Crock Pot NAVY BEANS....

Hi, all...

We were supposed to get light snow today and, sure enuf, a few flakes,

so tiny I had to squint to see them, came fluttering thru the air

for about 6 minutes and then.....they were gone.

During this stay-in-the-house time, 

I've done a lot of cooking and baking.

When I was young, one thing we had to eat at our house about once ever couple of months...

NAVY BEANS

I really loved them....and, no wonder.

My mom was known far and wide as 

THE BEST BEAN COOKER IN ALL OF WEST TEXAS.

All kidding aside, her friends would bring over a bag of dried beans...

Pintos...

Great Northern aka Butter Beans

Navy Beans

and have her cook them.

 I've been hungry for Navy Beans, the way my mama cooked them...

in the early years, she didn't have a crock pot (not even invented yet)
so she cooked them on the stove top.

Later, she used a slow cooker...and that's the way I like to cook them, too.

I didn't find dried NAVY beans in the groc store and got these tiny Great Northerns.

As with all dried beans, they must be sorted thru, take out the bad boys

and then rinse the beans several times.

 You are looking for tiny dirt clods and while broken beans don't bother me, I don't want any shriveled up ones to go into my nice pot of beans.

As you go through your beans, drop them into a large pot.

Then, they can be rinsed and then covered with fresh water to soak overnight.

I can't remember just how my mom cooked her beans but

THIS RECIPE

sounds very much like hers.

I remember she added catchup to hers...

and always had a ham hock to cook with the beans.

 

This is the ham hock from our Christmas ham.
It still has a lot of meat on it....
.and still has a nice coating of the fabulous brown sugar glaze

I froze it, thinking how good it would enhance a pot of beans.

 My poor olden crock pot is looking terrible...

but it still cooks like a dream

so it will be here for awhile longer.

Into the pot with the ham hock...water covering the beans
and a generous sprinkling of black pepper.

I never add salt until beans have cooked about 2 hours...
salt tends to make the skin of the bean tough if you add it too soon.

I have to tell you that my house is smelling sooo good while these beans cook...
all night...
for lunch tomorrow...
hot, buttered corn bread...
sliced fresh onion...
sweet tea...
O hOnEy

FOODIE FRIDAY

PINK SAT.