Easy Charro Beans Recipe for Tex-Mex Lovers
An alternative side dish to refried beans. This Mexican bean soup packs a punch of flavor with pinto beans, tomatoes, cilantro, bacon, beer and other Mexican spices.
Equipment
- Slow Cooker/Instant Pot
- Pressure Canner
- 12 Pint Jars with lids and rings
- Jar Lifter
- Ladle
Ingredients
- 2 lbs pinto beans
- 1 lbs bacon chopped
- 12 cloves garlic chopped
- 2 tsp salt
- 2 whole onions white or yellow
- 2 whole fresh tomatoes (or 1 14.5 oz can of diced tomatoes)
- 1 can hot green chilis can also use fresh hot peppers (jalapenos, serranos)
- 1 can mild green chilis can also use sweet peppers like bell peppers
- 2 tbsp granulated beef bullion (or 8 cups of beef stock)
- 1 bunch cilantro
- 2 bottles beer Dos Equis, Corona, Modelo or other light Mexican Beer
Instructions
- Slice/chop bacon into 1 inch pieces. Turn on sauté option for an instant pot on high and add bacon. Cook until desired doneness (7-10 minutes).1 lbs bacon
- Add garlic, salt, onions, tomatoes, and chilis and mix. Filter through pinto beans and ensure they have no rocks or debris and then add to pot with bacon and vegetables
- Cover with water mixed with bullion or beef stocks. Start with 6 cups and add more water if you need to cover. Add slow cooker lid and cook overnight (or 6-8 hours) on low heat.
- Add beer (I like Dos Equis, but have used Corona and Modelo with good results) and cilantro and cook for another 4 hours on low.*At this point beans should still be mostly crunchy, perfect for canning!*
For Canning
- Add charro beans to clean sterilized jars and leave at least 1.25” headspace ensuring enough broth to cover beans. Place jars in canner using canner’s manufacture’s direction and ensure you vent for at least 10 minutes.
- Pressure can for 75 minutes at 10 lbs for pint size jars or 90 minutes for quart size jars if less than 1,000 ft above sea level (adjust for your elevation as necessary).
- Let cool naturally and remove from canner and let sit undisturbed for 12-24 hours and store in a cool dry area.
Notes
Optional Tweaks
- Pre-soak beans if you are wanting to use a slow cooker and have the beans ready without canning
- Use a skillet to cook the bacon and then add grease and meat to a slow cooker if you do not have an Instant Pot.
- Need less and quicker? Halve the recipe (so it fits in your Instant Pot safely) and use the bean/chili setting on your Instant Pot and pressure cook in your Instant Pot for 45 minutes, no pre-soak required.
- Don’t like cilantro? Omit it. Consider using parsley for a fresh taste.
- Substitute chicken stock for beef stock/bullion if you don’t have it.