Pinto beans are an excellent source of protein and vitamins and can be used in many more dishes than the traditional way. This is just one of those dishes that combines a Mexican Twist to make something extra delicious.
Spicy Sausage & Pinto Beans
-350g soft Italian sausage
-2 cups Pinto Beans and broth, divided (Whatever amount of broth from the beans is good, it doesn't need to be a lot)
-½ cup chickpeas, cooked and drained
-2 cups chicken broth
-¼ cup cream
-½ pepper, diced (any colour)
-1 medium carrot, diced
-½ cup tomatoes, diced
-½ onion, diced
-2 cups kale or spinach
-coriander, roughly chopped, to taste
-1 tbsp Diced Chipotles
-1 tsp seasoning of choice
-1 tsp oregano
-1 tsp garlic powder
-salt and pepper to taste
-½ lemon, juiced
-1 tbsp vegetable oil
-Parmesan cheese, to taste
1 Brown the sausage on a pan over medium heat. Break it into smaller pieces with the back of a spoon as it cooks. Once it has started to brown, remove it from the pan and remove any excess oil and liquid too. Reserve the sausage.
2 Add vegetable oil, if needed, to the pan and cook the carrots, onions and peppers over medium-low heat. Stir often until the onions start to soften, about 10 minutes.
4 Add the chicken stock, beans and chickpeas with the chipotles, seasoning, oregano, garlic powder and salt and pepper. Bring to a boil and simmer for 15 minutes with a lid on. Check for consistency, you could add some of the beans broth back into the mix to thicken and flavour your dish.
5 Add the browned sausage to the pan plus the kale or spinach leaves, stir and cook for 15 more minutes.
6 Add lemon juice, a bit at a time and adjust seasoning to taste. Serve hot with Parmesan cheese on top.
Notes
- Ready-made beans are excellent for this dish! Easy and delicious meal in no time.
- You can use any soft sausage you like instead of Italian!
- Adjust the heat level by adding more (or less) Diced Chipotles! If you love the smokey chipotle flavour but not so much the heat, we highly recommend this Chipotle Sauce!
Would you like your beans at home? Then check out our Beans 101 post here! It is very easy and you are in control of all the ingredients that go into making your beans.
