It is not easy to learn how to cook pinto beans, but the preparation process is a bit long so you should arm yourself with patience. Here are the basic steps that you have to follow.

You can use 1 pound of pinto beans to prepare a meal for 4 to 5 people. The first step is to clean the beans very well. You can also rinse them if you wish. Then put them in a relatively large pot and add water to the top of the vessel. You have to leave the beans to soak overnight for at least 8 hours.

In the morning remove the water and add fresh one. Boil the pinto beans for an hour and stir occasionally. Then pour out the water and add new one. The temperature at which you have to set the hotplate to is up to you. You should cook the beans until they become tender. Then change the water again and allow for the seeds to boil with the new one for five minutes.

You should prepare another pot and grease its bottom with vegetable oil. Preheat it to a medium temperature and fry the following ingredients. You need 1 dried red pepper cut into small pieces, 1 grinded carrot, 1 small onion bulb, which has to be diced and 1 small tomato that has to be chopped into small pieces as well. You also need salt, red pepper and thyme – you have to decide on the optimal amounts.

The next step on how to cook pinto beans is to add spoons of them to the greased pot and mash them well. Mix them with the rest of the beans in the first pot and cook for another 10 minutes. The amount of seeds you put for mashing is up to you - put a small amount for a soup and a large one for a casserole.

This is how to cook pinto beans.