We’re getting back to the basics with this one! I love exploring really simple ways to transform pantry staples, like canned beans, into a filling and satisfying meal. For these Cheesy Pinto Beans, I simply seasoned up some canned beans, puréed half to make the beans nice and creamy, then stirred in a little cheese to make it extra flavorful and satisfying. Serve them over rice and you’ve got an easy and satisfying meal for pennies.
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What Are Pinto Beans?
Pinto beans have been a staple ingredient in many parts of the world, including Mexico and the Southwest U.S., for generations, so if you live in those areas you’re probably very familiar with this delicious bean. But if pinto beans aren’t already part of your regular diet, this recipe will be a great introduction. Pinto beans are a small, tan-colored bean that has a speckled appearance when dried. They have a deliciously creamy texture once cooked, which makes them great for refried beans, soup, burritos, or just enjoying over rice, like I did here.
Can I Use Dry Beans?
Dry beans will always be more budget-friendly, usually lower sodium, and oftentimes have better flavor, but they can definitely a little more time and work to prepare. This Cheesy Pinto Bean recipe is designed for convenience, so we’re using canned beans this time around. If you want to use pinto beans that you’ve cooked from dry, you’ll need about three cups of cooked beans. You’ll likely need to add a little more salt to your recipe at the end, as well.
How to Serve Cheesy Pinto Beans
This deliciously simple recipe can be eaten a few different ways. I served mine over a bowl of rice, but you could also purée more of the beans and serve it as a beany chip dip! I think it would also be good served in a bowl then scooped up with some fluffy naan or pita. Or, simply serve them alone as a side dish with your favorite meal.
What Else Can I Add?
Beans are such a flexible ingredient, so there are several other ingredients you can add to these cheesy pinto beans. Here are some other ingredients that you can stir into your beans:
- Diced Hatch green chiles
- Salsa
- Diced red onion
- Diced ham or bacon
- Sour cream (makes the beans EXTRA creamy)
- Cilantro
- Green onions
Cheesy Pinto Beans
Servings 4 ⅔ cup eachIngredients
- 2 cloves garlic ($0.16)
- 1 jalapeño (optional) ($0.08)
- 1 Tbsp cooking oil ($0.04)
- 2 15oz. cans pinto beans ($2.00)
- 1/4 tsp smoked paprika ($0.03)
- 1/4 tsp ground cumin ($0.03)
- 1/8 tsp freshly cracked black pepper ($0.02)
- 2 dashes hot sauce ($0.10)
- 1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese ($0.50)
Instructions
- Mince the garlic and finely dice the jalapeño (remove the stem and seeds).
- Add the garlic, jalapeño, and cooking oil to a pot. Sauté the garlic and jalapeño over medium heat for about one minute, or just until the garlic is very fragrant.
- Add one can of pinto beans to a blender, with the liquid in the can, and purée until smooth.
- Add the puréed beans and the second can of beans (drained) to the saucepot with the garlic and jalapeño. Stir to combine.
- Season the beans with the smoked paprika, cumin, pepper, and hot sauce. Stir to combine, then heat through over medium, stirring occasionally.
- Finally, add the shredded cheddar and stir until it has melted smoothly into the beans. Taste the beans and adjust the seasoning to your liking. Serve over rice or with your favorite meal.
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Nutrition
Have you tried this recipe?Mention @budgetbytes or tag #budgetbytes on Instagram!How to Make Cheesy Pinto Beans – Step by Step Photos
Mince two cloves of garlic and finely dice one jalapeño (seeds and stem removed). Add them to a pot along with one tablespoon of cooking oil. Sauté over medium heat for 1-2 minutes, or just until the garlic becomes really fragrant.
Add one 15oz. can of pinto beans to a blender (with the liquid in the can) and purée until smooth. Alternately, you can use an immersion blender in the pot with the beans.
Add the puréed beans to the pot along with a second 15oz. can of pinto beans (drained). Stir to combine.
Season the beans with ¼ tsp smoked paprika, ¼ tsp ground cumin, ⅛ tsp freshly cracked black pepper, and a couple of dashes of hot sauce. Stir to combine and then allow the beans to heat through, stirring occasionally.
