Recently, I was given some samples of del Carmen Cuban-style gluten-free black beans, and gluten-free black bean soup to try. I love black beans, so this was definitely a welcome product to sample!
First, I tried the gluten-free black beans. They are stored frozen, so I defrosted them, and then heated them in the microwave in a glass dish according to directions. I served them with steamed brown rice, and roasted salmon with Cuban seasoning. M is not usually the biggest fan of beans...unless they are baked beans from his homeland, so I was assuming I would be eating most of these beans myself. Much to my surprise, M and Z couldn't get enough. They both ate up all their beans and asked for seconds! M even made sure we had more in the freezer, so we could have them again.
Score! A healthy side dish that was easy and quick to prepare!
I decided to serve the gluten-free black bean soup in a similar way, with steamed cilantro, lime rice and fish tacos. Again, a huge hit in my house! I was just missing the mojito.
The gluten-free black beans and gluten-free black bean soup are extremely flavorful, but not hot, which I really appreciate, so they could be enjoyed by all of us equally. And for a busy family, on days when I have little time to prepare meals, they are a great side dish.
Both black beans dishes are slow-cooked, and contain all-natural ingredients without preservatives and scary to pronounce words hidden in their ingredient list.
The gluten-free black beans and black bean soup are vegetarian and both contain:
Black Beans, Water, Carrots, Peppers, Celery, Onions, Orange Juice, Lime Juice, Garlic, Olive Oil, Lemon Juice, Sea Salt, Shallots, Sugar, Natural Spices
del Carmen also produces black beans and black bean soup that contain beer that are not gluten-free, so be sure to choose the beans that say 'gluten-free' on the label, near the ingredients. They also produce gluten-free vegetable broth and gluten-free black beans and rice.
My only negative comment about these black beans are that they are currently only located in the St. Louis, MO metro area. For those who live locally, you are in for a treat! For the rest of us, let's keep our fingers crossed that they expand distribution so we can enjoy these tasty beans as part of our weekly meals!
