Southern Boyz Cowboy Beans Recipe With Bacon
ok look biko let me just tell you how I make these beans. forget the blog voice forget the fancy words. I’m just gonna talk.
so first time I made cowboy beans for a cookout right. I had this big pot. threw everything in. bacon sausage ground beef onions all of it. then I cranked the heat cause I wanted it done fast. then I went to go talk to my brother in law about his truck. came back maybe twenty minutes later. the bottom of that pot was BLACK. like charcoal black. and the beans tasted like burnt barbecue sauce mixed with regret. my wife looked at me and said “what is that smell” and I had to soak the pot for two days. so yeah. learned my lesson.
now here’s how I actually do it.
you need thick cut bacon. don’t buy the thin stuff it disappears. chop it up into little pieces. put it in a cold pot. yeah cold. then turn the heat to medium. let it warm up slow. that way the fat comes out without burning the bacon. stir it every couple minutes. when it’s crispy and brown scoop it out with a slotted spoon. leave the grease in the pot. that grease is gold.
then you got smoked sausage. I use andouille cause I like the kick but kielbasa works too. slice it up into rounds. and a pound of ground beef. 80/20 don’t go lean. throw both into that hot bacon grease. now here’s the thing. don’t stir right away. let it sit for like two minutes. I know you wanna stir. I know. but don’t. let it get a brown crust. then stir. then let it sit another two minutes. you want color not gray.
after that look at the pot. if there’s a lot of grease swimming on top spoon some out. leave about two tablespoons. too much grease makes the beans taste like a diner grill.
now dump in your onion and bell pepper. one each. chopped. stir it around. cook until the onion goes soft and doesn’t smell sharp anymore. about three or four minutes. while that’s happening put your Cajun seasoning in. about two big spoonfuls. let it cook in the fat for thirty seconds. if you add it after the beans go in it tastes raw. trust me.
ok now open your beans. two of those giant cans. bush’s original. 117 ounces each. do not drain the liquid. that liquid is flavor. pour everything in. then take a flat wooden spoon and scrape the bottom of the pot. get all those brown bits stuck to the bottom. that’s where the meat taste lives.
turn your heat down to low. low low. not medium low. low. because now you’re adding sugar.
one cup of brown sugar. pack it down. and one whole bottle of bbq sauce. about 18 ounces. I use sweet baby ray’s but whatever. just not the smoky kind or it’ll taste like a campfire.
stir until the sugar dissolves. then taste it. careful it’s hot. blow on it. too sweet? splash of apple cider vinegar. too tangy? more brown sugar. too thin? don’t worry yet.
now let it simmer uncovered. you want little lazy bubbles. not a rolling boil. rolling boil will burn the sugar on the bottom and you’ll be crying like I was. stir every eight or ten minutes. and every time you stir scrape the bottom. sugar sinks. sugar burns. you gotta stay on it.
let it go thirty to forty minutes. how do you know it’s done? drag your spoon across the bottom. if the sauce leaves a trail that fills back slow you’re good. if it’s watery give it fifteen more minutes. if it’s sticking you had the heat too high. add half a cup of water and stir.
turn the heat off and let it sit five minutes. don’t touch it. it thickens up more while it sits. I don’t know why. just does.
now problems I’ve had.
one time my beans were watery cause I covered the pot. don’t cover it. steam needs to escape. another time I used regular navy beans with my own sauce instead of canned baked beans. big mistake. fix is mash a cup of beans with a fork and stir back in.
one time they tasted burnt with black specks. that’s cause I added sugar while the heat was still medium. sugar doesn’t forgive. turn heat to low first then add sugar.
one time they were super greasy. too much fat from the meat. now I spoon out extra after browning. if it happens to you lay a paper towel on top of the beans to soak up the grease. works like magic.
what to eat with these? cornbread. get a cast iron skillet hot. pour your batter in. bake until the edges are brown and crispy. break off a piece and scoop the beans right on top. that’s it. that’s the move.
if you’re doing a cookout put the bean pot next to ribs or pulled pork. white bread on the side. coleslaw for crunch. sweet tea so sweet it hurts.
leftovers? these beans taste better the next day. I swear. five days in the fridge. freeze for three months. reheat on the stove low heat with a splash of water. stir often. microwave works too but cover it and stir halfway through. don’t blast it on high. you’ll dry it out.
feeding ten people? cut everything in half. feeding fifty? you need a bigger pot. double everything except the brown sugar and bbq sauce. use one and a half cups of sugar and one and a half bottles of sauce. stir every five minutes.
alright biko. that’s it. that’s how I make southern boyz cowboy beans without burning the pot. now go do it. and don’t rush. that’s the whole secret. don’t rush.
