Butter beans
One day my grandma mentioned my uncle was preparing a big pot of butter beans for dinner. She then asked how I liked to cook them, but I confessed they…
Bean recipes
Classic Frito salad
When I was growing up, my mom served a dish she called bean salad. It was made up of pinto beans, along with lettuce, tomatoes, cheese, avocado, and crushed tortilla…
San Antonio bean burger
The first time I had a San Antonio bean burger was on a hot summer day. I was wandering in my car outside of town and off a quiet road…
Queso with black beans, Austin style
When I was in my early 20s living in Austin, after a night on the town my friends and I would find ourselves at one of the city’s all-night cafes….
Frijoles de puerco
When it comes to comfort food, refried beans are at the top of my list. Ever since I could remember, they were my go-to, both when times were uncertain and…
Fritoque, bean and corn chip casserole
My first encounter with fritoque was in Robb Walsh’s “The Tex-Mex Cookbook.” He described it as a bean and corn chip casserole that was popular in San Antonio in the…
West Texas black beans with green chiles
When I first moved to Austin in my early 20s, one thing that struck me about the Tex-Mex on offer there was the prevalence of black beans. While the standard…
Tex-Mex chalupas
For a Texan, one of the finest things in life is gathering at a Tex-Mex table with friends and family, sharing stories as we dip our chips, being cautious when…
Tex-Mex beef and bean stew, aka Lakemont chili
My family has a dear friend who moved from Houston to Georgia when she and her husband retired. She’s an excellent cook and from time to time, she and I…
Borracho black-eyed peas
Every December, I begin to think of new ways to prepare my pot of black-eyed peas. For the past few years, the phrase “borracho black-eyed peas” had been running through…