BIG POT RECIPES

Steps:

• In large soup pot, saute onions and green pepper in bacon grease.
• Add ground beef and cook and stir until no longer pink.
• Add all remaining ingredients.
• Bring to a boil, stirring occ.
• Simmer for 1 hour, stirring occ.

Steps:

• Rinse the beans, then soak them in salted water (it should taste like the sea) for anywhere from 4 hours to 12 hours. If you don’t have time, you can skip this step.
• Drain beans and put them in a pot or electric pressure cooker. If cooking in a regular pot, add enough water to cover the beans by 2 to 3 inches. If using a pressure cooker, use less water, more like 1 1/2 to 2 inches. Add a drizzle of oil and whatever aromatics and herbs you like. Add enough salt to the cooking water to make it taste like the sea.
• If using a regular pot, simmer the beans for anywhere to 30 minutes to 2 to 3 hours, depending on what variety you used, how old they were and whether or not you soaked them. Check on them periodically, adding more water if the level gets too low (as in, lower than the beans). For the pressure cooker, the timing is anywhere from 5 minutes at high pressure to 50 minutes. Let the pressure release naturally.
• Garnish with fresh herbs or celery leaves, sliced onion, if you like, a drizzle of oil, and a sprinkle of red-pepper flakes and sea salt.