Drunken Beans with Polenta and Garden Tomatoes
Just got home from seeing Julie and Julia with Jordan, Sue, and Priya. Everyone at Columbia City Theater howled with laughter at all the right parts, and Meryl Streep was luminous. No deep lessons about life, but a beautiful portrait of two women coming alive, finding their vocations in a world that wants us to settle for less. I’m sure I’m not the only food blogger writing about this tonight. Grace joined us at Verve for a glass of wine (all the wine quaffing in the movie made us crave some) then we drove all the way up to Capitol Hill for ice cream at Molly Moon. We were the last ones in before they locked the door. Do not mess with five women coming from a food movie who are craving salted caramel ice cream.
Please don’t expect me to master all 524 recipes in Mastering the Art of French Cooking, though. This blog should be called Mastering the Art of Throwing a Bunch of Random Stuff Together and Giving it an Appetizing Name. I own a paperback of Julia Child’s manifesto (bought it a garage sale in college) but I don’t recall ever using it. Is that sacrilege? I know that part of my fascination with food has at least something to do with Julia Child and her influence on American home cooks. I’m sure of it. But she cooks with a lot of precision (and an awful lot of offal), and I definitely do not have time to debone a duck or poach a perfect egg when my toddler wanted dinner a half hour ago. Amen?
I’ve been mastering the (art?) of dried beans for years, and here’s another version for you. Yesterday was a get-it-together-after-vacation day–laundry, grocery shopping, list-making. In the morning, I put these beans on the back of the stove and they simmered happily there for half the day. I had leftover polenta from my late-night dinner and some Sungold tomatoes from the garden. You can definitely eat these beans in other ways (with BBQ, with rice) and this combo would be delicious with a fried egg on top. You may see a photo of that here tomorrow. This blog could also be called Mastering the Art of Eating Virtually the Same Thing all Week and Calling it Something Else.
Drunken Beans with Polenta and Garden Tomatoes
I always soak my beans to reduce cooking time, but you don’t need to do that. Just count on more stovetop time. I didn’t do these in a slow cooker because I wanted the bacon and onions to brown. You could brown them on the stove, though, then add them and everything else to a crockpot. Cooking times for beans are always approximate–there’s no surefire way to tell they’re done except tasting them to make sure they’re tender. This recipe makes a lot. If you don’t want to eat them 4 nights in a row or you live alone, you should probably halve it. And don’t be afraid to throw lots of salt in these! They won’t taste good otherwise. And before you vegetarians hate on me, you can definitely make these without the bacon. The fried onions will give them a nice smoky flavor.
Drunken Beans
4 c. dried pinto beans, soaked overnight
2 Tb. vegetable oil
1 large sweet onion, diced
1/2 lb. thick-sliced bacon, diced
1 12 oz. bottle beer
1/2 c. ketchup
2 Tb. Tapatio hot sauce (more to taste)
1 14 oz. can diced or whole tomatoes, pureed in the food processor
salt and pepper
In a large, heavy stockpot, saute onion in oil until beginning to brown, about 5 minutes. Add bacon and cook on medium until bacon is crisping up. Add beer to deglaze pan.
Add beans, a few pinches of salt, and enough water to cover by about 2″. Bring to a boil, then simmer for about an hour. Beans won’t be tender yet.
After an hour, add ketchup, tapatio, and pureed tomatoes. Simmer until tender, about an hour more. Salt and pepper to taste, and add more spicy stuff to taste.
7-Minute Polenta
From Christopher Kimball’s Kitchen Detective. The polenta in my photo has been cooled, cut into wedges, and thrown in the grill pan. You can do that, or you can serve these beans over soft polenta.
2 ts. kosher salt
4 c. water
1 1/2 c. coarse cornmeal
4 Tb. (1/2 stick) unsalted butter
1/2 c. freshly grated Parmesan
freshly ground black pepper
Bring water to a boil in a medium saucepan. Add the salt, then gradually add the cornmeal while stirring with a wooden spoon. Reduce the heat to maintain a simmer, stirring constantly. The polenta should be smooth, and large bubbles will pop on the surface. Cook until very thick but not stiff, 5-7 minutes. Off heat, add the butter, cheese, and pepper to taste. Serve immediately.
If you want firmer polenta for grilling or frying, spread the hot polenta into a square baking pan or pie pan. Put in the fridge until it cools and firms up, about 30 minutes. Cut into squares, triangles, or wedges, brush with oil, and grill. Or gently fry them in olive oil or butter in a skillet.
