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Moros Y Cristianos

A traditional Nicaraguan dish of black beans simmered with rice, bacon, onions, peppers, and seasonings.

From the Recipes Wiki (Fandom) · 21 ingredients
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Why it works: Cumin and oregano match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 983 recipes. Both carry estragole, which smells anise, licorice. The science ↓

Moros Y Cristianos

Time1 hour simmer

Ingredients

Directions

Soak and simmer the beans

  1. Soak the beans in cold water for no less than four hours in a large pot.

  2. Make sure the beans are covered by at least three inches of water.

  3. Add the rest of the ingredients except the sofrito and seasonings.

  4. Bring to a boil and skim off foam.

  5. Reduce the heat, cover and gently simmer, stirring occasionally, for one hour.

  6. Add water to keep the beans submerged.

  7. Remove the onion, garlic, bay leaves, and bell pepper and discard.

Make the sofrito and finish the beans

  1. Sofrito: Brown the bacon in a frying pan over medium heat, then pour off the fat.

  2. Add olive oil and remaining sofrito ingredients, cooking over medium heat until just beginning to brown, about three minutes.

  3. Stir the sofrito into the beans, along with the seasonings.

  4. Continue simmering until beans are very soft, about 20 minutes.

  5. Correct the seasonings to taste before serving.

  6. Pour over rice.

Rice cooker variation

  1. Use the same ingredients.

  2. Place the beans in a rice cooker, and cover with three inches of water.

  3. Soak for four hours or overnight.

  4. Add the ingredients for the black beans, including rice, and cook for 1-1.5 hours, adding water when necessary.

  5. Prepare the sofrito as above, and add that and the ingredients ten to twenty minutes before serving.

  6. The rice will be black, and the beans not soupy, as in the above recipe.

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)

659Calories
18 gProtein
19 gFat
99 gCarbs
What these numbers assume: 15 portions
IngredientPortion assumedkcal
Rice1 cup cooked (158g) white206
Olive Oil1 tbsp (14g)119
Black Bean1/2 cup canned (120g) drained114
Sugar1 tbsp (12.5g) granulated49
Onion1 medium (110g)44
Bacon1 slice cooked (8g)43
Bell Pepper1 medium (119g)31
Wine2 tbsp cooking wine (30ml)25
Cumin1 tsp ground (2.1g)8
Black Pepper1 tsp ground (2.3g)6
Oregano1 tsp dried (1.8g)5
Garlic1 clove (3g)4
Vinegar1 tbsp (15ml) distilled3
Bay Leaf1 leaf (0.6g)2
Salt1 tsp (6g)0

One typical portion per ingredient; the recipe's quantities are not counted. A rough guide only, not for medical or dietary planning.

Recipe from the Recipes Wiki (Fandom).

Steps grouped into stages for easier reading; the method is the source's own.

Explore the science

The flavor team

The pairs that carry this dish. Each one is judged two ways: how much their aromas overlap, and how often cooks already put them together.

  1. Cumin + oreganotop 1% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together983 recipes

    Shared aroma: estragole (anise, licorice).

  2. Beans + cumintop 1% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together1,188 recipes

    Shared aroma: linalool (floral, citrus).

  3. Onion + garlictop 1% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together29,058 recipes

    Shared aroma: furaneol (caramel, strawberry).

  4. Garlic + cumintop 1% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together5,082 recipes

    Shared aroma: beta-phellandrene (minty, terpene).

  5. Garlic + oreganotop 2% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together3,756 recipes

    Shared aroma: beta-phellandrene (minty, terpene).

Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs

What each ingredient does

Black beans
Form the main body of the dish and, once softened, thicken the cooking liquid into a rich base.
Bacon
Its rendered fat adds savory richness and browned flavor to the sofrito.
Onion
Softens and sweetens as it cooks, building the aromatic base of the sofrito.
Garlic
Adds pungent aroma that mellows and deepens as it cooks in the sofrito.
Green pepper
Contributes fresh, grassy aroma and a slight bitterness to the sofrito.
Red wine vinegar
Adds acidity that brightens the heavy, starchy beans.

The step that matters

Soak the beans for at least four hours. Dried beans need long soaking so they hydrate evenly; without it they cook unevenly and stay firm inside, so the final simmer may not make them very soft.

Swap the onion

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (rice, beans, clove, garlic, pepper, cumin, oregano):

  1. Eggplantfits better
  2. Spinachfits better
  3. Tomatofits better
  4. Onionthe original

Fit is the average pairing score against rice, beans, clove, garlic, pepper, cumin, oregano. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.

“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.

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