I suffered a horrible loss this week – my hard drive died, which essentially translates to my brain dying. My computer is where I keep most of my thoughts. If you think for one second that my calendars, to-do lists, or basic knowledge needed for everyday functioning is in my head, you (and I) are sadly mistaken. Suddenly I can’t remember which end is up. Was that assignment due today or next week? How many cups of flour went into that recipe? How do I tie my shoes? Okay, that last one is a bit of an exaggeration, but I think most of you can see where I’m coming from.
Fortunately, I had backed up most of my work only 10 days earlier, but there are so many things you don’t realize are vital to the identity of your computer. I had spent the last 3 years perfecting my setting so that my computer functioned just how I liked it. All my bookmarks are gone…so many recipes I was excited to try out. Remember all of those passwords you told your web browser to save? Yeah…I sure don’t. All of my “sticky notes” are gone…once of which held the ingredient list for this recipe.
With that being said, I am now trying to pick up the pieces and do my best to fit them back together (despite the gaping holes). One of those holes is the recipe for this dish. I foolishly wrote it down in an application that was not automatically backed up by my external. So let’s take a stab at this, okay?
What (I think) you need:
- 1 lb chorizo sausage
- 1 lb dried pinto and black beans (1/2 pound of each), soaked overnight
- 4 cups chicken or veggie stock (you want the liquid to cover the beans by about an inch so add more if necessary)
- 4 cups cooked brown rice
- 1 large sweet onion, minced
- 3-4 cloves of garlic, minced
- 2 tbs olive oil
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 tbs dried oregano
- 1 tbs cumin
- 1 tsp chili powder
- crushed red pepper, to taste
- salt and pepper to taste
- cheese, sour cream and cilantro to top it all off
What (I think) you need to do:
- In your slow cooker, combine the pre-soaked beans, stock, bay leaves, dried oregano, cumin, and chili powder.
- Set the heat to low and the timer to 8 hours. When you have 2 hours left on the timer, you can start on the chorizo.
- At t minus 2 hours to face stuffing time, heat the olive oil in a large frying pan and saute the onions and garlic until the onions soften and become translucent.
- Add the chorizo to the frying pan, breaking it up as you combine it with the garlic and onions. Cook for about 5-8 minutes, then add to the crock pot. Mix thoroughly, and continue cooking for another 2 hours.
- At the end of 8 hours, check to make sure the beans are soft. If not, cover and cook some more.
- Serve with the brown rice, sour cream, cheese and cilantro and enjoy!
