These Quick and Easy Black Beans, which start with a shortcut of canned beans, don’t require the long soaking or cooking time of dry beans and can be on the table in under 15 minutes. They’re perfect for a quick addition to any Latin-inspired meal- alone as a side dish, served over rice, or in fajitas or tacos. Try them on top of taco chicken, topped with slices of creamy avocado and a squeeze of fresh lime juice. Enjoy!
Ingredient Notes:
Onion – I like yellow onion, but white or even purple would be just fine.
Broth – You’ll use a little broth for the liquid in this recipe. I prefer the flavor component of chicken broth, but you could substitute beef broth, vegetable broth, or even just use water in a pinch.
How to make Quick and Easy Black Beans
- The first thing we’ll do is sauté some aromatics that will provide the flavor base for this recipe. Cook some onions and garlic in olive oil for just a few minutes, until they’re slightly translucent.
2. We’ll then add 2 cans of black beans that have been drained and rinsed. Any brand of black beans will work well here. At this point you’ll also add some broth for the beans to simmer in, along with some dry spices: cumin, coriander, oregano, salt, and pepper. They only simmer for a few minutes for all the flavors to come together and that’s it!
3. When the beans come off the heat, add a squeeze of fresh lime juice. It adds a fresh brightness. The flavor here is rich and complex and it’s hard to believe they’ve come together in about 10 minutes! If you like your beans more deconstructed like I do, just take the back of a spoon and smash them up a little bit. The smashed beans thicken the entire pot and you can add more broth as needed to get to your desired consistency.
There you have it– Quick and Easy Black Beans that are on the table in a matter of minutes, the perfect addition to any Latin-insipred meal!
Serving Suggestions
Here are some of my favorite recipes that pair well with this recipe: Brazilian Style White Rice
Fajitas
Tortillas
Taco Chicken
Guacamole
Lime-cilantro rice
FAQs
- Can these beans be made ahead of time? Absolutely! Beans reheat beautifully on the stovetop or in the microwave. If you’re short on time, feel free to make them a day ahead of time and store in an airtight container in the fridge.
- How long do they keep in the fridge? Eat leftovers within 5-7 days.
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Try this recipe and come back to give it a rating. I also love it when you share pictures on Instagram and tag me so I can see!
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Quick and Easy Black Beans
- Total Time: 15 minutes
- Yield: Six 1/3 cup servings
Description
Rich and flavorful black beans that come together in about 15 minutes.
Ingredients
2 cans black beans, drained and rinsed
1 tablespoon oil, olive or avocado recommended
2/3 cup finely diced onion
2–3 garlic cloves, pressed or finely minced
1 cup chicken broth (can sub beef/veg broth or even water), more if desired
1/4 teaspoon cumin
1/4 teaspoon coriander
1/4 teaspoon oregano
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1 lime
Instructions
In a saucepan on the stove, heat the olive oil to med-high heat. Sauté onions for about 3 minutes or until they just start to become translucent. Add garlic and sauté abut 30 seconds more.
Add beans, broth, and remaining seasonings and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to a low simmer, cover, cook for 7-8 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Remove from heat and add in a few squeezes of fresh lime juice. If desired for thicken consistency, use the back of a spoon or rubber spatula to smash some of the beans. They will continue to thicken more upon standing, feel free to add more liquid as desired.
- Prep Time: 5
- Cook Time: 10 minutes
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1/3 cup
- Calories: 70
- Fat: 1.5g
- Carbohydrates: 13g
- Protein: 4g
Questions & Reviews
I have been a “best bites foodie” for several years now but somehow have missed this recipe– I’ve already made it twice and pinned it! THANKS!
This recipe is wonderful! I wrote it down a few weeks ago, and I’ve used it a half dozen times, on all several different beans and with rice in burritos, too. Thank you for sharing!! ~Kelly
Made these last week (along with rice) to serve as a side dish with the Southwest Beef Wraps. They’re delicious! Love the fresh lime flavor of these. My husband & son put everything (beef, beans, & rice) onto their tortillas and made their own mega-burrito version! I even caught myself “cleaning up” (i.e. sneaking seconds after everyone has left the table) the bean dish….and I’m usually looking to “clean up” something chocolatey after dinner! Great & easy black bean recipe!
Yum! I made these two nights ago, served with rice and sauteed red peppers and corn. Both my hubby and I agreed that this was the best beans and rice dinner I have ever made (and I have tried many!)
What kind of cheese do you put on top?
Usually jack or pepperjack
I made these beans tonight, along with the pork tacos with green sauce (can’t remember the official name, sorry). It was SOOOO good, all of it. Thanks for your awesome recipes!
My husband lived in Brazil for a couple of years and I want to make him a traditional dish for his birthday. What sort of meat would be authentic to serve with the beans? Any special sort of rice? Oh and I have a recipe for brigadeiro that’s yummy!
Honestly, just a really good steak goes well with classic Brazilian sides:
https://ourbestbites.com/2011/08/how-to-grill-the-perfect-steak/
Definitely make some Pao de Queijo:
https://ourbestbites.com/2011/02/quick-brazilian-cheese-rolls-pao-de-queijo-2/
And Brazilian Lemonade
https://ourbestbites.com/2008/05/brazilian-lemonade/
As for the rice, Brazilians usually saute onion and garlic in a little oil and add the dry rice until it starts to get translucent. Then they add boiling water and cook as normal. Enjoy your Brazilian meal!
