Beans are a most versatile food; so many styles to make and so many ways to cook them. There are Ranch Beans, there are Chili Beans, there are Barbecue Beans and just plain old Pork and Beans to name a few. And cooking? You can cook then on the stove top. You can cook them in the oven and you can cook them in the coals of your campfire too. And, as in this recipe, you can cook them in your crock pot and make delicious beans for that special cookout or barbecue, that picnic or just for every day fare.

When I went to the store to get the items not on hand to make these beans I wasn’t sure about what meat to use. I found a family pack of bone-in pork chops. There was a bit of fat on the edges and six small bones. I decided to use them. I selected two for the bean pot and four others, after cutting out the bone, were bagged for the freezer for later. I lightly grilled the chops to brown the surface and give a bit of smoky taste to the meat. I could just as well could have used bacon (easy to find) or a ham hock (not so easy to find and usually expensive for an old bone that has had most all of the meat already cut off) with equally good results.

• 1 pound dried beans –Great Northern White
• 1 large onion, diced
• ½ cup dark brown sugar
• 1 cup catsup
• Ground black pepper, to taste
• ½ teaspoon each red pepper flakes, ground nutmeg

• 2 bone-in pork chops
• 4 cloves of garlic, minced
• ¼ cup molasses
• 1 teaspoon Liquid Smoke®
• 1 teaspoon each cumin, paprika
• 1 tablespoon chili powder
• 2 tablespoons corn starch with 2 tablespoons water for slurry thickener

1. Preparation on the night before cooking beans; cull beans removing ant foreign material and any discolored beans. Place beans in a pot and cover with boiling water. Cover and let stand until room temperature. Place beans in refrigerator overnight.

   

2. Grill pork chops just until there is a nice browning of the surface to give a smoky, grilled flavor. Dice into small bite-sized pieces. The meat will complete cooking in the crock pot. Save bones to cook with the beans. Dice onion into small pieces, mince garlic (or use prepared minced garlic).

   

3. Heat bean in soaking liquid over medium heat until boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 20 minutes. Drain bean reserving 2 cups of the cooking liquid. While beans are simmering, place pork chop, bones, garlic and onion into crock pot. Add brown sugar, molasses, catsup, and Liquid Smoke®; season with black pepper, red pepper flakes, cumin, nutmeg, paprika and chili powder.

   

4. Add hot drained beans to the crock pot. Add barbecue sauce. Add two cups of cooking liquid to the crock pot or amount sufficient to bring the level to the full mark. Stir to combine ingredients. Cook on high until bubbles form around edges. Reduce heat to low and cook for 6 to 8 hours (depending on your crock pot) or until beans are tender. Stir about every hour to keep beans from lumping in the bottom of the pot.

   

5. During the last 2 hours of cooking add the corn starch slurry to the mixture and stir to combine. Be sure to taste the beans during the cooking and adjust seasoning to your liking. These barbecued beans are an excellent side dish that will accent your special event cookout, patio picnic or campout. They are even good just for a simple quiet dinner at home.