Once the beans are hot, add ½ cup shredded cheddar cheese.
Stir the beans until the cheese has melted smoothly into the beans.
Taste the beans and adjust the seasonings to your liking. Because canned beans and cheese contain a fair amount of salt, I did not find that I needed to add any to the beans. Serve the beans over rice, with chips, or as a side to your favorite meal!
My five-year-old son and I love these. Love your blog too, thank you!
These beans were so simple and delicious. I do something similar but somehow never thought to add cheese to it – how crazy is that!?!
These beans were great, as pictured, with rice (I added a pinch of saffron) and garnished with scallions. My daughter had hers in a burrito, I ate mine as pictured, and my husband added some leftover cubed pork from chili to his bowl for a feast. Super easy, super fast, super tasty, and no grocery shopping involved! We’ll definitely be making this again and again.
So fast, easy and delicious!! Another winning recipe by Beth.
Just finished making a pot of these. Incredibly easy, I did have to use salt because I used dried beans and forgot about the salt. I also added a bit more acid with a lime since I ran out of hot sauce in the making.
Excellent, simple dish I plan on having for lunches during the week
These are fantastic! My 4yr old son loves these!! I make brown rice and serve over. I’ve also used the Greenwise cilantro jalapeno chicken sausage from Publix and added to top it off. It does make it high in sodium but I use no salt added canned beans. Filling and nutritious! I was a bit skeptical these would be good but man, they really are. I took some with me to work for dinner at the hospital and they were quick to heat and eat between admissions. Thank you Beth! I recommend this blog to everyone I know! If only I knew about it sooner! It is ALWAYS recommended on my “large family” groups on Facebook and also on foodie pages. Keep it up!!
Thank you so much for this recipe. This is now a comfort food of mine.
This is so quick and easy and can be edited in so many ways. I don’t feel so well so I didn’t bother chopping garlic so I just used garlic powder along with everything else. It’s so easy and so comforting. I added siratcha instead of hot sauce (don’t have any lol)
I had some pinto beans in my freezer that I needed to use up and I’d had my eye on this recipe for awhile so I decided to give it a try. It did not disappoint! Soooo yummy, the cheese really made it something special. I paired it with Tomato Rice, Chipotle Peach Salsa with corn chips and a salad and it was a perfect meatless dinner.
Yum yum yum! We have made this soooo many times since finding this recipe a month or so ago! When I made it tonight, I sauteed onions and poblanos peppers and blended then with the beans. Perfect DIY Mexican pizza filling cuz my daughter’s having withdrawal 😂
What specific brand of hot sauce would you recommend.?
Tapatio is great. XOXO -Monti
So I’m going to be honest – I thought these sounded good but I didn’t have terribly high expectations just because they are beans after all.
But wow, these are SO SO good. The only thing I did differently was add a few pieces of already cooked bacon that I cut up into smaller pieces because I had some sitting in the fridge. Thank you so much for the phenomenal and very filling recipe!! I have been eating this for dinner and doubling the serving size. Keeps me so full.
P.S. I started making your recipes when I first started learning to cook about 8 years ago. So with that being said, Beth had a hand in teaching me how to cook and I will be forever grateful!
Love this delicious and simple recipe!!
This recipe is so good. I’ve made it twice so far. So much better than the refried beans you buy in a can. Much more like restaurant style. Thank you!!!
I’ve made these a few times now and love them. I have been making frozen meals getting ready for a new baby and was wondering if these could take the place of the black beans in the frozen burritos you make?
Absolutely! Congrats on the new baby! -XOXO Monti
I made these for meal prep last week and I didn’t have the highest expectations, but they were delicious. I swapped a raw jalapeño for a can of diced chilis (because something in raw peppers makes me itch) and it worked really well. I do recommend topping then with some sort of pickle. I made the quick pickled red peppers also from Budget Bytes and they were perfect.
I just made these today and they are so good! I used dried beans that I had made a few weeks ago and froze into 1 1/2 cup baggies. I bought the 32 ounce bag at Aldi for $1.99 and got the equivalent of 7 cans from it. The money saved is so worth it to me although I also use canned beans for convenience once in awhile. I will be making these again!