Description
Classic Santa Maria-style beans are made with a special variety of pink beans called pinquitos. These ‘little pink’ beans are prepared in a spicy, smoky, tomato/chili sauce that’s spiked with not one, but two kinds of pork. Santa Maria beans have come into my life relatively late, so I plan on making up for lost time this barbecue season.
Ingredients
- 1 pound dry pink beans (such as pinquito)
- cold water to cover
- 2 slices peppered bacon, diced
- ½ cup diced smoked ham
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 (14.5 ounce) can diced tomatoes
- ½ cup water
- ¼ cup ketchup
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- 1 teaspoon dry mustard
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon chipotle chile powder (Optional)
- 1 pinch dried oregano
Instructions
- Place pink beans into a large container and cover with several inches of cool water; let stand 8 hours to overnight. Drain.
- Place drained beans in a stockpot with enough cold water to cover. Bring to a simmer and cook until almost completely tender
- about 1 hour 45 minutes.
- While beans are simmering
- cook and stir bacon in a large saucepan over medium heat until cooked through but not crispy
- 5 to 7 minutes. Add ham; cook and stir until ham is heated through
- about 1 minute. Stir garlic into ham mixture and cook until garlic is fragrant
- about 1 minute more. Add tomatoes
- 1/2 cup water
- ketchup
- sugar
- dry mustard
- paprika
- chili powder
- salt
- chipotle chile powder
- and oregano. Bring to a simmer
- reduce heat to low
- and cook until flavors blend
- about 30 minutes.
- Drain beans
- reserving 1 cup of the cooking liquid. Combine beans
- reserved liquid
- and tomato mixture in the beans stockpot; bring to a simmer
- reduce heat to low
- and cook
- stirring occasionally
- until beans are tender and mixture has thickened
- about 30 minutes.
Prep Time: 20 mins
Cook Time: 2 hrs 15 mins
Total Time: 10 hrs 35 mins
Servings: 6