Campfire Beans

A few weeks ago, we had a sneak peek into summer on our Coastal corner of California. We seized the moment, to fire up our Weber grill, and to invite friends for a backyard barbecue.

For the menu, I decided to make Beef Brisket, Homemade Barbecue Sauce, and Cole Slaw. To round out the meal, beans seemed like the perfect choice.   I do love beans, that's for sure. My family likes the California Barbecue Beans I've posted before.  I'm always on the lookout for Ranch Style beans.  I recently saw a Pioneer Woman episode, on Food Network, for these campfire beans.  Since they're made with pinto beans, one of my favorites, this seemed like a good time to make them.

When I make pinto beans, I usually soak them overnight.  PW didn't soak hers, so I went along for the ride.   Just plan on four hours to allow the beans to cook low and slow.

Rinse and clean 4 cups of pinto beans.  Smoked Ham hocks (or shanks) give a smoky flavor to beans, so I tossed in a couple of them, covered the beans with water and cooked them for a couple of hours; check every so often that the water doesn't evaporate, which mine never did.

The funny thing is, Ree's recipe doesn't specifically say what to do with the ham hocks.  I simply removed them, and pulled them off the bone, chopped them, and set them aside.

 

The veggies include diced onion and two red bell peppers.   I decided to use only one red bell pepper, and plenty of minced garlic-- about 4 large cloves.  The spices includes chili powder, salt & pepper, but added cumin, because I love it.

I veered off from the original recipe, by added all of the vegetables and the spices, at the same time, to the cooked beans-- then I let this cook for a couple more hours.

I added the chopped ham,  and turned the pot down to a low simmer, until the beans thickened.

 Yep, they thickened nicely...

The smoked brisket turned out perfectly-- and I will share that recipe next.  My husband did a great job with that brisket-- my mouth waters, just remember that dinner.

 TASTING NOTES:  What I liked about these beans is the smoky flavor from the ham hock.  I don't regret using only one bell pepper, as opposed to two.  I served the beans with hot sauce, on the side.  The next time I made these,  (during the last 20 minutes or so) I added two jalapenos...a little too hot for me!  However, I think 1/2 a fresh jalapeno will make these perfect and would add even more flavor.  The beans received a lot of compliments, from our dinner guest.  They weren't any leftovers, either.

So far, this Memorial Weekend is off to a chilly, drizzly start.  So far, the forecast isn't looking so "hot".   That won't stop us from doing some grilling for this three-day "unofficial" start of summer.  Sunny days will come in no time at all, and this gives us an excuse to go to a matinee-- along with the rest of the crowds.

A printable recipe card is at the end of this post.  If you can't view it, click here to see it.