Soup beans were a staple growing up in East Tennessee. I think of them as the Appalachian version of red beans and rice with peasant origins but so good that they find their way into the mainstream. I didn’t have a good recipe for these so I reached out on Facebook a while back. My friend, Allison Weaver (another amazing cook and foodie) responded right away with this classic from her mom’s kitchen. You must have cornbread to go along with this!
Ingredients:
8 ounces dried Great Northern beans
4 cups chicken broth
4 slices bacon, chopped
1 onion, chopped
1 stalk celery, chopped fine
4 cloves garlic, minced or crushed
1 cup chopped baked ham, optional
salt and pepper to taste
Directions:
Rinse and pick over beans. Place in bowl and cover with cold water, let sit overnight.
In dutch oven or large heavy lidded pot, saute bacon to render fat. Remove bacon and save to add later, if desired. Saute onion, celery, and garlic briefly, to soften. Add beans, broth, salt and pepper. Salt the water to taste – it’s hard to get the beans to ‘take’ the salt once they’re cooked. Simmer beans, covered, for 2-3 hours. Check occasionally to make sure you don’t need extra broth. Stir occasionally late in cooking. When beans are tender, add ham (if using) or bacon (if desired). Using a heavy spoon, mash some of the beans against side of pot to make broth creamier.
(Note: if using bacon and ham, only salt lightly at the beginning of cooking.)
Comments
Post a Comment