How to make homemade pinto beans taste like canned refried beans? I see plenty of advice out there on how to make canned pinto beans taste delicious, but does anyone know how to recreate that cheapo refrito taste? I've tried countless combinations of freshly cooked pinto beans, salt, garlic, chili powder, onions...

They always seem to be missing some crucial element, and I don't mean the sitting-in-a-can-forever-flavor!
Lard is the fat of choice in many "el cheapo" canned refried beans, and could be what you are missing.