Ranch-style beans are a Western staple for a reason. Filling, rich, and loaded with flavor thanks to spices, this recipe will give you some ranch-style beans that will make you feel like you are sitting in front of a campfire on the prairie.
For more similar delicious bean recipes, try my Calico beans or try Cowboy Beans!
Slow Cooker Ranch Style Beans Recipe
Ranch beans is a pretty general term but pretty much refers to pinto or kidney beans served slow-cooked in a chili gravy. They are rich, slightly spicy, acidic and tender, and are best served with the thickest, smokiest bacon you can find.
These beans aren’t just delicious, but they’re also nourishing and super filling as well. Great for a picnic re-heated over a campfire, or just as a big family meal, this is the type of recipe that everyone should keep on hand for when they have some extra beans.
Slow Cooker Ranch Style Beans Ingredients
Make sure you look at the recipe card at the very bottom for the exact amounts, as there are a few fiddly ingredients here.
- Dried pinto beans
- Thick smoked bacon
- Beef broth
- White onion
- Tomato sauce
- Minced garlic
- Chile powder
- Cider vinegar
- Ground cumin
- Brown sugar
- Paprika
- Dried oregano
Optional
- Jalapeno
How To Make Ranch Style Beans
- Place the beans in a large bowl and cover completely with water and soak overnight
- Drain the beans the next day, and place them in a slow cooker with the rest of the ingredients
- Cook for 8-10 hours until the beans are totally softened
How To Help Digestion When Eating These Beans
The biggest complaint when it comes to eating beans regularly is their tendency to cause some unpleasant gastrointestinal distress.
No matter how delicious these beans are, they always come with a cost. However, there are a few ways to minimize any unpleasantness.
For starters, soaking the beans overnight and then discarding that water helps a lot. The prolonged overnight soaking helps to draw out a lot of the enzymes within the beans that create gas and uncomfortableness in your body. The water also helps to soften the texture, making it doubly easier for the body to break the beans down!
What Kind Of Beans Can You Use In This Recipe?
Though this recipe calls for pinto beans, you can definitely substitute any type of beans you prefer. Pinto beans are definitely the most traditional option, but you can easily sub into something like kidney beans instead.
If you do use kidney beans, though, definitely make sure you are soaking them thoroughly. A lesser-known quality of kidney beans is that they are actually poisonous for you without soaking AND proper cooking!
If you are hard up for beans and only have something like white or cannellini beans, they will work as well, but don’t expect much of the texture, as the beans will be fundamentally different from regular pinto or kidney beans.
Looking for more delicious BBQ recipes ? Try these out:
Enjoy! These are so perfect for summertime BBQ season!
Love,
Karlynn
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Ranch Style Beans
Ingredients
- 1 pound dried pinto beans
- 4 slices thick smoked bacon chopped into small pieces
- 4 cups beef broth
- 1 medium white onion small diced
- 1 cup tomato sauce
- 2 tbsp minced garlic
- 1 tablespoon chile powder
- 1 teaspoon cider vinegar
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 tbsp dark brown sugar packed
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
Optional:
- 1 jalapeno stemmed and finely chopped
Instructions
- Place the beans in a large bowl or pot and cover with water completely, making sure you have at least two inches of water above the beans as they will soak up water. Soak the beans overnight.
- The next morning, drain the beans, rinse them well and then put them in the slow cooker along with the remaining ingredients. If you usually have trouble with your beans cooking and staying hard, LEAVE OUT the tomato sauce until the very end. Then once the beans are cooked, stir in the tomato sauce and cook for the last hour.
- Cook all day, 8-10 hours on low until the beans are softened completely. Stir every hour and check to see if you need to add more beef broth. This will depend on how well you soaked the beans beforehand. Adjust the brown sugar to taste, we like our beans sweeter than normal personally.
- Serve warm.
Notes
- You may need to add more beef broth to achieve the level of sauce that you need with these beans as they cook all day!
- Add a teaspoon of ancho chile powder for a delicious kick!
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