Description
Mexican Pintos with Cactus is a hearty and rustic dish featuring tender pinto beans cooked with crisped bacon, sautéed nopales (cactus), jalapeño, and onion for a bold and earthy flavor, perfect as a side or main.
Ingredients
Scale
- 2 cups dry pinto beans, rinsed
- 3 tablespoons salt, divided
- 3 slices bacon, chopped
- 2 large flat cactus leaves (nopales)
- 1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and chopped
- 2 slices onion
Instructions
- In a large pot, cover pinto beans with water and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 1–1.5 hours, or until beans are tender. Drain, reserving some of the cooking liquid.
- In a separate pan, cook bacon over medium heat until crispy. Remove bacon and set aside, leaving drippings in the pan.
- Slice the cactus leaves into thin strips. In the same pan, sauté cactus, jalapeno, and onion in bacon drippings until softened, about 5–7 minutes.
- Add the cooked beans to the pan with the cactus mixture, along with 2 tablespoons of salt and some reserved bean cooking liquid, if needed. Stir to combine.
- Simmer the mixture for 10–15 minutes to blend the flavors.
- Top with crispy bacon and serve warm.
Notes
- Soak beans overnight to reduce cooking time and improve texture.
- Rinse cactus strips well to remove excess slime.
- Adjust jalapeño quantity to control the spice level.
- Serve with tortillas or rice for a complete meal.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 cup
- Calories: 210
- Sugar: 1g
- Sodium: 1180mg
- Fat: 6g
- Saturated Fat: 2g
- Unsaturated Fat: 3g
- Trans Fat: 0g
- Carbohydrates: 28g
- Fiber: 8g
- Protein: 11g
- Cholesterol: 10mg