Pinto Beans - Water - Jalapeno Peppers - Slab Bacon - Salt - Sweet Onions

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Soak dry pinto beans 2 to 3 hours, or overnight. Place soaked beans in colander and rinse, gently stirring as the water flows over them until water runs clear. Be sure to remove pebbles or other debris and rinse well.

Slice slab bacon into bite sized pieces and begin sizzling them in a deep pot on medium heat. Drain off excess bacon drippings. (can add diced sweet onion to sizzle with the bacon pieces at the beginning).

Seed and dice 2 or more jalapenos and add to pot. Leave the seeds in if more spiciness is desired.

Add un-salted water to pot and bring to a boil. (3 parts water to 1 part soaked beans). Boil for around 10 minutes. Keep a kettle of simmering water on the stove ready to use to keep water in the beans as they cook.

Reduce heat and simmer on low temp for 3 to 4 hours. Stir gently now and again to prevent sticking. Add more water to pot as beans absorb the water, don't allow them to cook dry and burn. Broth can be substituted for water if desired. Pork, chicken or beef broth is best. At this time, I usually transfer this to a hot crockpot that I've already gotten heated up and ready.

For amazing flavor, I sometimes add a cup or more of crushed fried pork skins ("chicharones") to simmer with the beans from the beginning. The fried pork skins are loaded with collagen, produce a rich broth and will flavor the beans deliciously. Chicharones or fried pork skins cooked in the beans is authentic to Mexican, Southwestern and Texmex cooking.

The onions, jalapenos and fried pork skins will cook down and mostly dissolve. The jalapenos will become mild and loose much of their heat by the end of the 3 to 4 hours of simmering. Using hot to very hot peppers (or more peppers) will make the meal hotter.

I like to use diced sweet onion instead of onion powder, as the caramelized sweet onion is much more flavorful than onion powder alone. Can also use a little garlic powder, or crush a garlic clove or two, and add those to the simmering part of cooking this, if desired. Salt is added by preference once the meal is fully cooked in order to prevent the beans falling apart.

This is my copycat recipe for Trappey's brand Jalapinto Beans. I grew up eating them, and have been enjoying Trappey's Jalapintos for more than 40 years. I've been preparing this meal for many years.

For a tasty twist: fry up about a cup of ground chuck, cook this along with the slab bacon and onions to deepen the flavors. I've made this with a portion of good ham dices, or ham bone.

I've learned the hard way that there are awful hams, and there's really good ones. This makes a 100% difference in the end results of anything that ham is used in.

Bad hams will be incredibly salty, and little reduces that salt content. Flavor isn't good. The ham was very leaky-soggy and greasy, and sometimes completely raw nearest the bone. This in a supposedly fully cooked ham, this is a health risk. (Walmart brand ham fell into this group).

The good brands of ham are moist but not soggy, isn't deeply salty, has a mild smokiness, and has a very satisfying flavor, and fully cooked, (bought this one from Publix. I'll update the brand name when I find it). This ham made ham beans the way my Gramma made them many decades ago, and made superior ham salad and sandwiches. Everything this was used in was extremely good The Walmart brand ham was dog food by comparison, nothing but salt and grease.