The Lowly Frijole

Pinto beans. My life would be empty and incomplete without them.  They are little tiny morsels of perfection.  Not a day goes by in which I don't think about their deliciousness.  My husband fully understands my love affair with the pinto, and he uses it to his advantage.  He often offers to take me out for Mexican food because he knows that I'm a cheap date.  Bean and cheese burritos are my weakness.  Some girls order flaming fajitas, still sizzling when they come to the table.  You pay extra for that sizzle.  Why waste the money for flashy food like this when all I really desire can be found on the "Ala Carte" menu for $2.49?  I hate to order a combo meal.  I don't want two enchiladas with a "side" of rice and beans.  I want Beans with a side of rice and enchiladas. 

I'm a bit of a bean connoisseur..... an expert if you will,  in frijole flavoring.  I analyze beans the way that wine snobs talk about their favorite Chardonnay.  My husband amuses me by playing along.

ME: "These beans have a smoky flavor with a hint of jalapeno in them. Do you think they used garlic too?"

HIM: "Sure."

ME: "I'm positive they used some onion, and I bet they fire roasted chilies before they added them. What do you think?"

HIM :"I don't know."


ME: "These pintos taste hammy with a hint of black pepper. Do you think they used bacon, ham hocks, or salt pork?"

HIM: "Tough to say."

We both agree that beans vary by geography, and frankly, a pinto in Illinois isn't as tasty as a bean in Arizona.  The closer beans are to their mother land, the more decadent they become. My husband located the world's best beans while working in the border town of  Nogales, AZ.  They are from a restaurant so close to the Mexican border, that you could spit across the line.  In fact, my husband's been working there all week, and when he calls home, he tells me the Mexican food is so good down there that it feels like he's cheating on me when he partakes of it without me sitting by his side.  It makes me want to cry.  But then he brings me home 4 quarts of refried beans, and 6 dozen fresh tortillas to eat them with, and I fall in love with that man all over again.

My lover knows the fastest way to my heart is through the pinto.  That's why he proposed marriage over a meal of bean burritos.  I'll save that post for another day, but let's just say that it worked like a charm.  Many things change in life....hairstyles, truck models, wall colors, and jean sizes..... but there is one thing that always stays the same, one thing that will never go out of style, and that is my undying devotion to the lowly frijole.