Beans and Bacon

Wava Fick’s Pinto Beans and Bacon – or really good beans without bacon

This recipe is taken from a traditional beans and cornbread church supper that focused on feed-the-hungry outreach programs and how many people around the world are thankful for a bowl of beans and some kind of bread.  Although the recipe includes bacon, any kind of meat is a luxury for the world’s poor.

  • 1 pound dry pinto beans
  • 6-8 cups water
  • 1/4 pound bacon – Vegetarians substitute 1 teaspoon corn oil or olive oil
  • 1 medium onion, chopped
  • 1 garlic clove, minced
  • 2 teaspoons salt
  • 1 heaping Tablespoon brown sugar
  • 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
  • 1 bay leaf (optional)

Step 1 – ALL:

Pour the package of dried pinto beans into a colander and pick through the beans, removing rocks and any blackened or badly discolored bean pieces.  (Some bags have between one and five pieces to remove, some bags have none.)

Rinse remaining beans thoroughly with running water and place in a 3-4 quart crock-pot.  Add 6-8 cups of water* and turn heat to low.  Plug in crock-pot.

Step 2

CARNIVORES: In a small skillet, fry the bacon slices to a crisp.  Remove bacon strips to a paper towel, break into small bits when cool and add to crock pot. Sauté the garlic and onions in the remaining bacon grease.  Add contents of skillet to crock pot.

OR

VEGETARIANS: skip the bacon and heat 1 teaspoon oil in a small skillet. Sauté until the vegetables are nicely browned.  Add contents of skillet to crock pot.

Step 3 – ALL

Add spices and bay leaf (it adds a Creole touch, but if you don’t have a bay leaf, it won’t be missed).

Cover crock-pot and cook on low for 6-9 hours.   The beans are done in about 6 hours, but if you are at work and they have to cook for 8-9 hours, they won’t get mushy.

* With 8 cups of water, beans will be soupy.  If you haven’t made this recipe before with your crock pot and you are going to be away all day, it is best to start with 8 cups of water.  One of the worst kitchen smells to come home to is beans that have burned in a crock pot due to insufficient water.  If you have used your crock pot frequently and know how hot the “low” setting is, then start with 7 cups of water.  If you double the recipe (only if you have a really large crock pot), you can use 6 cups of water for each pound of beans.

Original recipe by Wava Fick,  updated in 2011 by Carlyn Chatfield for crock pots