my suegra would say! Limones make a lot of things better!
I have a toddler. Would it work to use tequila but let the alcohol cool out of it?
I would probably make the recipe and remove the toddlers portion when you finish step 2. Then add the tequila as in step 3 to the batch that the toddler does not eat! Cilantro to both batches. 🙂
These are the BEST beans!! Go rave reviews. Thanks for the recipe. As printed this fed 4 adults as a side dish. I will definitely double next time to have leftovers!
How many servings does it make? We want to cook this for a group 🙂
Looks awesome! Will it work the same with black beans?? THanks!
Sounds so delicious! This is definitely on my to try list.
What an awesome idea. You could eat a bowl of that at the bar and kill dinner and drinks in one serving!
This looks delicious!
I love cooking up dried beans. They are so much better than canned! This is a great looking recipe!