Today’s kitchen tip is a simple tip for the best pot of beans. Adding just one simple ingredient, most of you have on hand, really will take your pot of beans to the next level.
Beans are one of the most inexpensive versatile foods in our kitchens, yet so many people overlook them in everyday cooking.
Beans are inexpensive to buy. The least expensive way to buy beans is dried, but even canned beans are relatively inexpensive for what you get. They are also easy to change up in all kinds of different recipes. You can use them in Mexican food, italian food, soups, or just cooked up in a big pot.
Today I am going to share my simple way to get the best pot of beans. Really this tip is so simple.
Bacon grease.
Yes, good old bacon grease. If you are not saving your bacon grease you are missing out. See that jar next to the bowl of beans? It is full of bacon grease. I keep it in my fridge and use it in so many things. It works great in place of oil in things like frying eggs or fried rice. You can use it for vegetables like green beans or in a pot of homemade refried beans. But my favorite use for bacon grease might just be in a pot of beans.
If I am making a pot of slow cooked black beans or pinto beans I just add a couple tablespoons of bacon grease to the crock pot when I put everything else in. Yes, it is that easy. The flavor of the bacon grease will cook all day with the beans and your beans will be delicious.
And if you are using canned beans instead of dried beans, add just a little bacon grease to them as you are heating them up. It is so good!
For the best pot of beans, I highly suggest a little bacon grease. It is as simple as that!
Stay tuned for the recipe for the pinto beans pictured at the top of the page. I made them a few weeks ago and they were gone in no time.
Earlier this week on Facebook I asked how many people saved their bacon grease to use in other things. It was so fun to read all the answers and different things people use bacon grease for.
Do you save your bacon grease? If so what is your favorite use for it?
I, too, save my bacon grease and keep it in the refrigerator for use in beans. I once took my cup of grease to church to add to a can of black beans I was preparing for a meal. A lady asked me what I was doing, so I explained I was adding bacon grease for flavor. She is an old-time cook, but was very surprised to see me do that.
I am so glad that i am not the only one that loves my jar of bacon grease!
I love using bacon grease for vegetables and frying eggs, too. It’s also a great for cornbread. Any meats that I pan fry taste a little better when I use a little bacon grease instead of oil.
I always put some sort of meat in my pot of beans for flavor. My favorite thing to use is a ham hock. If I don’t have that, a chunk of ham, a few slices of bacon, a piece of smoked sausage, or some bacon grease do the trick.
I love ham hocks or ham bones in beans too. They work great as well.
I do the same thing. Always save the bacon grease! I use it in so many things too.
Yes, I save the bacon grease for cornbread, beans, frying eggs, pan grilling hot dogs, soups – any use when I need an oil or butter but want to add that smoky bacony flavor. It doesn’t take much, but it adds a lot.
Yes, I love it for cornbread too! I am so glad others love bacon grease as much as I do!
I can’t eat bacon, but after a pork roast or beef roast I save the juice, put it in the fridge overnight and save the fat at the top and use that for frying sometimes. Smell good too.
That is a great idea too! And something most of our grandmothers and great grandmothers did as well. Using everything you can is one of the best ways to save money in the kitchen.
This post made me SO happy! Anyone else notice that bacon grease has been getting the same reaction from the health police as smoking? I admit that I had become a closet bacon grease hoarder. For several years I fixed healthy collards without a single pig product contained within, but yesterday I was craving old-style and fixed a big old mess of them with almost an entire package of fried bacon plus the grease. (I would have used smoked ham hocks, too, but couldn’t find them and after the third grocery store I gave up.)
I am glad you enjoyed it! I love my bacon grease. Now I don’t use it everyday, but it is so full of flavor, so why waste it. I look at it as free full of flavor fat great for so many things in cooking.
I, too, have a jar of bacon grease in my fridge. I use it mainly when I make scrambled eggs for my husband. He likes “dirty eggs” but doesn’t eat bacon or sausage very often. I also use it in my beans, but a little differently. I always saute my onions in it before I add them to the beans. I like the onions being softer and the bacon grease definitely adds another dimension to the flavor.
Another thing I like to add to my beans is a little bit of molasses. I don’t care for molasses otherwise, but just a Tbls or two really changes the flavor of the beans.
Thanks so much for this tip! I’ve never done it, but I know it to be true. We were eating lunch with friends who served the most delicious beans. I asked her why they were so good and I bet you can guess her answer. Pinning this, Lynn. Thanks!
I did not know about keeping it in the fridge! I use it occasionally, but it eventually goes bad sitting on the counter. If you encounter people who insult the healthiness of it, just point out it ends up a very small amount per serving.
Yes, I always keep it in the fridge and it lasts for quite awhile in the fridge. And yes when you only add a little it really is not much per serving, yet adds so much flavor.
We just had bacon for BLT’s and my daughters cleaned up the kitchen and got rid of the greese. Perfect time for a kitchen lesson! I dug out a perfect size jar and explained about the uses for saved bacon greese. We;ll not be trashing it anymore. 🙂
grew up in Appalachia where we called these soup beans. soup beans and cornbread is a regular meal.Everyone cooked their beans with pork fat. I grew up in the 1960s and everyone also had a can of bacon grease on the counter. Then came the 70s and 80s and everyone got rid of their bacon grease and moved on to “healthier” oils (which now it turns out aren’t so healthy) because of health concerns. Now they say bacon grease used in moderation may not be so bad after all. what goes around comes around if you live long enough. 🙂 I’m a vegetarian now so don’t care for the flavor – Id rather dump a jar of picante sauce in my beans. Love your blog and recipes
or salsa.