Taquitos and Refrieds

I made a pot of Pinto Beans a couple of days ago, and have some leftovers.  I've been craving some Porky Refried Beans, and now seems like the right time to make them.  Ultimately they wound up on this plate of Beef and Cheeze Taquitos with Lemon Cilantro Rice.

I'm not a fan of canned Refried Beans.  Something about the canning process, or the age of the product, fresh Refrieds are always better.  So I start by frying a pan of Bacon, always a good start.  Maybe seven or eight pieces of Bacon, to get the Essence of Pork, the quintessential element of Refried Beans.  Remove the Bacon and eat it at will.

Drain and reserve the liquid from the Pinto Beans, and add the beans to the pan with the Bacon Fat along with some chopped Onion.  Salt this mixture liberally.  The mashed Pinto Beans crave salt in a big time way.  Let the Pinto Beans and Onions cook for a few minutes.

Then I'm going to add about four cloves of chopped Garlic, and then let that cook for a few more minutes.  At this point the Pinto Beans are starting to grab the Pork Fat, and become extraordinarily nomlishous.

 When the Garlic is cooked we execute the act that turns Pinto Beans into Refried Beans, mashing.  Thoroughly mash the entire mixture to the consistency that you want, anywhere from chunky to smooth.  Then add the reserved bean liquor to the pan to rehydrate the mashed Pinto Bean mixture.  I add all the liquid back into the pan, and then cook them to the right consistency.  In the meantime I have prepared White Rice, and Beef Taco Filling.

Taquito, or small Taco, is also a Flauta which means Flute, or Taco Doobie.  Warm some Corn Tortillas in the microwave, then take a small amount of Beef Taco filling, and some cheeze, and roll the Taco Doobies.  Use a toothpick to hold them together while cooking.  I am going to Oven Fry these Taquitos, so krank the oven up to 450 F.  Spray the pan liner, and the Taquitos with oil to facilitate the oven frying process.

Then bake the Taquitos for 10 to 15 minutes until they are Golden Brown, and Delicious.  In the meantime I prepare a plate with the Refrieds, and some Rice, and heat it simultaneously with the Taquitos.

I also prepared the condiments which are the Yogurt Ranch dipping sauce for the Taquitos, and some Salsa.  I garnished the Rice with Cilantro, and a half a Lemon.  Finally pull the toothpicks out of the Taquitos, and pile them on the plate.  This was a late dinner plate, and was very filling.  I needed a long nap afterwards.