Pinto beans and nachos

Continuing the mexican themed party post, let me get to the beans and nachos. This is the first time I bought pinto beans. I always substituted kidney beans for pinto beans. Although the substitution works, the pinto beans have a slightly distinct, more mexican taste.
Nacho sauces


Mexican style pinto beans

I made a huge pot of these beans. And I had very little leftover. I did not expect the beans to be so popular at the party but everyone liked them a lot. I am writing the scaled down recipe.

Pinto beans for nachos


Ingredients:
1 cupdry pinto beans
1bay leaf
1 smallonion
1 tspgarlic paste
1deseeded jalapeno
1 heaped tsptomato paste *see notes
1/4 tspchilli powder
1 tspcumin powder
1/4 tspsmoked paprika *optional
1/8 tspitalian seasoning *see notes
1 tspcoriander powder
1.5 tspsalt
1/4 tspchana masala *see notes
  • Soak the pinto beans for 5-6 hrs. Pressure cook the pinto beans with the bay leaf for 15 mins.
  • Heat a tablespoon of oil in a pan and add the onions, garlic paste and chopped jalapeno. Saute for a couple of minutes.
  • Add the tomato paste, chilli powder, cumin powder, coriander powder and paprika if using. Mix well and saute for a few minutes.
  • Add the cooked beans, salt, italian seasoning and the chana masala.
  • Mash up some of the beans and let it simmer for 10 mins. Add more water if it is too thick. The beans need to be a pretty thick consistency without bordering on solid. 
Notes:

  • 1/2 cup tomato puree can be used instead of the tomato paste.
  • Oregano is typically used in refried beans but I did not have it. So I substituted italian seasoning which contains dried oregano.
  • Chana masala is obviously not a mexican thing. But I loved the taste of the beans after adding the tiny bit of chana masala.

Nacho cheese sauce

The cheese sauce that I used for the nachos was a simple white sauce with cheese and flavored with onions, garlic and some jalapenos.

Nacho cheese sauce

Ingredients:
1 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp butter
1/2 small onion
3 cloves garlic
1/2 deseeded jalapeno
1/4 tsp cumin powder
3 tbsp flour
1 1/2 cup hot milk
8 oz (1/2 cup) cheese (mix of cheddar and jack)
  • Heat oil in a pan and add minced onion, garlic and jalapenos. Saute for a minute. Add the cumin powder.
  • Add the butter and flour. Whisk to form a paste and cook for 2 mins.
  • Add the hot milk and whisk to form a smooth sauce. Simmer till the sauce thickens.
  • Add the cheese. Season with salt and pepper.

Loaded vegetarian nachos Loaded Nachos
The loaded nacho plates. So yum!

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