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Kay’s Pot of Beans
Or maybe I should have named it Pot O’ Gold, because that’s what this is, folks. The stuff you find at the end of the rainbow. So simple and straightforward but so incredibly delicious. Now, I’m sure most food blogs out there will be posting diet/resolution-friendly recipes… but I’m not. I only have one new years resolution this year and that’s to not have new years resolutions. Face it, they usually last no more than 2 weeks anyway.
The second round of extremely cold weather is about to kick in on my side of the pond, and what better way to warm up than with a hot bowl of beans? Trite but true, there really is nothing better on a cold day than a big flavorful pot of beans to warm you up. This is old-school cooking, I know, I just can’t help myself.. beans are my go to cold comfort food.
Ingredients:
2 cups dried brown beans (or pinto beans)
2 garlic cloves
7 oz bacon
1 large onion
1/2 bell pepper
1/4 cup ketchup
1 tbsp molasses
1 1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1/2 tsp curry powder
1 tsp sweet paprika powder
1 beef bouillon cube
1 tbsp yellow mustard
worcestershire sauce
Directions:
Cut the bacon in small pieces. I’ve opted for thinly sliced bacon because I want the bacon to melt in with the beans and gravy. You could also make these beans using ham!
Finely mince a large onion.
Peel and finely chop about 1/2 a bell pepper. You can use more if you like, don’t let me stop you, I just don’t want the pepper flavor to become overpowering.
Grate two garlic cloves. Oh man, this is going to be such a flavor bomb.
I never soak my beans. Nor do I soak my split peas when making pea soup. I’m using brown beans, but pinto beans work fine as well. Rinse them and pick out the freaky looking ones. They’re outcasts, show them no mercy.
More stuff you’ll want to keep nearby. Heinz ketchup (the one and only), Grandma’s molasses, worcestershire sauce and yellow mustard (not to be confused with Dijon mustard).
This is where a lot of people go wrong; they don’t brown their bacon. You simply have to brown the bacon in order for the bacon flavor to really seep into the beans. You’ll miss out on a lot of flavor if you don’t. Just cook it for a few minutes, it shouldn’t be crispy.
Add the minced onion and cook for 3 minutes before adding the bell pepper and garlic. Give everything 3 more minutes.
Time to add your dry ingredients. Spoon in 1/2 a tsp curry powder, 1 tsp sweet paprika powder, 1 1/2 tsp salt and 1/2 a tsp black pepper. Remember you can always add more later but you can’t take it out. Add your beans and give everything a good stir. You can also add a pinch of cayenne for a bit of a kick, if you like.
And now the liquids. Crumble in 1 beef bouillon cube, this is gonna add a wicked flavor and pour in 1 tbsp (or 2 if you like it sweet) molasses, 1/3 cup ketchup, 1 slightly heaping tbsp yellow mustard and a good splash of worcestershire sauce (a tsp or 2) and combine everything.
Pour in the water. You want the beans to be covered by 2 inches of water. Bring to a boil, pop the lid on and simmer over low heat for 3 hours.
This is what my beans looked like 1 hour into the cooking process.
And here’s what they looked like after 2 hours.
And this is what 3 hours of slowly simmering in incredibly yummy liquid did to them. Divine. Check the seasoning, top them with a little sour cream, crack some black pepper on top and dig in.
They’re absolutely delicious. Really flavorful with a slight hint of sweetness! The Dutch way of eating these yummy beans is to serve them with either boiled or mashed potatoes & gravy, but really, eat them with whatever you like. They’re great with rice, corn bread, Moroccan flatbread, crispy French bread and even French fries. Knock yourself out!
Kay’s Recipe Card
Click here for printable size.
| Kay’s Pot of Beans | |
| Ingredients |
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| Directions |
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| copyright © kayotickitchen.com | |
23 Comments »
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So glad you’re posting this recipe!! I used PW’s method for beans (it’s in her book) and it was way too peppery. When I tried it again and cut the pepper down by 1-1/2 tsp it was decent, but somewhat flavorless. I knew I could count on you to come up with a great recipe!! This sounds amazing.
These sound so good, Kay! We could sure use a pot of them today here in Georgia where it’s currently 18 degrees.
I know this is silly, but I just love to see the different packages of food products that you use. Funny seeing the “genuine American” label on the mustard!
@Lana:
You made me grin. That’s because you’re not gonna find the yellow ballpark mustard in our grocery stores. Here you mainly find French and coarse mustards, and I’m completely hooked on that typical run of the mill yellow mustard. I use it in so many recipes.
Thanks for this wonderful recipe kay!
Zeer smakelijk ;-)
Yummmm! A bowl full of this is just perfect for a cold day. Ive never seen peppers peeled before :)
@Veggie Belly:
I only peel them when I want them to completely blend in with the gravy. It works like a charm :)
What a great dish with beans. I will try this one. Is there a way I can leave the bacon out?
@tobias cooks!:
I have no idea what the flavor will be like without the bacon, it does make for big part of the flavor in this particular dish, having said that… you can just leave it out. Or replace it with either ham or turkey bacon or something like that.
We are having an extremely cold week here, and this sounds perfect! And as usual, I’m so happy it has a printable recipe card!
I hope you had wonderful holidays!
I hate to admit this but the only beans I’ve ever “made” have come out of a can. *smiles sheepishly*. These look and sound fantastic. It’s ccccold in Michigan right now and I think these are just the ticket. Thanks Kay. These are def on the menu for this week.
Hey Kay,
How about putting those beans in a crockpot?
Simmering on the stove as I’m writing this. You do know that subjecting somebody to three hours of waiting is torture, especially while smelling bacon? ;)
@Jiny:
What can I say? I have a cruel streak in me :)
Good thing you do – I just dug this recipe out again after seeing some pinto beans in the grocery store and remembering something about bacon and ketchup! It’s the perfect pick-me-up dinner for the current weather – and I’m hoping my toddler will eat them too.
Thank you! I’ve been wanting to try more bean recipes lately. I feel like we consume too much meat.
You and PW both have bean recipes which I love in the winter! will try both! Ever since my gastric bypass I have to peel my peppers or I end up in the hospital! (Very successful surgery (4 yrs ago) but I can eat just a little bit of beans at a time! Ironically it was while I was in the hospital that I became interested in cooking again, couldn’t eat or drink anything so I watched the food network! LOL
PW must have read my comment here, only 24 hours later she went ahead and posted a recipe almost identical to yours.
Those beans certainly sound tasty!
You had me at bacon! I love baked beans and this looks like an excellent recipe. Will try soon.
I could eat these quite often. Great step by step!
Good lord, these beans are good! I have never been a fan of beans, except in chili but these are fantastic. I made mine with canned beans and added a few shots of tabasco sauce and am already looking forward to making it the next time. Thanks for a fabulous recipe :)
After browning the bacon I threw everything in my slow cooker and let it cook for a few hours. It was delicious. Thanks for this recipe, will definitely be trying it again!
How many does this serve?