Valdeans Beans are a classic in our family. I made a gigantic, and I mean giiiiigantic, batch for my oldest sister's wedding. Other families might call them Calico Bean Pot, but in our family? It’s Valdean’s Beans. Whoever Valdean is…
I had someone on Instagram tell me they knew a Valdean who made beans like this and we made all the connections and it was the SAME VALDEAN. MIND> BLOWN.
The good thing is though, that while the measurements should stay about the same, there is a laaaarge window for swapping ingredients around.
You’ll need 6 cans worth (whether actually canned or cooked from dry) of beans. This could be lima beans, garbanzo beans, black beans, adzuki beans, white beans, baked beans. You name it, you can use it! So use up what you’ve got in your pantry for dried beans and cans of beans. It’ll be perfect.
If you really don’t like green beans in there? Ain’t nobody going to notice if you leave them out.
Now, bacon…is terrific in here. But! Not always available, whether it be cause I just don’t have any or its not in my grocery budget for the week. I like good bacon. Good bacon is pricy. Luckily! Pork Jowls and Pork Hocks are cheap but still pack a punch of flavour. So don’t hesitate to throw one of those bad boys in instead.
As with most things I make, Valdeans beans freezes beautifully. This makes a lot, and that’s a good thing. Bring it to a potluck, bring it to a friend, sock some away in the freezer for a rainy day, make it for dinner and serve it on rice. All options for this versatile dish!
And if it wasn’t more than just a one trick already? You’ve got lots of options for cooking. Baking in a dutch oven will probably always hold my heart, but equally delicious is in the crockpot or on the stovetop!
Since I’ve had enough lead up…I should probably share the recipe already!
Valdeans Beans
Ingredients
- 1 pound bacon/jowl/hock
- 2 onions diced or ¼ c dried onion flakes (I’ve got an onion hating husband but he doesn’t mind dried onion)
- 3 cups baked beans or 2 cans, substitute equal amount white beans with 1 can tomato paste and 2 tablespoon additional honey
- 3 cups cooked kidney beans or 2 cans
- 3 cups cooked lima beans or 2 cans
- 3 cups green beans or 2 cans
- ¼ cup honey
- ¼ cup vinegar your choice what type, any is delicious
- 1 tablespoon dry mustard
- 1 teaspoon salt
Instructions
- If using bacon, dice and fry until crisp. Stir all the ingredients together in either a dutch oven, crockpot or saucepot.
Dutch Oven
- Put lid on and bake at 350F for 1 hour.
Crockpot
- Turn on high for 2-3 hours or low for 4-6.
Stovetop
- Bring to a gentle simmer and cook for 30 minutes.
Instant Pot
- Saute the bacon on the sauce function. Add the remainder of the ingredients and cook on manual for 10 minutes.
- Now serve up those delicious beans and dig in!
Nutrition
Instant Pot Recipes
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Leesi Franklin
These sound great! But.... Does your mom make these? Did she have an alternative to the pork? Have you ever tried making them without meat? If not, I'll to try and let you know how it goes!?
katehosie
My Mom used to make these all the time before she went plant based but I doubt since. I also have a vegan baked bean recipe that she does make all the time, that you'll find here on the blog too. Maybe that will help you tweak this to fit your needs?
Charlotte
I cooked this for 6 hours on low in my crockpot. It was so full of liquid it looked like soup. I didn’t see in your recipe that all of the beans should be drained. Not much flavor. Would not make again.
kateschat
Interesting that 6 hours didnt do it in your crockpot. Sorry you didnt like it, theyre a family staple for us.
Toni
I freeze dried A LOT of green beans this year. I'm not crazy about them honestly but I think this might be a great way to use some of them!
Jacqueline Northcutt
i've made this recipe several times for a crowd and it's always been a big hit!
Michelle Black
If using only dry beans will there be enough liquid?
Dee Porter
I would definitely add a bit more liquid with dry beans
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Definitely not enough liquid. Dry beans take a lot of liquid to become edible. Best to cook them before making the dish if at all possible.