Black Beans and Mexican Chorizo
Chorizo is something that may be a confusing ingredient if you don't know that there is a difference between Mexican Chorizo and Spanish Chorizo. Mexican Chorizo is a blend of ground beef and pork and spices cooked and used in many traditional dishes such as taco, burritos and rice and bean dishes. Spanish chorizo is a cured meat, similar to a hard salami with herbs and spices. Spanish chorizo is sometimes prepared spicy or sweet depending on the ingredients used in the process. Mexican chorizo is a raw product and must be cooked before eating and Spanish chorizo is cured and ready to eat or can be added to cooked dishes.
This recipe uses my 'modified' version of Mexican chorizo. I like to use ground turkey and lean beef in my chorizo instead of ground pork to cut down on the amount of fat in the overall dish. If I go to an authentic Mexican restaurant - I am all for the real stuff - but at home, I make modifications so that we can enjoy this kind of a dish as a regular part of our dinner rotation. You can garnish this dish with reduced fat sour cream or reduced fat Monterrey Jack cheese. Ancho Chile Powder is mild and smoky so you could use a hotter Chipotle Chile Powder as well - still smoky with a little more heat. We made a chipotle 'sauce' to kick up the heat - just a little. Click here for the Roasted Garlic and Chipotle Sauce recipe. As an option, this dish can also be served over cooked rice.
- 1/2 lb lean ground beef
- 1/2 lb ground turkey
- 1 teaspoon roasted granulated garlic
- 1 teaspoon coarse sea salt
- 3 tablespoons white wine vinegar
- 1/2 teaspoon Ceylon cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon Ground Anise
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
- 2 tablespoons Mexican oregano
- 3 tablespoons water
- 1/4 cup Ancho chile powder
- 2 cans black beans, drained and rinsed
- 1 small yellow onion, chopped
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 tablespoons roasted garlic flakes
- Fresh or dried cilantro, or sliced scallions for garnish
- To make the chorizo: In a mixing bowl, combine the ground beef through the Ancho chile powder.
- With your hands, combine the meats and the spices until everything is thoroughly mixed.
- Cover meat and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes or as long as overnight.
- In a skillet set to medium high heat, add canola oil. When oil is hot add onions and cook until they are tender and slightly transparent.
- Add the Roasted Garlic Flakes to the onions and continue cooking for about another minute.
- Add the chorizo to the skillet and cook thoroughly, breaking up the meat with a spoon.
- Add beans to the cooked meat and simmer about 10 minutes.
- If the mixture seems a little dry because of the lean meats you can add about 1/4 cup of water or chicken broth.
- Add garnish and serve.
