Holy Smokes Dutch Oven Baked Beans

American Side Recipes

1 lb. bacon 1 15oz. can black beans 1 15oz. can red kidney beans 3 15oz. cans baked beans 1 large onion 1 red pepper 1 poblano pepper 3-6 jalapeño pepper 3 cloves garlic, minced 1 1/2 c. barbecue sauce 1 c. brown sugar 1/2 c. prepared mustard

I gotta be honest, I'm not a big fan of baked beans. But these are FanTastic. You could even spoon it onto a hamburger bun for a sort-of vegetarian Sloppy Joe. And while it's got lots of ingredients, since you start with canned beans, it doesn't need lots of time on the coals. Yield: huge mess o' beans - enough for a big picnic, serves 10 people who really like beans, or 20 or more that finally got convince to try 'em. Snip the bacon into 1-inch pieces and fry 5 minutes, until a little crispy. In a colander, drain the black beans and kidney beans. Rinse and allow to drain for a minute. In a large mixing bowl, combine black beans, kidney beans, and baked beans (use your favorite brand). Chop the onion finely and add to the beans. Remove the seeds from the red pepper and the poblano pepper. Dice them and add to the beans. By now the bacon's probably done. Prepare a large plate by lining it with a paper towel. Turn off the heat, and using a slotted spoon, remove the bacon and let it rest on the paper-towel-plate. If you've got an assistant today, send them outside to light the fire in the charcoal grill. Using more jalapeño peppers will give the dish more heat. Remove the seeds from the jalapeños and slice into thin strips. Add to beans. Stir in minced garlic. Stir in the barbecue sauce (your favorite brand - whatever you use when you get a hankerin' for ribs). Stir in the mustard (whatever gives your ham sandwich a little zing). Add brown sugar. Stir in the bacon, which will have cooled by now. Spoon the whole mess into a Dutch Oven. (You could also do this in a crockpot, or in a casserole in the oven.) Prepare the coals. Set the Dutch Oven on a single layer of charcoal briquettes. Save a few briquettes to set on top of the lid. Relax and let the coals do the work. Let the beans cook on the coals for about 20 minutes, until bubbling hot. (How to tell without lifting the lid? Get the kids to hush up for a minute and listen - you'll be able to hear it bubbling away.)

Submitted by Gretchen Grant
Contributed on: Monday September 13th, 2010 and modified on Friday March 11th, 2011