Homemade (Slow Cooker) Pinto/Refried Beans

Not only are these insanely easy to make, but they taste incredible! Nothing beats homemade refried beans! I like to make a big batch and use half for enchiladas and then freeze the other half for future use. Another tasty way to serve them is if you only slightly mash a portion of the beans and use it in place of ground beef on tacos, topping them with tomatoes, cheese, lettuce and salsa, yum!.

Homemade (Slow Cooker) Pinto/Refried Beans

2 lbs. dried pinto beans (4 cups)
5-6 tsp. chicken bouillon granules
1 1/2 tsp. salt
1 1/2 tsp. garlic powder
1/2 small sweet onion (no need to dice)
1/2 cup butter (optional)

The night before, place the beans in your slow cooker crock (or a large pot) and cover generously with water. Cover and leave to soak overnight. In the morning, drain the beans, and place them back in the slow cooker crock and generously cover them with water again. Add the bouillon, salt, garlic and onion, cover and cook on 'Low' for 8-10 hours or 'High' for 6-7 hours. Stir occasionally throughout. You may need to add more water as the beans cook, so make sure to check on them at least half way through. When ready, drain the beans, reserving a good portion of the cooking liquid. Add the butter to the beans if desired and using a stick blender of food processor, mash the beans, adding enough of the reserved liquid from the beans to get the desired consistency. The beans need to be slightly more runny than you want as they will set up quite quickly after mashing. Puree as much or little as you want leaving some or no whole beans in your mixture. Store in the fridge, covered. You can freeze leftover beans as needed.