I need some serious advice.....about bean dip?

TOSTITOS SALSA CON QUESO

Beans>cheese.

Hmmmm…I’d say american cheese but I think that is the same as velveeta?!? Maybe?!?

according to wikipedia it is colby, swiss, and cheddar. but i am certainly not buying three more blocks of cheese…........

You could use cream cheese, or your Monterey Jack. I like Co-Jack best for Tex/Mex food.
I have never made my own re-fried beans, but I suppose you could cook pinto beans and go from there.

@wilma Ooooh I bet cream cheese would be great!!!

Why not Velveeta cheese?

Gruyère

Velveeta cheese is going to be a toughie to replace since it stays so creamy. Most others will “stiffen up” .

I guess you could try cutting the cheese LOL with a roux.

Buy a bag of mixed Mexican Blend grated cheese. Add it to the hot beans a little at a time.

@ChazMaz… We are all standing, for that one. you deserve a standing ovation

I would not put any cheese in my bean dip. Having said that Queso Blanco is a typical cheese that is grated and melted on top of refried beans, but it would not be as creamy as velveeta, so it would not melt and become part of the dip in the same way. It is similar to Mozerella, but slightly different taste. There are Mexican cheeses that melt similarly to velveeta, if you go to a store that caters to Hispanics in a big way, like my local Walmart, they shuld have a section of mexican cheeses and they will say right on them for quesadillas (don’t get that one, usually a little yellowish), for melting, etc. in English. Buy a few that say creamy or for melting, see which one you like, throw the rest out if they are terrible. Generally speaking Mexican cheeses are very mild. By the way do not buy Queso Fresco, it is nothing close to what you want, and many times supermarkets will have 4 brands of Queso Fresco, it seems to be a popular one to stock.

@JLeslie – Can I come over for some Tex-Mex? :-)

You people are making me hungry and I soooo love Mexican food.

Not much Tex-Mex here. I live with a Mexican born and bred, you get the real thing at my house.

Even better! Cactus too?

@ChazMaz No, no cactus, sorry. Sopes, tacos (soft), chicken pipian, quesadillas, refried beans, stuffed poblano peppers, ribs made with a pasilla pepper and tomatillo sauce (I have no idea what it is called). What I cannot perfect is my MIL’s Frijoles Charros which is not to be believed. I really think we should put it in a jar and market it.

Mmmm I do luv smoked ham hock. I am figuring you use Chorizo when making the Frijoles Charros.

@ChazMaz Bacon. It is an innocent looking dish, appears to be very healthy, but isn’t.

I make my bean dip with cream cheese, hormel chili dip and just a little bit of the shredded cheese from a bag. It’s so good it’s a sin (and the calorie count makes you pay for it). You can probably add refried beans to it as well although the chili I buy already has beans in it.

If you loved a dish, and want to make the same dish, you must use the same ingredients. People don’t get this. I agree that Velveeta is suspect, but it seems to be what a lot of cheese dips are all about.

@john65pennington Velveeta cheese just makes me leery. I try to avoid over processing as much as I can. Plus, I was planning on going to the Whole Foods that is 2 blocks from my house and I’m kind of doubting they’ll have it anyhow.

@thriftymaid it doesn’t necessarily need to be exactly the same. I’m sure you could change many things about it and still have it be tasty…but i just dont know what those things are.

@JLeslie thank you, youre so helpful as usual

i shall report back.

Boil beans overnight. Mash them into paste. Add salt and whatever seasoning you want. Cool them in the refrigerator. Heat them again and use Crisco to get them to the consistency you want. Enjoy the beans

As to what cheese to add to them? Shredded medium cheddar can be added directly to the burrito once you have your beans in the tortilla. Everyone can add their own cheese and get as much as they want.

- I work at a taco place.

@deni What I said is if you want exactly what you previously experienced, follow the recipe. Of course, every recipe can be changed and result in something “tasty.” But it will not be a duplicate.

@ChazMaz What do you mean “you people”?

I mean the individuals that are providing tasty ideas.