Red beans slow-simmered with pork, browned garlic and plantain until thick enough to serve over rice, Medellín-style.
Frijoles antioqueños are the backbone of Colombia's paisa region around Medellín — a pot of red beans simmered for hours with pork (often a mix of bacon, ribs or chorizo), plantain and a garlic-heavy sofrito until the beans break down into a thick, deeply savory stew. This is one of the most authentic dishes to make from this slug's ingredients, and it's traditionally the anchor of the enormous bandeja paisa platter, though it's just as satisfying eaten on its own with white rice. Browning the garlic properly — not burning it, but letting it turn deep gold in rendered pork fat — is what gives the pot its savory backbone, so this step deserves real attention rather than being rushed. Diced ripe plantain added partway through cooking breaks down slightly and adds natural sweetness that balances the pork's richness, a hallmark of paisa bean cooking. This is a genuinely long-cooked dish, and like most bean pots, it's better the next day once the flavors have had time to settle — plan for that if you can.
Serves 6
In a large heavy pot over medium heat, cook bacon and pork ribs until the fat renders and the pork picks up some color, about 8 minutes.
Add sliced garlic to the rendered fat and cook, stirring constantly, until deep golden but not burnt, about 2 minutes. Remove garlic and pork pieces temporarily if the pot is very hot to avoid burning.
Watch the garlic closely in the last 30 seconds — it goes from perfectly golden to bitter and burnt very quickly.
Add onion and green pepper to the pot and cook until softened, about 6 minutes. Stir in tomato paste and cook 1 minute more.
Drain soaked beans and add to the pot along with 8 cups water, cumin and 1 teaspoon salt. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a low simmer, partially covered.
Simmer for 1.5 to 2 hours, stirring occasionally and adding water as needed to keep the beans just covered, until the beans are very tender and starting to break down.
In the last 30 minutes of cooking, stir in diced plantain, letting it soften and partially dissolve into the pot.
Stir in remaining salt to taste and cilantro. Serve hot over white rice, ideally with avocado and fried plantain on the side.
Soak the beans overnight without fail — this dish relies on long, even cooking, and unsoaked beans cook unevenly and take much longer.
Use a ripe (yellow, spotted) plantain, not green — it needs to be soft enough to break down slightly into the pot for its characteristic sweetness.
Salt only after the beans are mostly tender — salting dried beans too early can toughen their skins and extend cooking time.
Add a piece of Colombian chorizo in the last 30 minutes for extra smokiness.
Make it vegetarian by omitting the pork and using 2 tablespoons olive oil plus a smoked paprika pinch for depth, though it will lose the traditional richness.
Serve as part of a full bandeja paisa with rice, ground beef, chicharrón, fried egg, avocado and arepa.
Refrigerate up to 5 days; the flavor deepens significantly overnight. Freeze in portions up to 3 months. Reheat with added water since the beans thicken considerably in the fridge.
Frijoles antioqueños are one of the defining dishes of Colombia's Antioquia department, centered around Medellín, where they form the base of the famous bandeja paisa platter — a tradition tied to the region's mountain farming culture and its reliance on hearty, slow-cooked pork and bean dishes to fuel physical labor.
Yes — brown the pork and garlic on the stovetop first for flavor, then transfer everything to a slow cooker on low for 6-8 hours, adding the plantain in the last hour.
A ripe banana can work in a pinch for sweetness, though the texture won't hold up the same way — alternatively, just omit it and add an extra pinch of brown sugar.
This is usually old dried beans (more than a year old) or hard water, both of which slow softening significantly — keep simmering and add hot water as needed; they'll get there, just slower.
Per serving (380g / 13.4 oz) · 6 servings total
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