In Puerto Rico, red beans or Habichuelas Guisadas are king! These delicious red beans are stewed in a tomato sauce with fresh sofrito, cubed potatoes, chunks of ham, and plenty of herbs. It’s no secret that this recipe is an iconic staple in my home, heart, and stomach. 💚
Building the Flavor of Habichuelas Guisadas
Like any Puerto Rican recipe of mine, this one starts with sofrito! It’s such bold condiment. It features fresh herbs like cilantro and culantro, with herty veggies and aromatics blended in – its a MUST in almost in every Puerto Rican dish.
In addition to sofrito, to really build a solid flavor base Habichuelas Guisadas, you will need a touch of acidity and sweetness. Tomato sauce or fresh tomatoes are ideal for this step. To add some savory notes, like most traditional recipes, my habichuelas include cubed ham chunks. Trust me, once you start cooking those ham chunks, they render their fat and well, as we all know – fat equals flavor!
Seasonings
Next on the flavor building list are my go to seasonings. As a standard, of course I used my homemade Sazon with Achiote – it gives so much color and deep flavor.
For more added earthiness, I add some pinches of ground cumin, ground oregano and a touch of adobo all purpose seasoning.
Stew the Habichuelas
If you’re wondering where the term guisada/guisado comes in, it’s a Spanish word to describe the cooking method of stewing meats and veggies in a seasoned broth or liquid. Hence our habichuelas are guisadas because we slowly stew them in a tomato based broth. To give the stew body and some density, many Puerto Ricans add veggies or starchy carbs. In this recipe, I added cubed white potato. If you like a bit more sweetness, you could substitute or additionally include cubed sweet potato or pumpkin.
Once all the ingredients are combined, it’s time to add some chicken stock and let it simmer away. The name of the game is to wait. What you want to achieve are tender habichuelas and veggies that are fully infused with the seasoned broth. You’ll know it’s done when the stew thickens and has a glossy consistency.
Ready to get to cooking? Follow the full recipe below along with a detailed step-by-step video tutorial!
Stay Updated
- For more Puerto Rican recipe tutorials, make sure to subscribe to my YouTube Channel: www.youtube.com/c/nataknowsbest
- For exclusive behind the scenes content, go subscribe to my Newsletter! https://www.nataknowsbest.com
Habichuelas Guisadas – Puerto Rican Stewed Red Beans
Ingredients
- 1 (16 oz) can of red beans (drained and rinsed)
- 4 ounces of tomato sauce
- 1 large potato (peeled and cubed)
- 1/4 cup of homemade sofrito
- 1/4 cup of cubed ham or salt pork
- 1 cup of chicken broth or water
- 1/2 teaspoon of ground cumin
- 1/2 teaspoon of ground oregano
- 1/2 a packet of sazon with achiote
- 1/2 a tablespoon of adobo
- Fresh cilantro for garnish
- Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- In a small pot, heat olive oil to medium heat and add cubed ham along with sofrito.
- Allow the fat from the ham to render and incorporate with the sofrito.
- Next add the tomato sauce. Allow the raw tomato taste to cook out for about 3 minutes.
- Season the tomato base with cumin, sazon and oregano.
- Add the drained habichuelas and mix with the tomato base.
- Top with water or chicken broth and then toss in cubed potatoes.
- Increase the temperature to medium high heat and allow the habichuelas to softly boil.
- Taste the sauce and adjust seasonings to liking. Add salt, pepper or adobo to taste.
- Once the habichuelas are boiling, reduce the heat and allow them to simmer until the potatoes are fork tender.
- Serve on white rice and garnish with cilantro
