# Fire-Bean Dip



## jimfarwell (Nov 25, 2014)

*Fire-Bean Dip* (double batch, about enough for big party or large pot-luck)

Ingredients:


3 tbsp EVOO
1 medium-to-large yellow onion – if you don’t like or can't eat onion, you can omit it, but this dip is very different without onion. Not better. Just different.
1 package chorizo sausage (either beef or pork)...most brands run about 12 oz. I use it all, but if you want to, you can drain some of the fat. You'll lose flavor. 'S up to you.
2 cans refried beans (traditional, unless you're deathly afraid of lard – Rosarita's are maybe best. If you use no-fat variety, taste is nearly as good, but consistency is grainy and dry, so you wind up adding lard or oil (…which sort of defeats the purpose, no?).
2-to-4 oz jalapeño peppers (or more, if you like your dip hotter) – easiest to use canned or bottled jalapeño “chips” in a vinegary liquid (herein called “J-juice”). SAVE THE SEEDS AND J-JUICE! If you use fresh jalapeños, they’re GREAT, but you’ll need to add an ource or two of water & vinegar (in place of the J-juice) to get the consistency right...and again, save the seeds.
2 large cloves of garlic, chopped or grated or "squooshed" – as with onions, you can omit, but…. [ And if you're lazy, like me, you can substitute 2 tsp granulated garlic. ]
1 tbsp Balsamic vinegar – go easy, you can add more if you want (...I do), but like everything else, once it's in there, you can't remove it.
2 round tsp brown sugar (light or dark – I like the dark better). My grandma taught me to always add sugar to a salty dish, add salt to a sweet dish, even homemade ice cream...the contrast accentuates the flavor. Sounds crazy, but it's true.
1 tbsp (more or less) salt or seasoning salt. If there's a lot of salt in the cheese, you can cut it down a bit, and add more later if needed.
1 lb process cheese – for best flavor, substitute 8 oz medium or sharp cheddar (colby is good, too) along with 8 oz of cream cheese…but final consistency isn't as creamy & it costs more; for most cheesy-creamy dip, use 1 lb process cheese AND 8-oz cream cheese (...you wind up half-way between bean dip and Mexican cheese fondu).
--- *Spices* [ I can't give you precise measurements...I just “wing it”. You may do the same pretty quick, it's funny how fast you gain confidence with spices – each batch will turn out just a bit different, but all good. However, for your first few batches, it may be easier to mix up a small jarful of the spices you want to use – then you can add the spice-mix a teaspoon at a time, let it simmer for a minute, taste, and add more until you're satisfied. Start with the ratio shown below -- for a milder dip, go easy on both black and red pepper. ]

ground comino (cumin)	3 parts
oregano	2 parts (can substitute basil or marjoram for part or all)
black pepper	1-to-2 parts
cayenne (red) pepper	1-to-2 parts

Other possible ingredients – you can try one at a time for each batch, to see if you like them – or you can just put them all in, if you want:


Wright’s liquid smoke - 2 tbsp, more or less – gives your dip a mesquite-BBQ overtone
Green onions - 4 or 5, chopped fine – add right at the end, *don't cook*
Sweet bell pepper - 1 or 2 peppers, any color
Cilantro - to taste – dried or fresh – but careful, cilantro can overwhelm you
Sour cream - half a cup
Before you start cooking; slice all cheese, even cream cheese, into slices about ¼ inch thick (it will melt quicker), and chop up the veggies into chunks, about ¼ inch – onion, jalapeños, bell pepper (if you include it). Remember to save jalapeño seeds & J-juice – these are used later for heat, and to get the right consistency. If you cut down on jalapeños, or if you've tossed the seeds & J-juice, you’ll need to add a 50/50 water/vinegar mix (gives the sharpness of J-juice without heat). If you have to make substitute J-juice, apple cider vinegar is best, but either white vinegar or lemon juice is OK.

Add oil to an old, LARGE stainless or aluminum pot or pan, one you don't mind scraping. Add onions and fry until they're transparent. Add the chorizo, mash it and “melt” it – brown it really well, stirring & scraping it two or three times – you should even burn it a tad. Seriously, scorching it just a little bit improves its flavor, and you can't get that flavor any other way. The onions will continue cooking, and will caramelize nicely by the time the chorizo is done, in about 5-to-7 minutes. Spoon off some of the fat if you like (…or all of it, if you’re a fat-nazi…but remember, FAT CARRIES FLAVOR, so it’s best to leave some of it. Me? ...I leave all of it). 