Cute Little Salsa
Take a 2 handfuls of cherry tomatoes. Halve them, and gently toss with 1 clove minced garlic, a few tablespoons of chopped fresh cilantro, a finely diced and seeded serrano chile, a squeeze of lime juice, and a drizzle of olive oil.
To assemble: In a pasta bowl, ladle some beans. Arrange 3 slices grilled polenta on top, and spoon some salsa. If you’re using soft polenta, put that in first, top with beans, then salsa.
Yeah! Sarah’s back from what sounds like a lovely vacation. I’m making galette dough right now for a couple of galettes for a reunion tomorrow. So nice to have something so yummy to take. Beans another time.
I love polenta that has been cooled, cut and then grilled / fried. It reminds me of some grits I had in Atlanta. They had oodles of cheddar cheese and bacon, were cooled, cut and then grilled. Heart attack on a plate and the best-est grits I’ve ever had in my life.
Just got back from seeing Julia &Julie, great movie, It’s a must see for all foodies.For once in your life you feel normal.I loved how the spouses so enjoyed and encouraged the passions of their wives, and supported their endeavors. Amy’s husband so reminded me of Yancey.Strong and confident enough to empower. Thanks Yancey for not sabotaging Sarah’s dreams,and for supporting her with your vote of confidence.
P.S. All you fans, keep the comments coming, they make all the difference in the world, when someone appreciates your efforts, and tells you! Comments, are what kept Julie, going. After all she hasn’t gotten paid a penny for all the time and love she has poured into this blog,all she needs is a little affirmation, and assurance you are using up your leftovers!! What a bargain!
This comment is so the next time she checks her blog she has 5 comments instead of 4,
cuz I know that will make her happy. Hang in there girl , you are changing how America uses their leftovers. Thanks again Leftoverist!
Can you talk about the grill pan that you used for the polenta? Is it a special pan, different from the old standard non-stick?
Hi Lisa! Okay, twist my arm. I guess I can talk about my grill pan. It’s a Le Crueset grill pan that was a gift from my Mom, though any grill pan would do. It’s got a veregated surface so anything cooked on it gets grill marks. Of course I don’t have direct heat on my cooktop, but it’s perfect for quesadillas, sandwiches, grilling veggies or small pieces of chicken or fish. And it’s a dry heat–just brush a little oil on whatever I’m cooking. You can get version of them anywhere. I saw a really nice one at Goodwill the other night.
p.s. I have always just fried polenta, but it does soak up the oil.
Sarah,
You are doing fabulous work here. It has become part of my morning routine….email, news, facebook, inpraiseofleftovers. Thank you for sharing your passions and letting us all get caught up in the possibilities. You are a gift and a wonder.
Amen! Yes, Julia was incredibly influential, and learning cooking technique is underappreciated, but there’s a lot of precision in her style. I’m too darn practical to wrapped anything in embellished puff pastry.
And nice pic. It’s hard to take pictures of sloppy brown food, but those look so appetizing, I wish I had a big ladle to scoop up those beans and slurp ‘em up.
And thanks for your comments on my blog. Never expected, always appreciated.
Yes! A recipe to use with our giant bag of pinto beans from Costco. If I don’t use beer, should I substitute with something else?
I’ve been wanting to buy that bag too! By golly, I think I will.
Yum. These were way better than how I’ve made them before. Before (without this recipe) they were pretty tasteless. Even without the bacon and beer they were delish. I kept thinking about them during church. So proud of myself for thinking ahead and making them this morning so we would have something to come home to.
You should be proud of yourself! It’s so nice to come home from church and not be dying of hunger WHILE you think of something to cook.
Just have to tell you that your beans have become a weekly standard. I think this is the third week in a row I have made a giant pot of them. I never have beer around (of course), so I always just leave it out. Didn’t feel like running to the store for diced tomatoes, so used tomato paste. Somehow I never get sick of them. I asked HM if she is sick of them and she said, “Of course not! I love beans!” She also LOVES the polenta (a new favorite for us) and asked if I can make it every night. I love having a week’s worth of beans around and just mixing it up with different stuff. Don’t have to think about dinner every night. So easy. Cheap. Healthy. Anyway…I love pinto beans…all 25lbs of them sitting in our laundry room.
I know–they are so good. I’ve got 25 lbs. of them myself, and they’ve been a little neglected lately. HM is my favorite little foodie.