Cowpoke Pintos

Epi Curious's Note:

These are some of the best baked beans (pintos) you will ever taste. The Coca Cola in this recipe helps with the "side effects" of eating too many beans, but also blends nicely with the spices. Try these at your next barbeque...great with ribs, bbq'd chicken, pretty much any kind of meat you can cook on a grill. From "Smoke and Spice" by Cheryl Alters Jamison and Bill Jamison, a James Beard award winning book.

• Total Time: 3 hrs 50 mins
• Prep Time: 30 mins
• Cook Time: 3 hrs 20 mins

Ingredients:

Serves: 6-8

Yield: 6.0

• 1 lb dried pinto bean, soaked overnight
• 8 cups water (plus more as needed)
• 12 ounces Coca-Cola
• 14 1/2 ounces whole tomatoes, canned, undrained
• 2 onions, chopped (medium sized)
• 3 slices bacon, preferably a smoky slab variety, chopped
• 3 tablespoons chili powder
• 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
• 1 tablespoon ground cumin
• 3 -4 serranos (fresh) or 3 -4 jalapenos, chopped
• 1 teaspoon salt (or more to taste)
• 1 cup sausage, grilled and sliced (optional)

Directions:

1. Soak the beans overnight in water to cover. Drain.
2. In a Dutch oven or stockpot, combine all the ingredients except the salt and sausage. Bring the beans to a boil over high heat and then reduce to a simmer. Cook slowly, stirring up from the bottom occasionally, for at least 2 to 3 hours, depending on your batch of beans. Add more water if the beans begin to seem dry. Stir in the salt and meat, if desired, in the last 30 minutes of cooking. The beans should still hold their shape but be soft and just a little soupy.
3. Serve the beans in bowls with a bit of the cooking liquid. The beans reheat especially well.