I made these for dinner last night. They were quite tasty. Hubby and baby boy approved. Served them up with BBQ chicken quesadillas. Mmm, nom, nom.
Is the 1/4 teaspoon of oregano the ground oregano?
Yes, dried oregano. You can use ground, or crushed leaves. If you’re using fresh, do about a teaspoon.
Yummy. I made these tonight and impressed my husband (who also lived in Brazil for a couple of years). His comment “Wow….these taste Brazilian”. Success! I did pair them with the Brazilian style rice that you have on your white rice tutorial comments. Thanks for sharing the recipes!
Made these tonight. LOVED them!!!!! I got your cookbook for my birthday and have been in heaven trying all of your delicious recipes. Thanks!
This is probably a dumb question, but do you prefer red onion or yellow onion in this recipe?
Not a dumb question- I prefer whichever is on my counter at the moment, lol. Honestly, doesn’t matter! If I had to pick, then yellow.
Thanks! I made these last night (I used red onion b/c I didn’t have yellow.) with the cilantro rice and the grilled fish tacos. They were all amazing. I discovered your site last week and have cooked your recipes every day for the past week. Thanks so much!
I made these for dinner tonight with tostadas, They were amaizing! My husband and I loved them, and my 7 month old did too! I am also interested in the "long and sort of easy" recipe.
This is so delicious. My family loves it, including my 1 year old who is just getting used to real foods. It's a hit! Much better than just plain ol' black beans (which is what I used to make before I tried these). These have flavor 🙂
^^the saucepot is covered, of course
I was just telling someone the other day how much (many?) black beans i eat! My quick and easy way involves 1 can of black beans, a heaping scoop of Goya Recaito (this onion, cilantro-y paste), some hot sauce, a half a cup of dry rice, a half a cup of water: combine all in a sauce pot, 8-10 min on med-high, and 8-10 min on med-low…voila! my absolute favorite dinner.
(my bf has gotten sick of it, but the more i have it the more i crave it!)
I'm interested in in the "long and sort of easy" recipe, just because I have a bucket of black beans in my food storage I need to use…
These are so yummy! The lime makes all the difference. I almost ate the whole batch myself the first time I made these.
I made these tonight and they were yummy! Thank you!
These were so good! I grew up eating beans (Colombian family) and these are right up there with the all-day-pressure-cooker beans my mom and grandmas make. My boys loved them, too! And of course, Marcelo served in Brazil, so he was in heaven.
Lindsay- my toddler loves these too, so sometimes I’m sneaky and I chop up cooked veggies and smother them in the beans. He totally scarfs ’em down!
I made these beans last night and my two little boys (ages 3 and 1) and I scarfed ’em down and left none for poor hubby. I didn’t have any chicken broth so I had to make them without, but they were still delish. I got some broth today and am excited to try them again in a few days–they’ll be even better, I’m sure! Also, I like that they’re not spicy (but still flavorful) so my boys can eat them. Thanks Sara!
Camille- I’m glad you loved them as much as I do! Whenever I create things totally suited to my own personal tastes I have a secret fear that no one else will agree with me, lol. I love to put cilantro in mine too!
ok,,, these beans were stink’n fantastic!!!! the best black bean I have ever made!! I added a bit of fresh cilantro and it made it even better!
I actually did a “best bites” dinner night,,, but our favorite on the whole table was the beans!!! I am sooo going to have to make them again this week.
I can’t wait to try these cooked this way.
Erin, there’s a reason this recipe is called “quick and easy” !
I actually wrote all about this in my original post and then took it out because it was way too long, lol. I fell in love with black beans in Brazil, where no one would ever consider even using canned beans! So yes, for years I made them the traditional way soaking dry beans and then cooking them in a pressure cooker. But then I discovered that canned beans can seriously taste just as good and I can make them in 5 minutes. Thus the birth of the “quick and easy” black beans. If you want, some time I’ll post my “long and sort of easy” recipe for dry beans!
Suzanna-please don’t tell any Brazilians this…but I actually like them with cheese and sour cream! lol. I know, it’s blasphemous! I don’t do it that often, but when I do, I hide in shame in the closet. 🙂
Thanks for this recipe! I grew up in Brazil but left before I learned how to cook. I was jiat looking to get rid of some canned beans, but turns out these taste just like home! Will add some sausage next time for that extra oompf.
I think I fall into the latter category as well!
I remember asking you for this “recipe” and getting the general amounts, then making it for my Brazilian roommate. She thought they were better than her mom’s! That is, until she saw me pu cheese and sour cream on them. Then she said I was crazy and had turned them into Mexican food. She wouldn’t even stay in the room to watch me eat them. Hehe. I thought they were delicious!
I’m definitely going to try this, since we love black beans at our house. I have a question: have you ever tried using hard, uncooked black beans in the bag and letting them sit all day in the crockpot? I have a friend who makes refried beans similar to this, but she uses the pinto beans in the bag and lets them sit all day in her crockpot. Just curious. (And yes, I know opening cans is way easier than using a crockpot.)
We ONLY ever make our own “re-fried” beans (without the fry part) in the crockpot. Much healthier and tastes so much better! I’ve never made these in the crockpot but am going to give it a shot tomorrow while I’m at work! Don’t know why it wouldn’t work since pinto beans work great and we’ve done 1/2 pinto and 1/2 black beans in our refried beans before
gotta love the feijão!