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Black Beans with Sofrito

February 4, 2025 | By Jeremy Scheck | Leave a Comment

There are a millions ways to make black beans and sofrito—this is just one delicious approach. For a more streamlined version, like the one in my book, Cooking Smarter, you can cook the sofrito ingredients directly in the original large pot, then add the water and beans and cook everything together. After soaking the beans, you jump to around step 3 and use just one pot. If you go this route, you can follow the version in my book or simply quarter the amount of sofrito used!

Yield: serves 6

Black Beans with Sofrito

Ingredients

For the Beans

  • 2 cup dry black beans
  • 1 onion, peeled and halved
  • 4 cloves of garlic, peeled and crushed
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 1 cube or tsp chicken bouillon
  • 1 Birds Eye chili
  • Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
  • 2-3 tablespoons neutral oil
  • Pinch of cumin
  • 1-2 teaspoons white vinegar (optional)

For the Sofrito

  • 1 white onion (peeled, quartered, root removed)
  • 1 green bell pepper (stem and seeds removed)
  • 8 cloves of garlic (peeled)
  • 1 birds eye chili
  • 1 bunch cilantro (with stems)

Instructions

    1. Rinse the beans well in a large bowl with cold water, then strain out the water. Fill the bowl again with fresh cold water—make sure the beans are well submerged so they have plenty of room to expand. Let them soak overnight. Many people choose to cover the bowl and/or refrigerate it, but neither is strictly necessary.
    2. Add the beans to a large pot with 8 cups of water, the halved onion, 4 cloves of garlic, bay leaves, chicken bouillon, and bird’s eye chili. Bring to a boil, cover, and let simmer for 60–70 minutes, or until the beans are tender but not bursting.
    3. For the sofrito, place all the ingredients in a food processor or blender and pulse until finely minced. You’ll need 1/4 cup for this recipe, but the rest can be frozen in ice cube trays for future use.
    4. When the beans are approaching 60 minutes of cooking time, heat another pot over medium to medium-low heat and add 2–3 tablespoons of neutral oil along with the 1/4 cup of sofrito.
    5. Cook the sofrito for 10–15 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the sofrito develops color and is no longer watery.
    6. I like to add the beans and some of their cooking liquid to the cooked sofrito so I can control exactly how much liquid to include, but you can also stir the cooked sofrito directly into the pot of beans.
    7. After 60–70 minutes, transfer the beans with some of their cooking liquid into the pot with the sofrito—just enough liquid to keep the mixture brothy without being too soupy. Keep any extra liquid on the side, just in case.
    8. Taste and season with salt, pepper, cumin, and vinegar to your liking. Simmer for another 5–10 minutes, allowing the flavors to meld until you're happy with the texture. Enjoy!
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