Why buy a can of refried beans when you can make your own for less, and they taste a whole lot better? Packs of four small avocados may be more economical than individual ones, and are just the right size for salads.
Serves: 4 Preparation time: 15 minutes Cooking time: 10 minutes
2½ cups drained canned black beans, liquid reserved, or cooked dried black beans (see pages 8–9), reserving ¼ cup of the cooking water
½ red onion, cut in half
1 large garlic clove
juice of ½ lime
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 teaspoons chipotle chili paste
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon ground coriander
4 soft corn tortillas
½ Romaine lettuce, shredded
2 small avocados, pitted, peeled and sliced
1 cup feta cheese, crumbled
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 recipe quantity Tomato and Chili Salsa (see page 22), to serve
LIME CREAM
scant ½ cup crème fraîche or sour cream
finely grated zest of ½ unwaxed lime
1. Mix together the ingredients for the lime cream in a bowl, cover and leave in the refrigerator until needed.
2. Put half the black beans along with the onion, garlic, lime juice and ¼ cup of the drained liquid from the beans in a blender. Pulse briefly to a coarse puree, then tip into a medium, nonstick skillet with 1 tablespoon of the oil, the remaining beans, chipotle chili paste, cumin and coriander. Season with salt and pepper, stir and cook over medium-low heat 5 minutes until heated through.
3. Meanwhile, heat the remaining oil in a separate skillet and cook the tortillas, one at a time, 1 minute on each side until heated through and golden in places. Put a tortilla on each serving plate and top with the lettuce, refried beans, avocados and feta. Serve with the salsa and lime cream.
A tip for cooking dried beans is to add a 5-inch strip of kombu (dried kelp used in Japanese cooking) to the cooking liquid. This helps soften the outer skin and gives a creamier, softer texture. The kombu works by breaking down the starchy carbohydrates in the beans.