Pinto Bean Balls
 
 
Ingredients
  • 2 big or 3 smaller leaks
  • 500 grams dried pinto beans
  • 1 cup cooked brown rice
  • 1 egg
  • 3 tablespoons of finely cut parsley leaves
  • 1 tablespoon sweet smoked paprika
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 1 tablespoon salt (or to taste)
  • ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
  • ¼ teaspoon of curry
  • half a teaspoon of dried oregano (or Italian seasonings)
  • pinch of cayenne pepper
  • flour
Tools
  • colander
  • pot
  • larger cooking pot
  • heavy-bottomed pot
  • sharp knife
  • cutting board
  • frying pan
  • bean masher
  • spoon
  • plate
  • baking sheet
  • parchment paper
Instructions
  1. Rinse the beans well under running water, then put them into a larger pot, cover with triple amount of water, and let it soak over night (8 hours at least). Rinse the soaked beans again in the morning. When you are ready to cook them, put them into a larger cooking pot, add about double amount of water, cover and bring them to a boil. Let them simmer until they are cooked. Time of the beans cooking varies; it can be done in 40 minutes and up to an hour, so check frequently if they are done by poking them with the fork. When they become soft and a bit mushy, turn the heat off, pour the excess water, cover the pot, and let it cool a bit.
  2. When you put the beans to cook rinse the rice, put it in a heavy-bottomed pot, pour two cups of water, cover with the lid and cook on low heat for approximately 20 minutes, then remove it from heat and let it rest covered for additional 15 minutes.
  3. While the beans and rice are cooling, prepare the leeks. Leek is one tricky vegetable to clean. It can hide a little bit of dirt here and there very successfully, so you should cut it lengthwise twice and wash thin leek stripes under plenty of running water. (If you purchased big leeks, they usually have one or two tough outer leaves, which should not be used in this recipe). Cut them into fine stripes 1 in / 1.5 cm long. Heat the olive oil over a low heat in a frying pan and sauté the leeks for a few minutes, stirring frequently, until they turn soft and tender. Stir in sweet smoked paprika, turn off the heat, and let it cool.
  4. Put the pinto beans in a larger bowl and mash them roughly with the bean masher. Add the leeks, rice, parsley leaves, curry, oregano, cayenne pepper and salt and pepper. Blend well all the ingredients. Now taste it and add more seasoning if you like. Add egg, and mix it again. Let the mixture cool for at least 1 hour in a refrigerator.
  5. Preheat oven to 375°F / 190°C.
  6. Take the mixture out of refrigerator; put some flour in a plate and using a spoon scoop the small amount of a mixture into the plate – the balls should be approximately big as a ping pong balls. Roll the mixture in a plate to cover it with flour first, then take it into your hands and form into smooth bean ball. Place them on a baking sheet covered with parchment paper and bake for 10 to 15 minutes, until golden brown.
  7. These bean balls from the oven will come a little bit dry and hard, but when topped with some nice sour cream sauce, and some green salad on the side, they will be just the perfect main dish. Also, the bean balls recipe can easy become vegan, if you replace that one egg with some eggs substitute, like the ground flax seeds.
Recipe by JasminCookBook at https://jasmincookbook.com/pinto-bean-balls/