Great Northern Beans with Bacon

Beans, Beans, eat them while they’re hot! Why?  Because they are filled with lots of fiber and soothe your insides with warmness. For this recipe, I added bacon and some dry ingredients.  You can choose to eat them plain if you wish, but you will need to at least, soak them properly at first. The beans need to be soaked for at least four to eight hours or overnight, to help them cook faster and make them easier to digest.

One cup of beans yields about 12 grams of fiber. Fiber is good for you. That is why beans are a household staple. The other reason beans tend to be a household staple is because they are not costly to buy. One bag of beans (16oz.) is usually less than $2.00 per bag.

Beans have been around for thousands of years. They come in all different kinds. I chose Great Northern beans because it is one of my favorites to make and eat. If you do not care for Great Northern beans, feel free to experiment with your favorite bean and simply follow this recipe.

On a cold day, it warms my insides to eat something that exudes warmth and makes me feel satisfied. I only used half of the 16oz. Bag because, I did not need to make the entire bag for my household. Besides, I can always make another batch for my family at a later date. An 8-ounce bag of beans will yield four healthy cups.

Great Northern Beans with Bacon

4 from 5 votes

Recipe by Madison Course: Lunch, DinnerDifficulty: Easy

Servings

4

servings

Cooking time

45

minutes

Ingredients

• 8 oz 8 Great Northern Beans

• 3 cups 3 water (add more if needed)

• 6 strips 6 cooked bacon

• 1 teaspoon 1 salt

• 1 teaspoon 1 pepper

• 1/2 cup 1/2 granulated sugar

Directions

• Place beans in a colander and rinse them clean.
• Soak beans in a bowl with 2 cups of water to cover them for 4-6 hours or overnight.
• After soaking, rinse once more. Then, in a medium pot, simmer with 3 cups of water on a medium-low heat.
• Add salt and pepper to the pot. Cook for 20 minutes.
• Next, add your cooked bacon and sugar. Cook for 25 more minutes. Beans should be soft, but not mushy. Enjoy with biscuits!

Notes

• Add more salt and pepper to taste if needed.
• Be sure to not boil the beans, or else they will become mushy.

I like to add some type of meat, so I chose bacon for this recipe.  I used six strips of cooked-bacon and tore it into small pieces. I then placed the bacon into the pot of beans to continue to simmer on a low to medium heat. Never rush beans and never make the heat too high. Add water as needed, or as you can imagine, once the water fully evaporates, the beans will burn in the pot. In other words, to avoid that from happening, keep your eye on your beans.  Do a bean check every 15 minutes or so; and, add water as needed. Stir often. Yes, beans need water and attention too. After about 45 minutes, your beans should be fully cooked. Your beans will be plump, but not mushy. Also, due to the added dry ingredients and the bacon, you will notice the thickness of the liquid from simmering the beans and water.

You can turn off the burner but keep the pot of beans on the stovetop to cool before transferring them into a bowl or container. If you desire to eat them right away, go right ahead. I will not  judge because it is super tempting to eat them while they are hot. Just blow first, and do not burn your tongue. It has happened to me before because I was too excited about trying my recipe and realized I should have waited. As you probably already know, a burned tongue takes a day or two to bounce back to wholeness. Ouch!

This is one of the easiest and most satisfying recipes you can make. As a side staple, I made myself some biscuits to eat with my beans. I am salivating just thinking about how good they taste. I might even have to have another bowl before falling asleep. I trust you will enjoy this dish just as much as I did!

Enjoy your BIG OLE BOWL of Great Northern Beans!

-Madison