Crockpot Bacon & Bean Soup: A Potluck Hit!

A couple years back, when my husband was still stationed in Germany, we had a lot of barbecues and get-togethers at our house. The wife of one of my husband's friends used to always bring some "Frijoles a la charra”: A Tex-Mex soup with pinto beans and bacon and we just loved, loved, loved it!

It became one of our favorite meals ever and when we moved she gave us the recipe.

At our last duty station, Fort Irwin, the Commissary was very small and we could not find all ingredients that we needed for this dish.

Long story short, I experimented around with the ingredients that we had available and ended up coming up with my own “secret” version of it. Or at least it was secret until today. Many - including friends and family - have asked me for the recipe and I always refused to give it out. But I now decided to share it with our beloved followers J

No matter what potluck I've made it for, people always seemed to enjoy it very much, and it makes its way onto our meal plan at least once a month because of its simplicity and deliciousness.

Especially now in the fall, it makes a great, hearty meal for icky weather.,

Crockpot Bacon & Bean Soup

Here is what you will need:

-          Crockpot

-          Cast iron pan

-          Cutting board

-          Knife

-          Spatula

-          1lbs pinto beans, soaked overnight.

-          6 cups of water

-          1 package of bacon, diced.

-          1 onion (medium or large), diced.

-          2-3 cloves of garlic, minced.

-          1 can of diced, Fire Roasted Tomatoes. Drained.

-          1 bushel of cilantro, chopped.

-          1-2 jalapenos, finely chopped.

-          2-3 Knorr vegetable bouillon cubes

-          Salt (to taste)

Start by going through your dried beans to pick out any grit or malformed beans, and then soaking the beans in water overnight. If you forget it, then you can do a quick soak (directions for that should be on the package!). I personally think the texture is better if they are soaked overnight but both work and I have done quick soaks before too.

Rinse your soaked beans, and throw them into the crockpot with the 6 cups of water. Set it to high and cook them until done (about 4 hours).

Prepare the ‘Bacon Broth’ about 1-2 hours before serving the meal or whenever the beans are done.

You do this by cooking the diced bacon in a large cast iron pan (if you don't have cast iron, use what you have). Drain some of the fat if you want. We prefer to leave it most times unless the bacon is extremely fatty.

Add in the diced onions and minced garlic. Sauté until the onions start to turn translucent.

Drain the Fire Roasted Tomatoes and add to the cast iron, mix it all up. If you don’t have Fire Roasted Tomatoes, then you can also just take a can of regular diced tomatoes. I just feel like they add more flavor and a slight smokiness to the dish.

Add two bouillon cubes, and let it simmer a few minutes. Stir it, to make sure the melted bouillon cubes are well mixed in.

Add the chopped cilantro and jalapenos.

Let it all cook on low-medium for about 10-15 minutes so the flavors can mingle with each other. You can always add a tablespoon or two of water to the mix so it doesn’t burn!

Add the ‘Bacon Broth’ to the beans in the crockpot and stir well.

Let it cook for 1-2 hours on High, but you can also already eat it if you want, since everything is cooked. However, the longer you cook it all together, the better the flavor – in my opinion. You might need to add some salt or another bouillon cube.

We usually eat some warm tortillas with it or my homemade bread. Tortilla chips or rice are also a great to eat with it, or just enjoy a bowl of Bacon & Bean soup by itself!

Enjoy J