Western Pinto Beans


I was asked to review Miriam Barton's Meatless Meals for Meat Eaters cookbook and this was one of the recipes that immediately caught my eye. I love beans and I cook them all the time adding spices to them as they cook for flavor. So when I saw this recipe had onions, lime juice, cilantro and a bunch of other great flavors mixed into the beans, I knew that I would love this recipe.



I did soak the beans first over night and then cooked the beans with the 3 cups of vegetable stock and then added water until the beans were covered in about four inches of liquid. I then added all the rest of the ingredients and cooked them for about an hour until the beans were fully cooked. I didn't have the 3 hours to cook the beans so I soaked them the night before which helps cut the cooking time. I served the beans over rice and then later on used the left over beans in burritos. This recipe makes a lot of beans so, be prepared to have leftovers.


  • 2 c. dried pinto beans
  • water
  • 3 c. vegetable stock
  • 1/2 c. onion, chopped
  • 1/4 c. cilantro, chopped
  • juice of one lime
  • 4 garlic cloves, minced
  • 2 TBSP. hot sauce
  • 2 tsp. thyme
  • 2 tsp. salt
  • 1/2 tsp. pepper

  1. Soak the beans for at least 8 hours or over night in a large stockpot filled with water.
  2. Rinse the beans and remove any debris. Put the beans back in the large stockpot add all the ingredients. Add water to the pot to make sure that the beans are covered at least 4 inches under the liquid.
  3. Cook the beans over medium heat until it starts to boil. Lower the heat and simmer for about an hour or until the beans are tender and fully cooked. Check on the beans every once in a while to make sure they have enough water. If it starts to look low, add more water to cover the beans.
  4. Serve the beans over rice, in burritos or bean bowls (with grated cheese, avocado slices, diced tomatoes and a bed of shredded lettuce).

This post is submitted in
Just Another Meatless Monday
Made By You Monday
Made From Scratch Monday


1 comment:

Mary Hudak-Collins livingthescripture.com said...

I was never a big 'bean' eater living up north. But when I met a 'southern' man, beans immediately became a part of my meal vocabulary :) It hasn't been until recently that I have begun to include bean recipes in my meal planning, probably because of the rising costs of everything else on the market, beans still tend to be relatively inexpensive. Especially if you grow your own. I'll be giving this a try. And thank you for sharing in my recipe hop last week. My apologies for taking so long to stop by and pay you a visit.