Baked Beans
I was inspired to make this dish when my Dad told me that he wanted to make some spare ribs. I thought nothing could go better with a hearty meal like that than some sweet and spicy baked beans. You can find Alton Brown’s origional recipie here.
Ingredients:
- 1 pound dried Great Northern beans
- 1/3 cup whiskey
- 1 pound bacon, chopped
- 1 onion, chopped
- Hot sauce to taste
- 1/4 cup tomato paste
- 1/4 cup brown sugar
- 1/4 cup molasses
- Chicken or vegetable broth
- Salt and black pepper to taste
Method:
- Soak beans overnight with the whiskey and enough water to cover the beans by an inch or so. I find that adding some whiskey to the soaking water adds an extra oaky/earthy flavor.
- The next morning, drain the soaking water in to a large measuring cup and place the beans in a slow cooker or large heavy pot. Top off the soaking liquid with the chicken/vegetable broth until it totals 4 cups.
- Cut up your bacon into half inch pieces and brown in a skillet.
- Add the chopped onion and cook until the onion softens and browns a bit.
- Stir in the tomato paste, brown sugar, and molasses.
- Add the entire contents of the skillet to your slow cooker and mix in well.
- Add the liquid, stir well, and then add a few dashes of hot sauce to taste.
- Season with salt and black pepper
- Simmer for about 6 hours. For the last hour of cooking, you may want to crack the lid of your slow cooker to allow some water to evaporate, thus thickening the liquid.
