A glory of black beans, in addition to such qualities as their beauty and healthfulness, is that they don’t need to be presoaked: they easily yield to softening when boiled straightaway. Then, they are ready to accept all manner of embellishments, such as sausage, Mexican spices, and sweet-sour-hot chipotle cream.

　　

Ingredients

serves 6 to 8

　　

Black Beans

1 1/2 cups dried black beans

　　4 cups water

　　1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt, or more to taste

　　

Chili

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

　　1 yellow or white onion, chopped

　　2 large cloves garlic, coarsely chopped

　　1 pound Chorizo (page 24)

　　2 teaspoons ground cumin

　　2 tablespoons pure chile powder, preferably ancho

　　1 teaspoon chopped fresh oregano or 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano

　　1 chipotle chile in adobo sauce, minced

　　1 1/2 cups canned tomatoes, with juices

　　4 cups water

　　

Chipotle Cream

3/4 cup heavy cream

　　2 tablespoons sour cream

　　2 chipotle chiles in adobo sauce, minced

　　

Step 1

To prepare the beans, rinse, pick them over, and place in a large saucepan. Add the water and bring to a boil over high heat. Decrease the heat to maintain a brisk simmer and cook uncovered, adding more water if necessary to keep the beans floating freely, until tender, 1 1/4 to 1 1/2 hours. Stir in the salt and use right away, or let cool and refrigerate the beans in their cooking liquid for up to 1 week. (The beans can also be cooked in a pressure cooker. Place in the pressure cooker with water to cover by 1 1/2 inches, cook for 35 minutes after coming to pressure, and then let stand for 10 minutes to allow the beans to finish cooking as the pressure subsides.)

　　

Step 2

To make the chili, heat the oil in a large pot over medium-high heat. Add the onion, garlic, chorizo, cumin, chile powder, oregano, and chipotle chile and cook, stirring occasionally to break up the sausage, until the juices are deep red and bubbling, 2 to 3 minutes. Add the black beans and their cooking liquid, the tomatoes, and the water and bring to a boil. Decrease the heat to maintain a brisk simmer and cook, uncovered, until the mixture has a stewlike consistency, about 40 minutes.

　　

Step 3

While the chili cooks, make the chipotle cream. In a small bowl, whisk together the cream, sour cream, and chiles. Set aside.

　　

Step 4

To serve, ladle the chili into large bowls, and top each bowl with a dollop of the chipotle cream. Pass the remaining chipotle cream on the side.

　　Sausage