At one point in my life I would have thrown away my ham bone. I would have looked at the bone left over from a spiral sliced ham and I would have seen that there was still meat on it, but not really known how to best use that.
As I’ve tried to gain more homesteading skills I’ve looked for ways to use more of the animal than I would have in the past. Because one day, this could be the ham bone from a pig I raised on my own homestead.
I love this recipe for ham beans because it uses every last bit of goodness that the leftover ham bone has to offer.
Begin by rinsing and sorting 1 lb of pinto beans. You used to occasionally find small rocks mixed in with dried beans but I think the mechanical sorting process has gotten better so I rarely see that any more.
If you want to pre soak your beans the cooking will go faster, but it’s not necessary. Add your ham bone to a 5 or 6 quart dutch oven then add in the beans.
If you plan ahead when you cook the ham you can save any juices leftover in the roasting pan. Adding these juices will make the flavor of the beans even better. And any collagen and fat help the texture and mouthfeel of the beans to be silky smooth.
Slice an onion into small pieces. Mince a clove of garlic.
If you like spicy beans, dice one jalapeno. This will cook for a long time and mellow the heat, so my kids are usually ok with it in this recipe.
Add vegetables to the dutch oven.
Fill the dutch oven with water to cover the beans. Start the dutch oven on a medium heat with the lid on and leave it to begin boiling. Once it comes to a boil turn down the heat to a nice bubbling simmer.
I’ll come back and check on the pot periodically and make sure that the beans are still covered with water. My 5 quart dutch oven is a little small for this recipe, so I add water once or twice while the beans are cooking to keep the beans covered.
After a few hours all the little ham pieces of cooked and separated from the hand bone so at this point you can remove the ham bone.
Take out those pieces of ham and chop them into small chunks. This way when you mix it in there’s bits of ham all through the beans.
Serve with some homemade cornbread on the side.
Tips
If you plan ahead when you cook the ham you can save any juices leftover in the roasting pan. Adding these juices to the cooking water will make the flavor of the beans even better. And any collagen and fat help the texture and mouthfeel of the beans to be silky smooth.
If you soak dry beans in water at room temperature for a few hours, up to overnight, you will reduce the cooking time needed. You can either drain off excess soaking water or use it to cook the beans in.
If you don’t have a leftover ham bone you can substitute a smoked ham hock. These are available in the meat department of most grocery stores.
Meaty and delicious use for the leftover spiral ham bone to get every last bit of goodness from it. Rinse and sort 1 lb of pinto beans. Add your ham bone to a 5 or 6 quart dutch oven then add in the beans. Add juices leftover from cooking ham (optional). Dice an onion into small pieces. Mince a clove of garlic. Dice one jalapeño (optional). Add vegetables to dutch oven Fill the dutch oven with water to cover the beans with two inches of water. Start the dutch oven on a medium heat with the lid on and leave it to begin boiling. Once it comes to a boil turn down the heat to a nice bubbling simmer. Check on the beans periodically and make sure that the beans are still covered with water. Add water, if needed, to keep the beans covered. After three hours all the little ham pieces of cooked and separated from the ham bone so at this point you can remove the bone. Take out those pieces of ham and chop them into small chunks. Return to pot and test the beans to see if they are soft all the way through the middle. Cook up to an hour more to soften the beans. Test flavor, add salt if needed. Serve with homemade cornbread on the side. If you want to pre soak your beans the cooking will go faster, but it's not necessary. Ham Beans
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