Recipe: Pinquitos - May Be Best Beans I’ve Cooked

[ecowper]

I’ve cooked a couple pots of beans in my life. And I thought I knew what great beans were. Until this pot of beans. This pot of beans led my wife to say that they were "life changing" and "now I know why people love beans".

About Pinquitos - they somewhat look like a small Pinto bean. But they have a much stronger flavor profile, almost beefy in nature. They originate in central California, in the area stretching from Santa Maria to Paso Robles. From a BBQ perspective, Tri-Tip cooked over red oak and Pinquitos are traditionally eaten together in Central California.

Where to get them - If you happen to see them in a supermarket, I wouldn’t advise buying them. They will be many years old and have lost much of the flavor that makes them so amazing. Buy from Rancho Gordo or Lompoc.

Ingredients for greatest pot of beans ever ….. and no, I didn’t forget anything

- 6 cups chicken stock (preferably made by you, not bought in store)
- 1/2 lb of dry beans

That’s it

Method

- put beans in a 2 quart sauce pan
- Cover with 4 cups worth of stock (give or take) so that beans are covered by at least 2 inches
- Bring to a boil for 5 minutes
- Turn down to a very bare simmer, the lowest possible thing you can consider a simmer, just a couple bubbles at a time
- Cook for 3-4 hours
- add stock and/or water as necessary to keep at least 1” of liquid on the beans
- Beans are done when still firm, but you can easily bite through and there is no "crunch" left
- immediately serve with just a little of the bean stock/broth

This can serve 4 as a side dish or 2 as a main dish. Serve with Tri-Tip and crusty bread. Or just the bread.

If you want to doctor them up a bit, let me know. I’ve got a recipe for that. But you don’t need to. Seriously.

[latenight71]

[CaptainMike]

I thought the same thing the first time I tried them!

[Mr. Bones]

Not so much a big ol Bean Fan, but, based soley 'pon yer recommend?

Wail, Hail, reckon I might jus haveta give me here this a try, Eric!!!

[ecowper]

Give it a try Bones. Serve them with something that is really beefy …. Tri-Tip, Chuck Roast, something like that.

[barelfly]

New Mexico grows Pinto beans and they are pretty good. And growing up in New Mexico, that’s really what you eat when it comes to beans, whether just simple with a ham hoc style or with chile.

But, I recently placed an order with Rancho Gordo and the pinquitos were the first variety I cooked, and they were amazing. The texture was perfect, a bit of a snap with a creamy interior. I doctored mine up a bit, using a Santa Maria style recipe, but the beans stood out!

I just tried Rancho Gordo’s quinoa last night for the first time, and loved it. I can’t wait to try the other varieties from the order as well.

Thanks for sharing your simple yet wonderful recipe!

[ecowper]

Those Pinquitos are simply amazing. They may even be better Rancho Gordo Marcellas

[Mr. Bones]

There is Great Beauty, an even Serenity, to be found in Simplicity.

Been Preachin this, fer Decades.

[ofelles]

Just placed an order for Pinquitos beans, Marcella beans, and Domingo Rojo beans. They are sold out on a lot of products. Damn, everyone knows about them now.

[grantgallagher]

I just did kenjis red beans and rice with pinquitos this past weekend...sort of. Soaked o/n in salted water, softened a mire poix and used ground chorizo instead of andouille. Cooked down a little longer than you by the sounds of things to the point where they were just on the verge of getting creamy but not quite.

its hard to screw these up because they are that good and flavorful.

[Mr. Bones]

Thanks, Brother!!!

Every now, an again, kinda find myself hankerin fer some beans!

Be safe an well, now, yall hear, way on out there, to New Jersey!

[wrgilb]

Here's a great company that we've sold their products for years. https://susieqbrand.com/santa-maria-beans/

[ecowper]

Nice, thanks!

[ofelles]

Might have to give them a try. Thanks.

[58limited]

Just ordered some, along with a bunch of other varieties. I'll give your method a try.

[mnavarre]

Pretty much what I do with pinquitos, but when I turn down to a simmer I throw in half an onion, a couple whole cloves of garlic, and a Bay leaf. If I've got some around either a sprig of Epazote or a bundle of cilantro stems, but I mostly don't bother.

[ecowper]

What I did on Sunday was made a quick sauce with bacon, ham, onion, garlic, tomato puree and added that to the pinquitos. It was good, but I didn't need to, honestly.

[fzxdoc]

Simple. Flavorful. Nothing not to like.

When it comes to RG beans, the best recipes are those with which you can really taste the bean itself.

I had my first experience with RG pinquitos a few weeks back and fell in love.

And you're right about pinquitos. Marcella better watch her back.

Kathryn

[GolfGeezer]

Ya'all have finally forced my MFS hand. Damn Rancho Gordo still has these in stock, and with that simple of a recipe, I just had to bite. Beans and tri-tip - Oh Boy!

[GolfGeezer]

ecowper Got my RG shipment and going for making these with a burgundy-pepper marinated tri-tip. One question: did you rinse or soak the beans like the package recommends before cooking?

[Bkhuna]

GolfGeezer - The RG site has a lot on bean cooking/recipes. In a nut shell, they don't recommend long soaks (overnight) because their beans are fresher. There are a few advanced beaners on this site who are more knowledgeable than I (thanks fzxdoc) so hopefully they'll respond before you make your first batch.

I've made them in the Instant Pot with no soak and they come out terrific.

[ecowper]

GolfGeezer I do rinse beans. Just a quick rinse to get the dust off. And a quick sort looking for rocks, etc. I do not soak RG beans. I just put them straight in the pot and cook.

[Bkhuna]

Thank you for all your posts beanmeister. I have some RG Pinquitos and think I'll do them with a smoked chuckie this weekend.

[ecowper]

love a smoked chuck roast. Haven't done one for a while. I think it's time again :-)

[TripleB]

Thanks for the recipe. I bought some pinquentos from Rancho Gordo a few months back and have been looking for a recipe. Thanks for posting.