Smoky Bacon Beans 2 ways

I got really excited when I was given some Pipers Farm oak smoked streaky to try, as it had the most seductively smoky aroma, the first thing I thought was smoky beans. So I used one and a half slices, they were very thick, cut into lardons.

The lardons were fried off in a little olive oil until crispy, I used my pressure cooker with the lid off. The lardons were set aside, and I slowly fried a sliced large onion in the smoky fat until softened and caramelised. Added a clove of finely chopped garlic, a diced carrot and a diced stick of celery.

A couple of handfuls of pre soaked cannelini beans were then added along with the smoky crispy bacon. A jar of passata, a teaspoon of mustard powder, 2 tbsp molasses, a tsp of smoked paprika and a good grind of black pepper were all stirred in. I cooked mine in my pressure cooker for around 20 minutes at maximum pressure, or you could cook in a casserole dish for a few hours in the oven, until the beans are soft and the sauce thick.

Season and serve with something from the BBQ, I served mine with some wonderful sticky BBQ chicken wings from Pipers farm, and some homemade slaw. This just goes to show how you can take a small amount of a great product and make the absolute most of it, without spending a huge amount of money.

Smoky Bacon Beans

I also did a Spanish version with Butterbeans, Smoked Bacon and chorizo which made for a wonderful lunch on some toasted ciabatta with an olive oil fried duck egg on top.

Smoky Spanish Beans with oozy duck egg