Easy Cuban Black Beans

This Easy Cuban Black Beans Recipe is a quick shortcut recipe that will have you making delicious flavorful black beans in no time.

This easy recipe for black beans is something you will make regularly. A simple sofrito of onions and garlic dresses up canned black beans and enhances their texture and flavor. 

What Do We Mean By Easy Cuban Black Beans

There is nothing like traditional homemade black beans. However as much as we love our traditional black bean recipe made from beans we have soaked and slowly simmered, it is not always possible to do during the week. Hence the Easy Black Bean Recipe was born. Our weekly menu usually includes this recipe, because beans are something that our kids love and bring a lot of protein and sneaky veggies into the diet.

What if we told you that this recipe will have so much flavor, most people won’t be able to tell the difference. The best part? It’s ready in under 30 minutes!

The big trick of this recipe is that one of the cans of beans is blended until smooth. In a way this will mimic the texture of black beans that have been simmering on your stove top for hours. This is key!

This is the first recipe my grandmother Alita Lily taught me to make. I was leaving home for a summer internship and she wanted me to take something valuable with me. She swore me to secrecy and asked me not to share the recipe with my roommate. I kept it a secret then, but now I guess we can say the secret is out. 

Ani

The Black Bean Debate

There is a debate out there over canned beans. There is an argument that beans from the can are not “real” black beans. However we have always and will always disagree with this argument. Black beans do not have to soak overnight or simmer for hours to be “authentic”.

In fact, it’s safe to say that most of our Abuelas loved a good short cut. Cooking is not about “time” spent in the kitchen. It’s about whether that time was spent with love and care, and ends in something delicious! Period!

The fact that this recipe can get you delicious flavorful black beans in under 30 minutes is a kitchen miracle and we don’t want your negativity!

Our Tips for Making These Easy Cuban Black Beans

It’s all about a simple Sofrito: Unlike our traditional recipe that uses a variety of peppers, herbs and spices this recipe uses a simple sofrito. Onions and garlic are sauteed with sazon as the base for these beans. We simmer these beans for 10 -15 minutes once all the ingredients are in but you can’t mess this up. You can simmer it for longer if you’d like to intensify the flavors. 

Don’t drain the beans! Unlike some recipes that will ask you to drain and rinse the beans we don’t do that for this recipe. We use beans that have a sauce and seasoning in them. If you drain them you are loosing a lot of the flavor. It’s important to buy beans that say “creole seasoning” or ready to eat. The brands Kirby, Goya or El Ebro all have a variation. 

All about the flavor! Just keep in mind that the cooking time is so short you want to add all those flavorings at the start of the recipe when you add the sazon. 

• These beans are very savory and don’t have the vinegary and sweet flavor of our other recipe, but you can add a tablespoon of vinegar and of sugar to mimic that taste.
• If you wanted to add some heat, add a piece of serrano pepper or hot sauce.
• Bay leaves, crushed oregano and ground cumin are also spices you can add to make this more your own.

Serve these beans with Thick Cut Pork Chops,   Weeknight Roast Chicken or  Mojo Pork Tenderloin. You can even use leftovers of this recipe to make Christmas Congri or a healthier version with our Cauliflower Congri. 

Try Some of Our Other Easy Weeknight Recipes