Re: [CH] OT: Help a Yankee cook green beans right
Inagaddadavida (rael64@qwest.net)
Fri, 13 Dec 2002 10:35:38 -0700
On Friday, December 13, 2002, at 08:55 AM, Margo Thompson wrote:
> Folks,
>
> I'd like to try cooking green beans the right way: for hours, with a
> smoked pork product, until they reduce to their yielding bean essence.
> Trouble is, I'm a Yankee and have never attempted such a feat. So my
> question are: in what approximate ratios are the pork, beans, and
> liquid (and other seasonings?) initially? and how long, really, do
> these get cooked?
>
Well, to stay on topic, you just add a fresh or dried chile to the pot
<g>...
But if you must cook beans the "real" way, understand that the southern
way does not bring beans to a point where they yield their essence, but
rather you cook the shit out of them until they become
non-beans...something-other-than-beans (bean <snicker> reading too much
Sartre).
Fry up a couple strips of bacon in a deep pot. When still pliable (vs.
crisp), cut the bacon into inch-length strips (give or take). Dump
bacon back into pot with all that luvly pig fat. Turn heat to high.
Add beans and water to cover, about 1 inch above (technically it's
like, 1 lb beans to 8 cups? water? 12 cups? enough water to pull out
every bit of vitamin/goodness in the beans). Bring to boil. Cover
(leave a crack), reduce to simmer and cook anywhere from 1 hour (until
just "tender") to 3 hours (nonexistent). I season towards end of
cooking although some add salt in beginning/middle of cooking to set
that nice bright green color, which you ain't gonna get no matter what
if you cook "properly"; you just get bean-ish-ness. You can always
throw in a ham hock to justify cooking the beans for a couple hours.
As for chiles, if adding whole (vs. powdered), you could add em at any
time really.
Not to insult you, but you ain't trying this with *canned* beans, are
ya? Those things have already metamorph-o-sized into
something-other-than. And undestand, the healthy and tasty way to cook
those puppies be to steam or even steam saute, no fat, and just for a
few *minutes*.
Okay, so yer goin' Suthun. Grooviness. Understand, then, that your
while I'll assume your ham is a huge "buffet" type ham rather than the
Suthun salt(lick)-cured kind with meaty bone of which you fry up thick
greasy slices and make bono-fide (suthern spellin...i ain't ignorunt)
red-eye gravy, baby oh yeah!, well, you *still* need some kinda gravy.
Biscuits ain't served w/o gravy, period. You'll burn in hell if you
don't.
And I recommend chess pie. If you're clogging arteries, going whole
hog, you might as well get all sugered up...sugar <wink>
Peace, Hendrix, and Chiles.......
Rael"....today's letter is MMMM..."64
Mississippi Redneck Ex-cook
Monk of the TCS
Master of Twister
Mystic Order of Capsicum Rogues