Sunday was an intense four-dish cookfest. We were planning to attend a 3rd of July BBQ the next day, and I was charged with bringing the BBQ sauce and BBQ pinto beans. I cooked up two quarts of sauce. I kept two cups for my freezer, and saved the rest for the event.For the beans, I chopped up and mixed in some leftover boneless baby back rib meat in the freezer. I like this recipe because it's truly a one-pot dish, it's easy to make, and it tastes light-years better than any canned variety.
To stock up the freezer for our weekly grub, I made red beans and rice. Two pounds of dried beans, two cups of raw rice and a pound of ham yielded more than a dozen meals to pack away.
I also steamed up a head of cabbage, string beans and some chopped ham for another eight dishes. The freezer was full.
BBQ Pinto Beans
2 onions, chopped
1 T butter
salt and pepper
1 can diced tomatoes
1 t each of cumin and oregano
1/2 t each of dry mustard and cayenne
1/2 cup BBQ sauce
1/2 cup dark brown sugar, packed
2 pounds pinto beans, soaked overnight or quick soaked
2 cups of chopped BBQ pork
3 cups of chicken stock
water to cover
- Sauté the onion in the butter, and season with salt and pepper, until soft.
- Add cumin, oregano, mustard and cayenne. Sauté for 10 more minutes.
- Add the BBQ sauce and the brown sugar. Mix well.
- Turn up the heat and pour in the stock, chopped BBQ pork and beans.
- Pour water to cover everything by about half an inch.
- Bring to a boil, then turn down and simmer covered for about an hour, stirring every 20 minutes. Look for a thickened sauce to know when you're done.
Since we weren't going to eat the beans until the next day, I took them off after about 45 minutes and packed them into the fridge. The next day, about an hour before the chicken was finished smoking, I poured the beans into a loaf pan and put the pan into the smoker. They came out sweet and spicy, and the BBQ guests raved about them.