My mama made this pinto beans recipe all the time because it was easy, flavorful and cheap boos! The smoked ham hock adds flavor to the broth while the beans get super tender from simmering. This is straight up Southern old school eating with no frills, just soul.
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Pinto Beans Ingredients
- Pinto beans: Make sure you wash and sort through the dried beans. You will find twigs, rocks, and debris, and you don’t want to eat them.
- Chicken stock: While old schoolers like my mama used to just use water, I find that you can create a richer broth by using chicken stock.
- Onion: White, yellow, or sweet onion will work.
- Smoked ham hock: You can find these in the meat section at most grocery stores. Very important: make sure they are smoked and super meaty! If you aren’t a fan, just substitute with a smoked turkey leg, which is equally as good. If you don’t want meat at all, you can use 1 tablespoon of liquid smoke.
- Herbs and spices: All you need are bay leaves, garlic powder, black pepper, and salt to season these perfectly.
How to make Pinto Beans
Southern Pinto Bean Recipe
Dried pinto beans slow cooked on the stove top with chicken broth, a big ol' ham hock, and seasonings. Serve with some cornbread, and call it dinner.
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Servings: 16 servings
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 (11 ounce) package pinto beans picked through and soaked in lots of water overnight
- 1 quart chicken stock
- 1 quart water
- 1 onion halved or roughly chopped
- 2 halves smoked ham hock (about ¾ pound total)
- 2 bay leaves optional
- 1 tsp black pepper plus more to taste
- 1 tsp garlic powder plus more to taste
- Salt to taste
Instructions
- Add the soaked beans, chicken stock, water, onion, ham hocks, and bay leaves (if using) to a large stock pot.
- Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer, cover with a lid, and cook, stirring occasionally, until the beans are nice and tender, about 1 hour 30 minutes.
- Season with pepper, garlic powder, and salt. Serve.
Notes
This recipe used the entire package of beans I purchased and makes a large quantity, but can be scaled for smaller amounts.
Also you can replace the ham hocks in this recipe with smoked turkey instead.
Cook just above a simmer for a creamier texture. This amount of heat causes some of the beans to break down, adding more body to the liquid and giving the dish more creaminess.
Don’t forget the meat on the ham hocks. After cooking you can pick the meat from the bones to stir into the beans for you and your guests to enjoy the full flavor.
Sort your beans. You’re looking for any beans that are shriveled, super dark, or otherwise appear off. You should also be on the lookout for any small rocks or other inedible debris that might have found its way into the bag.
Soak your beans. It’s important for more even cooking and also better for digestion.
Storage: Cool the beans to room temp then transfer them to an airtight container to pop in the fridge. They should last about 4 days in the fridge if stored properly. To reheat, I prefer thawing them in the fridge overnight and then putting them in a saucepan to heat over medium heat until warmed through.
Nutrition
Calories: 79kcal | Carbohydrates: 3g | Protein: 6g | Fat: 4g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Cholesterol: 20mg | Sodium: 129mg | Potassium: 135mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 8mg | Iron: 1mg
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Recipe Tips
- Cook just above a simmer for a creamier texture. Keeping that heat low adds more body to the liquid that results in creaminess as the beans break down.
- Newer Beans are Best: Beans are shelf stable but the longer they sit around the longer they take to cook.
- Don’t forget to pick the meat: After cooking, you can pick the meat from the bones and stir into the beans. That’s good eatin boos!
- Sort your beans: Keep those beans pristine boos by removing any shriveled, dark, or weird looking beans. Also get rid of inedible debris that might have found its way into the bag.
- Soak your beans. It’s important for more even cooking and also better for digestion.
Recipe Substitutions & Additions
- Vegetarian: You can skip the ham hock and swap in vegetable stock instead. I also like to increase my spices and add a little smoked paprika and liquid smoke to punch up the flavor.
- No broth? Water is all good to use.
- Use ham bones instead of hocks. I find the hocks are more flavorful and smoky but if you have a leftover ham bone, don’t let it go to waste and use it to flavor your pinto beans.
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What to Serve With Southern Pinto Beans
- Cornbread: Ain’t nothing like sopping up your beans with some hot water cornbread or even sweet potato cornbread for a sweet twist.
- Rice: I love ladling homemade pinto beans over simple steamed rice or for even more flavor, Mexican rice or Jollof rice.
- Classic Southern Mains: Make some old school chicken gizzards or fried chicken or some delish smothered pork chops. And don’t forget a pot of mustard greens to get some down-home veggies in the mix.
- Southern dessert: Finish everything off with some peach cobbler or cream cheese pound cake.
Recipe help
How long to soak pinto beans?
I personally prefer soaking mine overnight or for at least 8-12 hours. This will shorten the cook time and make them easier to digest. Of course if you forget (been there, done that plenty), you can quick soak them.
Is there a faster way to soak beans?
If you forget to soak them overnight, you can use the quick soak method. Just pour boiling water over your beans and let them sit for an hour. The beans will absorb some of the liquid and plump up as they sit. Just note they may need to cook slightly longer than beans soaked overnight.
Can I make pinto beans in the crockpot?
Yep for sure boos. My mama took this shortcut plenty of times. I won’t lie, you will lose a bit of flavor and creaminess with this method however. To make southern-style pinto beans in a crock pot, add all of the ingredients to the pot and stir until fully combined. Cook on low for 7-8 hours, or until the ham is tender and falling apart.
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How do you make a thicker juice? My husband loves southern food. He is from Maryland.
You can cook a little longer or you can use an immersion blender or regular blender to take some out and blend and then add back to the pot. It will thicken more immediately.
Take about a cup of the beans and mash them with a potato masher
Take small amount of beans from pot. Mash them til soupy. Return to pot and stir in. Repeat if desired. You can add flour but it changes flavor. Try it!
Yes I do the same thing and it thickens the beans right away.
I love ham and beans –i save the bone from my bone in ham
and use it for flavoring. I cook my beans overnight –in a dutch oven . I also turn oven down to 250 and when i get up of a morning the beans are done and ready to go.
Oh super nice method!
I have never soak my beans I dont use chicken broth just plain ole water onion garlic lil celery and a lil green onion ham hock or what ever meat I want. Thank you
Hi Cecelia, my family actually does the same thing. We just use water but this is Aaron’s recipe and the chicken broth adds additional flavor if you are interested.
It’s 10:24 am and my stomach started growling the moment I saw the photo. Next shopping trip will include smoked hocks for the pintos and smoked turkey for my greens. Sigh…if only I had a young relative to cook for me (giggle). Thanks for the great presentation.
I’ve enjoyed beans & cornbread all my life.. now i use turkey tails. I enjoyed your recipe and i use the bay leaves also!!!
I love this recipe. but, my husband doesn’t partake of any pork products. Is there any thing else I can use to give it flavor?
Yes you can replace with smoked turkey. More details in the post.
Great Receipe! Would you agree for those of us who dont eat pork…turkey drumsticks, wings & necks would also be tasty!?
Yes smoked turkey would be awesome to use instead.
What a delicious and comforting side dish for the Fall season!
This looks like total comfort food to me. Just need a big hunk of cornbread and I’m set!
We love ham and beans at our house! Served with a nice big slice of corn bread! Great comfort food!
Grate the onion. It really spreads the flavor throughout…and hides it from those who don’t like onion texture.
Great idea!