Now add the beans – heat them thoroughly, using the back of a large spoon to mash them down a bit to a fairly smooth paste, mixing with the chorizo and onions. Add jalapeños (w/seeds and half of saved J-juice), and about 2/3 as much salt/spices as you THINK you'll want. Add all other ingredients except the cheese, and mix. 

Simmer just long enough to soften raw veggies – maybe 10 minutes. As it’s warming up, add the cheese slice by slice, stirring to mix it in as it melts. If you don't mix the cheese in completely, you get interesting swirls of yellow and white (cream cheese) in the dip...but that's an artistic touch that I, as a manly man, of course, eschew. 

If the dip will be served warm (fresh off the stove or nuked to re-heat) make it just a bit thinner than the desired final consistency – it always sets up a little after it comes off the stove, even if it’s served warm. If it will be a cold dip, thin it down more – it’s going to thicken up considerably as it cools. Add enough J-juice (or water, or sour cream, or a mixture) to make it stirrable – about like heavy pea soup. It’s hard to describe the exact viscosity – after you’ve made it a couple of times, it comes naturally. [ If it winds up too thin, you can use it as a really exotic salad dressing, or as “Tijuana gravy” on veggies and mashed potatoes...or ice cream...whatever works for you. If it’s too thick, well…it'd make a dandy door-stop...or add more J-juice and maybe a large dollop of sour cream. ]

Now TASTE – it probably won't be exactly how you want it. Add salt & spices as needed, but remember: half an ounce of vinegar (or extra J-juice) and a small amount of SUGAR will often wake up a batch of dip better than adding more spices & salt. To further blend flavors, you can refrigerate overnight and then stir, but you can serve it right now, as-is.

DO NOT OVERCOOK – if you do, the flavor gets different...but it *doesn't* get better. 

*TIP* – if you have some family members who like it HOT, and others that like it milder, make the whole batch MILD (use all the jalapeño peppers you want, they really aren't all that hot, especially after they've been simmered for a while). Then pour half into another serving dish, add a lot more cayenne and black pepper, stir it up well, and nuke it for a few minutes. Then stir again – *VWAH-LAH!* - hot dip.


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## Colbyt (Jan 27, 2014)

Uh, Jim, I think you omitted one step. 



Place a bottle of Maalox and serving spoons on the table. 



Seriously, it sounds interesting. Damn Dip on steroids.


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## jimfarwell (Nov 25, 2014)

Colbyt said:


> Uh, Jim, I think you omitted one step.
> 
> Place a bottle of Maalox and serving spoons on the table.
> 
> Seriously, it sounds interesting. Damn Dip on steroids.


Yeah...interesting is one word for it....

A Boeing co-worker once told me, "Jim, it's just too damned HOT! Every time you make it, it gets even hotter. You gotta start cutting back on the Jalapeños and red pepper...you just GOTTA!"

My response? "Ron, you gotta stop eating three or four styrofoam cups of it...you just *GOTTA!*"

I started making this recipe in the mid-70's. About 1983, working for Boeing's Ballistic Missiles Division (BMD), I'd bring a bowl (maybe a quart?) of medium-heat Fire-Bean dip and a bag of corn chips to one of our "grazing-day" pot lucks the week before Christmas [...each day, ten people would be tasked to bring their favorite party food) -- then, rather than waiting for lunch, everyone just "grazed" all day long, starting about 10 AM. ]

People asked if I could bring more, and maybe make it a bit hotter. Always glad to oblige, I slowly "hotted it up" over time. It kept disappearing at an alarming rate, but I got more complaints that it was too mild. So one day I brought in a double-batch, made the way I make it at home: Nuclear waste :devil3:.

Screams of agony, muttered death-threats :vs_mad: ...but it kept disappearing. And one day, the conversation reported above really did happen...swear it on my mother's soul. A few of our co-workers asked Ron to start moderating his intake -- first, because he was hogging the dip; and second, because in the afternoon he'd suffer from an appallingly rancid backfire effect. Anyway, at that point, I figured I had it just about right.

My family still has me make a batch every Thanksgiving, Christmas, and birthday event, so the tradition goes on, over 40 years and counting.

By the way, if you want to change this recipe from a dip to a burrito or taco filler, just add an appropriate amount of ground beef to the pan when you're frying the chorizo...for a double batch, add about 1½ pounds, and don't thin it down too much. Add a little lettuce, a bit of chopped tomato, a dab of sour cream, a dab of guacamole...and of course, a liberal amount of Tapatio hot sauce, and you have a burrito for the centuries!

...But when you go for your after-dinner stroll...walk into the wind.


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