SIDE DISH - Ranch Style Beans

There are quite a few recipes that use canned beans. Most of them are sweet barbecue beans, sometimes with things like brown sugar or molasses and cooked with bacon. Here is a recipe using my favorite canned beans, Ranch Style Beans. These beans have Texas roots and were introduced on the market in 1934. They were a favorite of President Lyndon Johnson and were often served on his ranch. These beans are not sweet but have a hint of chili powder. Ranch Style Beans are ok straight from the can, but here is how I like to prepare them.

Ranch Style Beans come in 3 varieties, regular, jalapeno and sweet onion.

1 can Ranch Style Beans
1 bottle of beer
2 cloves of garlic – not peeled
2 green onions (including some of the tops) - chopped
1 handful of green bell pepper – chopped
1 slice of bacon or some ham – cubed
rub
salt & pepper
corn oil

In a 2 qt. pot, on low heat, add a little oil and the garlic. Slowly roast the garlic for about 20 minutes, turning often, until it is soft. Remove from pan, squeeze the garlic out of the husk and smash it. Add the bacon or ham to the pot and sauté for a few minutes. Add the green bell pepper followed by the green onion. When the peppers and onions begin to soften, add the beans along with the garlic, bring the beans to a simmer. Add ½ of the bottle of beer and some rub. Continue to simmer, uncovered for about 10 minutes then lower the temp and reduce to desired thickness, add salt & pepper to taste. At this point, the beans can go onto the cooker to get some smoke flavor. Beans may be partially covered to control the reduction. Add more beer if needed during the reduction.