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Grannys Texas Beans
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Yield: 8 servings as a side dish
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| Preparation time. 3 hours (plus 6-12 hours soaking if using dried beans) Ingredients | |
| 2 strips | bacon, chopped |
| 2 cans (15 ounce each) beans, drained and rinsed, or 1/2 pound dried beans (pinto beans or black eyed beans are the classics) | |
| 1 large | onion, chopped |
| 2 cloves | garlic, pressed or minced |
| 1/4 teaspoon | ground cumin |
| 2 | bay leaves |
| 1/2 teaspoon | ground black pepper |
| 2 (14 ounce) cans | reduced sodium chicken broth |
| 1 (14 ounce) can | whole, diced, or crushed tomatoes |
| 2 | fresh jalapeño peppers, finely chopped |
| Salt | |
| ground black pepper to taste | |
Do this
1) Click here to read my article, The Zen of Beans, for tips on working with beans and equivalents for dry, canned, and cooked beans. Decide which you will use. If you plan to use dried beans, follow the instructions there for soaking them. If you plan to use canned beans, move on to the next step.
2) Heat a Dutch oven or a heavy pot with a medium heat and add the bacon. Cook until it starts to brown and the fat starts to melt. Add the onion and cook until limp.
3) Add the pressed garlic, cumin, bay leaves, and black pepper and cook about 2 minutes.
4) Add the chicken broth, tomatoes, and the beans. Bring to a boil for about a minute and back the heat down to a simmer. Stir gently. If you are using dried beans, boil for up to 5 minutes.
5) Simmer about 3-4 hours with the lid on, stirring every 15-30 minutes to make sure things don't stick to the bottom. Exact cooking time will have to do with the variety of bean and how long it soaked. If you only soaked for 6 hours, cooking time can be 4 or more hours. Add water if necessary during the cooking.
6) Some folks serve their beans after most of the liquid has been absorbed, others like it more like a thick soup, and some folks like it thinner. You can add water to thin it or smash a few beans if you want to thicken it. Your call. Near the end taste a few beans to be sure they are soft. Some folks like the a little crunchy, others like them very soft. Add cumin, salt, and pepper if you think it needs it. Just before serving remove the bay leaves and add the chopped jalapeño. The reason we wait til the end to add the chile is so its flavor and heat will remain intact and add crunchy little bursts when you eat.
Leftovers
If you have leftovers, smush them up completely. Throw some bacon grease or other fat into a frying pan, cast iron preferably, and when it's hot, add the beans and stir frequently until they are the thickness you prefer. Them's refried beans, partner (in Spanish the prefix "re-" means "well", so "frijoles refritos" means "beans well fried", not "beans fried again").
Recipe uploaded with Shop'NCook for iPhone.
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