pork franks & homemade baked beans

Serves 6 - 8

Ingredients:

Stryker Farm Pork Franks
Rolls

Baked Beans:
1 LB dried Great Northern Beans
1 LB Stryker Farm Uncured Bacon, chopped
1 large onion, diced
1 jalapeno, seeded and diced
¼ cup tomato paste
¼ cup chipotle adobo sauce
½ cup dark brown sugar
¼ cup molasses
2 cups reserved bean water
2 cups pork stock (preferred)
¼ TSP cayenne pepper
1 TSP black pepper
2 TSP salt
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Franks and beans are the quintessential backyard cookout meal. The beans require very little prep work then just cook all day long until you’re ready to eat. These baked beans are smoky and a little spicy, perfect for warming/marinating the pork franks in.

Instructions:
  1. Before you do anything, you have to soak the beans! Put the dried beans in a large bowl and cover them in an extra inch of water because they will soak up a lot. Cover them and put them in the fridge overnight.
  2. Then next morning, drain the beans and save at least two cups of bean water. 
  3. Preheat the oven to 250°
  4. In a large dutch oven or heavy pot, saute the bacon, onions and pepper until soft.
  5. Stir in the molasses, sugar, tomato paste and chipotle sauce. I use the sauce that comes in the tiny cans of chipotle chilis in adobo. (If a chipotle pepper slips in there, that would be okay too).
  6. Add the soaked beans, 2 cups of the reserved bean water and about 2 cups of stock. Pork stock would be ideal, but you could use vegetable or chicken too. The bean water will help thicken the beans better than regular water. Make sure that there is enough liquid to cover the beans, if not add some more.
  7. Raise the heat to boil the liquid.
  8. Add the dry spices, cover the pot with a tight fitting lid and move them into the oven. Allow them to cook all day long, at least 6 hours, until the beans are soft and the liquid becomes a thick sauce.
  9. You could also cook these in a crock pot on a low setting.
  10. An hour before you’re ready to serve, add the pork franks to the beans to warm.

Admittedly this recipe makes a lot of beans. For an even bean to frank ratio use 2 packages of the franks.