Southern Plantation Lima Beans
"These came from a North Florida plantation cook and are GREAT with Ham or anything grilled!!!"
- Ready In:
- 2hrs 40mins
- Ingredients:
- 7
- Serves:
-
8-10
ingredients
- 1 lb dried lima beans
- 1⁄2 lb rind from a baked ham or 1/2 lb bacon
- 3 tablespoons flour
- 3 tablespoons oil
- 3 -4 dashes liquid smoke (optional)
- salt and pepper
- 1⁄4 cup coarsely chopped pecans
directions
- Sift through the beans for “Foreign Bodies” and rinse.
- In a stock pot, cover the beans with 2 inches of water and soak for 4-5 hours.
- Chop the baked ham rind to about 1/4 inch squares.
- If you use bacon, cook it off about three quarters of the way to render out some of the fat and drain well before chopping.
- (Reserve the fat for the roux later, at your option!) Drain the soaking water, add the meat to the beans and cover with water by about 2 inches.
- Bring the beans to a slow boil, add the Liquid Smoke, salt and pepper, cover and reduce the heat to a low simmer until tender.
- (From 45 minutes to 2 hours, depending on the beans and the heat so check them often.) When the beans are nearly tender, in a small sauce pan, mix the flour and oil (you can use the leftover bacon fat) and heat, mixing until bubbling.
- Because of the variable of how much water is left in the beans, I’ve found it’s better to thicken the sauce backwards.
- Start spooning bean water into the roux to thicken it to a paste (like thin mashed potatoes) then adding the paste back into the beans a tablespoon at a time, and stirring to the desired thickness.
- Keep in mind it won’t fully thicken until it comes to a boil and it may take a few tries to get it how you want it.
- Serve in a large bowl topped with the chopped Pecans.
- Any leftovers will freeze.
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Reviews
-
Couldn't I use fozen beans? I am travelling a distance so several hours of cooking the beans wouldn't really work and then I'm not so sure how well they'd travel. I just thought the recipe sounded good. -
These were just wonderful! I reduced the liquid at the end because I wanted the sauce thicker. Also I didn't check them early on, so I let them cook a little too long and they were a tad bit mushier then they should have been. However, over all they were just wonderful and I will keep this as my reliable lima bean recipe.
RECIPE SUBMITTED BY
Chief Jack
United States
As a Yankee transplanted to the Old South, my tastes have been slowly educated to the finer and hotter things in life. With 40 years in the Fire-Rescue service, I have had some incredable "on duty" meals, on both ends of the scale! In self defence, even as Chief, I often do the cooking. One thing can be taken as gospel, no matter how much complaining, there are never any leftovers.
