Appalachian Dutch Oven Pinto Beans with Ham

Ingredients

• 1 lb dried pinto beans (soaked overnight in cold water)
• 1 smoked ham hock or meaty ham bone
• 1 medium onion, quartered
• 4 garlic cloves, smashed
• 1 tsp black pepper
• 1 tsp salt (add at the end — early salting toughens beans)
• water to cover by 3 inches
• cornbread (for serving, essential)

Instructions

1. 1

   Soak the beans overnight in cold water. Drain and rinse in the morning.

2. 2

   Build a good campfire and let it burn down to a solid coal bed. You want steady, even heat — not raging flames.

3. 3

   Add the drained beans, ham hock, onion, garlic, and pepper to the Dutch oven. Cover with water by at least three inches. The beans will absorb a lot.

4. 4

   Set the Dutch oven on the coal bed or hang it over low flames. You want a gentle simmer, not a rolling boil. Adjust coals as needed. Add more wood slowly to maintain temperature.

5. 5

   Cook for 4 to 6 hours, checking every hour and adding hot water as needed to keep the beans covered. The beans are done when they are completely tender and the broth has turned thick and rich and a deep reddish-brown.

6. 6

   Remove the ham hock, pull the meat off the bone, and stir it back into the pot. Season with salt now. Taste and adjust.

7. 7

   Serve in bowls with a piece of cast iron cornbread and sliced raw onion on the side. That is the traditional Appalachian presentation and it is perfect.