Puerto Rican Style beans – A hearty red beans simmered in an aromatic sauce with big bold flavors. Quick, easy and simply delicious. If you like easy yet tasty meat-free beans, then you might think this Puerto Rican Beans is about the most delicious beans to cook up. It’s a hearty stew of red beans, simmered in tomatoes, onions, garlic, bell pepper spices and chunks of potatoes and all the flavors fuse together beautifully. Did I ever tell you beans are one of my favorites ? Shhhhhh…don’t tell teenagers that. I did once and lets just say I became a center of their jokes. This is an easy and straightforward dish, that is simply delicious, so good my carnivore brother ate it all and forgot about the meat. If you cook beans often and dread the thought of boiling beans during the week, then go ahead and boil enough during the weekend and save up for weekdays. I freeze in batches and defrost overnight. You will be glad you did. Or forget about the hassle and just go with canned beans. Sazon — a Latin and Caribbean seasoning (ground black pepper, granulated garlic, coriander seed, salt and other seasonings.) It is used to flavor stews, soups and protein- available in Latino markets and even in major super markets. I usually get the Goya Sazon (or Gayon Sazon y culantro y achiote). Serve it with this one puerto rican chicken and rice here
this slow cooked pork (Pernil) right HERE. Enjoy!
Watch How to Make It
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Puerto Rican Style Beans
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons canola oil (or more)
- 1 medium onion, chopped
- 2-3 teaspoon garlic, minced
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- ½-1 small jalapeno, seeded and minced (optional)
- 1 tablespoon fresh cilantro or parsley, finely chopped
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1 medium bell pepper, chopped
- ¼-½ teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 1 bay leaf
- 4 cups cooked red beans (or three 15-ounce cans, rinse and drained)
- 2 cups broth, or more (chicken or vegetarian)
- 1 potato, medium-large peeled and chopped
- ¼ cup tomato sauce
- 1 packet Goya Sazon, with coriander (any Sazón without annatto)
- Salt to taste
- Fresh cilantro or parsley leaves (optional for garnishing)
Instructions
- Heat the olive / canola oil over medium heat in a large saucepan. Add the onions, garlic, cumin, jalapenos, cilantro , paprika, bell pepper and bay leaf sauté, stirring occasionally, until onions are soft and translucent, about 5-7. Do not brown.
- Add the onions, garlic, cumin, jalapenos, cilantro, paprika, bell pepper, cayenne, and bay leaf sauté, stirring occasionally, until onions are soft and translucent, about 5-7. Do not brown.
- Add the beans, chicken broth, potatoes, tomatoes, sazon, and salt and bring to a boil.
- Reduce the heat, cover and simmer gently for about 15-20 minutes or more until potatoes is tender.
- Adjust seasonings and thickness to your preference with broth and spices.
- Remove from heat and serve warm with rice and or tostones.
Tips & Notes:
Nutrition Information:
louise says
i’ve just mad this and these flavours are amazing.
imma africanbites says
Yaay! Thank you, Louise! Glad you love the flavors in this recipe. 🙂
Tawanay says
I made it Family Loved It!!!!!
imma africanbites says
Yaaay! I’m glad your family loved it as much as we do. Thanks for sharing, Tawanay!
Millie says
Can I add diced carrots to this? Thanks
ImmaculateBites says
You sure can.
Millie says
Hi. Thanks so much for this recipe. I added diced carrots with diced potatoes and one 15oz can of diced tomatoes. I used kidney beans and it was very tasty. Love the flavors of this stew.The only thing that I did not add was the jalapeño. My family loves it.
Nycgal says
Hello
I used a bottle of Goya sofrito and a can of beans and added potatoes… I think if you don’t have all of the ingredients this is the cheat for this recipe
However the real thing is always better:)
Thank you for the recipe
ImmaculateBites says
Awesome! Thanks for taking the time to share your cheat version with us.
Yvette says
Potatoes, cumin, smoked paprika, cilantro/parsley and jalapeños? Definitely not traditional ingredients. Cumin has never been featured in classic Puerto Rican cuisine (check Dora Romano and Carmen Aboy cookbook gurus), neither have potatoes, which do very little except add starch to thicken the sauce, which you can achieve with pumpkin and/or mashing a few beans with a fork. I understand that cilantro can somewhat substitute for culantro or recao where not available, but it should be part of the cooking process, not garnish. Puerto Ricans incorporate “pique” (spicy heat) with their homemade or store-bought hot sauce right at the table, not as an ingredient.
ImmaculateBites says
This here is not traditional – developed the recipe to suit my taste buds – adjust to taste Thanks for taking the time to share this with us
Judith says
While I agree that the recipe and ingredients are not traditional, it does look interesting and yummy (yes, I can read a recipe and tell if it’s going to work). I am a bean lover too and plan to make these beans tonight.
