RECIPE: Black Bean Tacos

I've just watched The Lego Movie so "TACO TUESDAYS" is in my head. If it's got your tummy grumbling then it's a good time to make them! This is another recipe from Nigel Slater's Real Fast Food (I promise it's not the only recipe book my family uses, it's just new at the moment so we're finding recipes we want to try in there). 

The original recipe includes instructions to make your own tomato chilli salsa buuuuut we cheated and decided not to make it and got a shop bought one. Naughty.

To serve four people.

2 x 400g tins of black beans, haricot beans or black-eyed beans, drained and well rinsed.

2 x 400g tins of chopped tomatos

3 tablespoons olive oil

1 bay leaf

2 onions, sliced

2 big cloves of garlic, finely sliced

2 teaspoons ground paprika

1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper

1 tinned jalapeño pepper, seeded and finely chopped 

(we used a dried chilli we grew ourselves)

Salt

Ground black pepper

2 teaspoons white wine vinegar

1. Put the rinsed beans in a pan with a tablespoon of the oil and the bay leaf and cover with water. Bring to the boil and simmer for 10 minutes.

2. Warm the remaining oil in a shallow pan, add the onions and cook till soft and golden. Add the garlic, paprika and cayenne, cook till garlic is soft, about 4 minutes. 

3. Add the tinned tomatoes and chilli, simmer for about 10 minutes. Drain the beans and add to the sauce. Taste and season with salt, pepper and wine vinegar. (We didn't end up using the wine vinegar as it tasted fine without). It's up to you!

4. Warm the taco shells in a hot oven for 3 - 4 minutes.

5. Spoon bean mixture into the taco shells, top with cheese/salsa/guacamole/whatever you fancy! Then get eating.

It was easiest to serve them in a dish so they could stand up, it meant the mixture didn't all just fall up. These were really messy to eat but super tasty. We put extra chillis in and I think it made my lips go numb it was so hot! Definitely have kitchen roll or wipes to hand for the mess. Heating the tacos in the oven makes them a bit softer so your taco might fall to pieces if you don't eat it fast with the hot bean mixture in them! I had cheese and garlic mayo on mine. You can eat about 3 or 4. Let me know if you make this, it's quick and easy to make without lots of fancy ingredients.