Texas-Style Pinto Beans
By Cecelia JenkinsPublished on April 19, 2017
Time
2¼ hours, plus 8 hours soaking
Yield
Serves 8
Ingredients
Before You Begin
If you can’t find a ham hock, substitute 4 ounces of salt pork, omit the salt in step 2, and season to taste once finished. Monitor the water level as the beans cook: Don’t let it fall below the level of the beans before they’re done. If it does, add more water. Good garnishes include finely chopped onion, dill pickles, jalapeños, and/or tomatoes. Use the meat from the ham hock within a few days to flavor another dish. Plan ahead: The beans need to be brined for at least 8 hours before cooking.
Instructions
- Dissolve 1 1/2 tablespoons salt in 2 quarts cold water in large container. Add beans and soak at room temperature for at least 8 hours or up to 24 hours. Drain and rinse well. (Soaked beans can be stored in zipper-lock bag and frozen for up to 1 month.)
- Combine 12 cups water, ham hock, beans, and 1 teaspoon salt in Dutch oven. Bring to boil over high heat. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer, uncovered, stirring occasionally, until beans are tender, about 1 1/2 hours, skimming any foam from surface with spoon. Remove from heat and let stand for 15 minutes. Reserve ham hock for another use. Season with salt to taste. Serve.
Time
2¼ hours, plus 8 hours soakingYield
Serves 8Ingredients
Test Kitchen Techniques
Ingredients
Test Kitchen Techniques
Ingredients
Test Kitchen Techniques
Why This Recipe Works
Different from mashed or refried beans, Texas-style pinto beans are tender whole beans long-simmered with pork and served up in the velvety, savory broth they cook in. For supremely creamy beans, we soaked dried pinto beans overnight in salted water to gradually rehydrate them so that they cooked up evenly and more quickly than straight-from-dried. Plus, the salt in the soaking liquid seasoned them nicely. To cook them, we covered them with fresh water, and added a bit more salt to ensure that the bean skins were fully tender and a smoked ham hock to provide rich pork flavor. We then simmered them uncovered for 1½ hours to reduce and concentrate the cooking liquid and give it smoky complexity and meaty, buttery sweetness.
Before You Begin
If you can’t find a ham hock, substitute 4 ounces of salt pork, omit the salt in step 2, and season to taste once finished. Monitor the water level as the beans cook: Don’t let it fall below the level of the beans before they’re done. If it does, add more water. Good garnishes include finely chopped onion, dill pickles, jalapeños, and/or tomatoes. Use the meat from the ham hock within a few days to flavor another dish. Plan ahead: The beans need to be brined for at least 8 hours before cooking.
Instructions
- Dissolve 1 1/2 tablespoons salt in 2 quarts cold water in large container. Add beans and soak at room temperature for at least 8 hours or up to 24 hours. Drain and rinse well. (Soaked beans can be stored in zipper-lock bag and frozen for up to 1 month.)
- Combine 12 cups water, ham hock, beans, and 1 teaspoon salt in Dutch oven. Bring to boil over high heat. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer, uncovered, stirring occasionally, until beans are tender, about 1 1/2 hours, skimming any foam from surface with spoon. Remove from heat and let stand for 15 minutes. Reserve ham hock for another use. Season with salt to taste. Serve.
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