Frijoles is the generic Spanish term for beans, but caraotas refers specifically to black beans, the most common variety on South American and Caribbean tables. These beans cook down to create a thick and rich sauce—good to serve over Venezuelan White Rice or arepas. Make the beans up to a day ahead; you may need to add a little water when reheating, as the mixture thickens with time.
Decent black bean side dish that we served with homemade pork tamales. I skipped the brown sugar for personal taste. It came out a bit more liquidy than I had expected.
I really liked the beans a lot. They needed some salt though. I served the beans over plain white rice.
These were so simple and incredibly delicious! They reminded me of the beans I'd eat in South Florida. Even my 8-year-old son, who "hates" black beans, asked for seconds! To me that means this is a winner! I did use 3 cans of beans undrained so omitted the water and added some vegetable bouillon to the sautéed veggies. I also used a hand immersion blender to thicken up the beans into a super saucy pot. Other than that made as directed. A Keeper!
Really good, simple recipe that takes only a few minutes to prepare. I only used the liquid from one can of beans and did not need to add any extra water. I also used a lot more cumin than called for, used lime juice instead of the vinegar, and yes, added salt. I don't think I've ever made any kind of beans without adding salt, and find it strange how many people have bemoaned the fact, on this particular recipe, that salt-less beans might be bland. Adding a little salt and a little extra spice makes them definitively not bland.
This is my go-to black bean recipe. I use green pepper instead, add a bay leave, and leave out the sugar. The vinegar at the end is key, without it the flavors tend to muddle.
Bland! I really wanted to like this recipe and thought with the onion, garlic and spices it would be a hit. Followed the recipe exactly, however it was tasteless. Ended up having to add more vinegar, cumin, garlic and SALT (which I don't like to add)! The texture was nice though, and as the beans sat on the stove waiting for me to prepare the fish tacos, I ended up having to add more water as the recipe suggested.
Already a fan of black beans and this recipe elevated them to another level. Skipped the vinegar. Don't know that canned beans can get any better than this. Very easy to make.
I didn't have any green pepper, or fresh garlic (fresh back from vacation) used about a 1/2 tsp of garlic powder for 1 can of beans, added an extra 1/2 cup water to the half recipe, and then added dry rice to the mix before I covered it. I added about a 1/4 tsp Kosher salt, too and a bay leaf, omitted the vinegar, and topped with red hot sauce. Yum! ( I served it with green beans and a lightly fried piece of tilapia dipped in an egg bath a rice flour, It was a lovely meal)
Skipped the vinegar. Did as suggested and used the liquid from from the beans, doubled the cumin, and added oregano. Done that way, it was a hit.
Love it! Before making this I read ALL of the reviews and found that this recipe is super easy and delicious! I did make a few changes though: Omit the water all together, drained 1 can of beans and used 1 with the original bean broth, used 1/2 onion, and added 1/2 teaspoon of oregano. My boyfriend who is big on flavor really enjoyed this!
I loved these beans. I tried to follow the recipe exactly but only had one can of beans. So I probably had a little more red pepper, onion and garlic than the recipe called for. I am not sure what the fuss is about the vinegar. It was such a small amount and I think it off set the sweetness of the brown sugar. Very yummy!
Very disappointing, will not make again.
This was just okay, nothing special. Even when adding more garlic and spices, I still found it to be a little bland. I followed the suggestions of previous reviewers and omitted the vinegar and water. The consistency came out perfect.
So good! And healthy. The store was out of red peppers, if you can believe that, so I used yellow and it was just fine. It was very watery, but that didn't take away from the amazing flavor. I made this with Lime-Cilantro Pork Tacos and Southwest Fruit Salad from this site and it was an awesome meal.
Tasted great until I added the white wine vinegar. It overpowered the authentic flavors of the recipe. Hold the vinegar and it will taste great!
Flavorless, watery, simply one of the worst recipes I have tried on this website. I had to add salt (I never add salt to anything) and 2 kinds of chili to give this any flavor whatsoever.
I made these for a dinner party and got rave reviews. I did have to simmer them a little longer than recommended to cook down the extra liquid, but the results were worth the wait. The vinegar and brown sugar reminded me of baked beans. Yum!
Really good! Very tasty. There was more liquid than I wanted in the end... tried simmering it down but was taking too long. Next time I'd use less water. Forgot the vinegar in the end and it didn't seem to matter.