I must disagree with Ivette on the cumin part. While I admire both Valdejuli snd Romsno and have used their books fo r decsdes, my authority comes from being a 69 yr old Puerto Rican snd being in the k tchen helpi g snd lesrnong for 65+ of those years. In fsct, my first task was mashing and grinding all the sofrito ingredients. First you sdded salt to the mortar a d then the cumin and pepper. Only aftrr they were finely ground did you add the wetter ingredients like garlic, onion, recao, etc Both my grandmothers and my mother before me used cumin in the beans and any dish cooked with sofrito. And potatoes were always used in the beans. Calabaza (pumpkin) or sometimes even pana (breadfruit) were added too.
Rut says
I agree with Renee, having being born and raise in Puerto Rico we never cooked with jalapeños and I never heard of our Puerto Rican beans having jalapenos on them. I’m sure everybody loves the extra kick. But with all the seasonings they taste great without it as well. Well done in putting this together.
Karen says
We had this for dinner tonight. The flavor was so good. We loved it. Hubs specifically asked me to keep the recipe. Winner! Thanks for posting.
ImmaculateBites says
WOOHOO! Glad it to hear it was a hit with the family. Thanks for taking the time to let me know.
Lenia says
Is there a reason why chicken or vegetable broth can only be used? Will it taste terrible with beef broth?
ImmaculateBites says
No not at all. Beef broth works as well.
Angela says
My husband recently went meatless and I was looking for a protein rich option for him. Making this now for the second time because he loves it so much. We serve it’s over brown rice. So good and good for you.
ImmaculateBites says
Oh Wow! Happy to hear it ‘s on the menu now. Thanks for taking the time to let me know.
Dianne says
What a delicious pot of beans! I adapted it to prepare the recipe in my Instant Pot, cooking the dry beans first (no soaking – what a timesaver!), then did Step 1 without oil (just a bit of heated water to keep the veggies from sticking) using the Saute function. I left out the jalapeno knowing it needed to be especially mild for my group, but it was still amazing! I added everything per your Step 2, just adding the tomato sauce on the top without stirring it in. Manual pressure for 8 minutes with a Natural Release. Now this recipe is going to be the star at our church luncheon later this month! Thanks for sharing!
ImmaculateBites says
Oh WoW! Thanks for the detailed feedback Dainne! Glad it worked worked out well for you. Wishing you the best at your Church Luncheon!
Cp says
Excellent dish, great taste, and extremely forgiving recipe which is always a plus. Thank you.
Sadiya says
This turned out SOOO delicious! I didn’t have any sazon, but I did add some ground coriander. I loved the flavor and seasoning and it was the perfect vegan dinner for me. Thank you!
ImmaculateBites says
Awww shucks, Sadiya, that’s so great to hear! I’m glad it worked for you and that you enjoyed it. 🙂 Thank you for taking the time to let me know .
Adriana says
This looks delicious! I see cilantro/parsley is in the ingredients list 3 times but added once, when is the rest added? Also, which variety of Goya Sazon did you use? Thanks!
ImmaculateBites says
My bad! I have updated recipe to make it clearer Adriana . It’s added twice- one at the beginning and the other to garnish . (adjust to taste). Any Goya Sazon without Annatto works just fine here. Do let me know how it works out for you. Thanks
Jes says
What specifically is the issue with the Annato? Those are the only ones available at my market.
ImmaculateBites says
Just the color, and a slight difference in taste. You may go ahead and use it if that’s all you can lay your hands on.
Tanya says
I make this all the time…. making it gor diner tonight. My family loves it. It brings back memories of when my grandma used to make it. #ProudPuertoRican
ImmaculateBites says
Hi Tanya! Thanks for taking the time to share your thoughts with me . Happy to hear it’s on the menu. Happy cooking!!!
Heather Congdon says
What kind of sazon packet was used ?
ImmaculateBites says
Anyone is fine except the one with annatto and coriander.
Pam says
This recipe looks delish and I will try, however you stated in one of your replies to use any sazon except the one with annatto and coriander but your recipe reads to use the one with coriander. So I’m assuming just use the one with coriander, not the one with annatto added?
Also, love your Caribbean rice and beans recipe. We make it often with our grilled jerk chicken and it is one of our favorite recipes.
ImmaculateBites says
Yes, you’ve got that right . Sazon with coriander only if fine.
Katie says
This is so good! I was so excited to come across your blog and this recipe. I served it over rice and it was amazing. And it’s pretty darn healthy too, so best of both worlds! Thank you!
ImmaculateBites says
Fantastic! Thanks for taking the time to share your glowing feedback with me.