Black Beans With Avocado-Lime Crema
These savory, brothy, black beans are taken to the next level with the addition of a creamy, garlicky Avocado-Lime Crema. A fantastic vegetarian meal or a great addition to a Tex-Mex, Cuban or BBQ dinner, this recipe is guaranteed to make you forget about canned beans forever.
Ingredients
Black Beans:
- 1 pound dried black beans
- 6 large garlic cloves, minced
- 1 large onion, medium diced
- 1 yellow pepper, seeded and medium diced
- 1 orange pepper, seeded and medium diced
- 1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and minced
- 4 cups vegetable or chicken stock (low-sodium is the preferred option as this allows you to control the amount of salt in the recipe)
- 2 cups water
- 2 tsp cumin
- 3 tsp oregano
- 1 tbs kosher salt
- cilantro for garnish (this is completely optional)
Avocado-Lime Crema:
- 2 ripe avocados
- juice of one lime
- 2 large garlic cloves
- ½ cup sour cream
- 1 tbs cilantro
- ½ tsp kosher salt
- 5 dashes hot sauce
Instructions
Black Beans:
- Place the beans in a medium sized pot, pour in enough cold water to cover the beans by about 1-2 inches. Place in the refrigerator and allow to soak overnight.
- Drain and rinse the beans. Place them in a large pot. Add the garlic, onion, peppers, jalapeño, vegetable (or chicken) stock and water. Bring to a boil over medium heat. Turn the heat down to low, cover the pot and allow the beans to simmer for 1½ hours.
- Add the cumin, oregano and salt. Give the beans a good stir, cover the pot and continue simmering for another hour. Taste the beans for seasoning and doneness. If you prefer softer more creamy beans, you may need to simmer them for about another 30 minutes, which is what I did.
Avocado-Lime Crema:
- Combine all ingredients in the bowl of a food processor. Process until smooth.
- Remove to a bowl. Cover with plastic wrap (make sure that the wrap is pressed directly onto the crema to prevent it from browning). Refrigerate for at least one hour to allow the flavors to meld.