How to Thicken Refried Beans: 3 Methods for Thickening Beans

Refried beans, or frijoles refritos in Spanish, is a side dish consisting of cooked beans that you then mash or blend before mixing with various seasonings and flavorings like cumin and chili powder. Beans prepared this way are a traditional side dish in Mexican and Tex-Mex cuisine.

Pinto beans are the most common type of bean used to make the side dish, but you can also use black beans or red beans. Use either canned beans or dried beans to make refried beans, depending on how much time you have. Gabriela Cámara’s frijoles refritos recipe features dried black beans, while this easy refried beans recipe calls for canned pinto beans as a shortcut.

The best way to fix runny refried beans is to prevent them from becoming runny in the first place. To do that, you need to control the amount of water you add to your beans. Hydrate your homemade refried beans with the liquid leftover from cooking the dried beans. If you used a can of beans to make the side dish, you could hydrate them with water, vegetable broth, or chicken broth.

After sautéeing your aromatics and adding your cooked beans to the pot, start with about a ladle’s worth of liquid, and use a spoon or potato masher to mash some of the beans as you cook them over low to medium-low heat. Stir to achieve a uniform texture, and if the result isn’t to your desired thickness, add liquid a few spoonfuls at a time until the beans are right.

If you have wound up with soupy refried beans, they’re not beyond saving. Here are a few methods you can try:

1. 1. Extend the cooking time. This method is the easiest since it just requires you to stay the course, though it will add to your total cooking time. Simply keep your beans cooking over low heat to allow them to absorb more of the excess liquid, occasionally stirring until they look ready to eat.
2. 2. Mash them more. Beans are very starchy and can absorb a lot of water. If your beans are still relatively intact and you don’t mind smoother batches of refried beans, mash them up more to increase their surface area. (You can use a food processor, but if you don’t want to dirty more dishes, a spoon or potato masher will work just as well.) Your mashed beans will absorb water faster than whole beans as they approach more of a purée consistency.
3. 3. Add a thickener. If your beans are still too watery after prolonged cooking and mashing, consider adding a thickener like cornstarch, all-purpose flour, or arrowroot. To do this, first, make a slurry of equal parts thickener and water, then slowly add it to your refried beans. They should thicken considerably. Continue cooking the beans until the raw cornstarch taste goes away.

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