Black Beans and Rice

This is one of my wife's favorite dishes. We've probably eaten it at least two or three times a month for the past three years and we still aren't tired of it. It's great comfort food. It's also fast and easy. I serve the black beans on a simple saffron rice which is just rice cooked with (some strands of saffron and) a bit of turmeric added for color. It's also super cheap. Maybe I'll do a cost analysis later, in the spirit of The Tightwad Gazette.

Ingredients

• olive oil
• 1 medium onion
• 3 cloves of garlic
• 1 can of black beans (15 oz.), rinsed
• 1 can of Ro*tel diced tomatoes (10 oz.) (The Mexican style Rotel is great in this dish, but I guess you can substitute regular canned tomatoes if you can't find Ro*tel)
• 1 tablespoon crushed cumin (I use whole cumin that I crush as needed. Doing this improves the flavor dramtically).
• 2 teaspoons dried oregano
• a slight pinch of ground clove (This is the coup de grace, or the piece de resistance. Be careful not to use too much or it will overwhelm the dish. I don't measure it but it has got to be less than 1/8 teaspoon.)
• 1 dash of Balsamic or apple cider vinegar
• cooked yellow rice (1 to 1 1/3 cup uncooked)

1-Chop the onions and garlic. Saute for a couple minutes in olive oil until soft.

2-Add the canned canned tomatoes and the black beans. Stir in the crushed cumin, oregano, and clove.

3-Set heat on medium-low. Simmer for ten minutes, stirring occasionally, until beans begin to thicken.

4-Stir in the vinegar and add salt and pepper to taste. Turn off heat.

5-Serve over rice with cheese or chopped raw onion as garnish. Fresh chopped cilantro is a good garnish too.

I reckon it makes 2.5 servings.

Shopping list:

• can of black beans
• can of rotel
• onion
• garlic
• rice
• cheese

sides: cornbread, corn