Cooking navy beans

[mudbug]

Do ya think these should always be cooked with a hunk of meat or a bone? I made some recently without either, altho I used some seasonings, and they turned out tasting extremely average. I've got some more to use, but need some ideas.

[Alix]

Yes! Try a hambone...mmmmmmmm! Dad always tossed in some salt pork near the end too.

[mudbug]

Thanks, Alix-I know about hambones. I guess what I was really trying to ask was is there any way to cook 'em without meat? Not that there's anything wrong with that.

[crewsk]

If I don't have a ham hock around I use onions & garlic in mine. Along with salt & pepper of course.

[mudbug]

Originally Posted by crewsk

If I don't have a ham hock around I use onions & garlic in mine. Along with salt & pepper of course.

I think that's what I used. Maybe I didn't cook 'em hard or long enough. Just tasted blah.

[Claire]

Absolutely you can get a good flavor. Here is what you do. Fire up your grill, preferably charcoal. Take veggies and brush generously with olive oil and season with S&P and your favorite garlic seasoning (right now my fave is Cavendar's Greek). AS a minimum, you want a couple of onions. But zucchini (actually squash of any kind), eggplant, garlic (giant or regular), etc. Most vegs will grill up well. I use these for many things, but chop up fine and cook with your beans. The summer squash or eggplant will actually cook down into the sauce eventually and even people who hate them won't know they are there. You will get a great smoky flavor and quality without the meat. This is a trick I learned when my mom went for awhile unable to eat meat at all. If you grill tomatoes, remember to not add them to the beans until the beans are already soft ... sometimes they have the effect of toughening the beans.

[mudbug]

Claire, those are great tips. Thanks! My husband thinks he hates eggplant and I love it, so I will definitely try that one. Of course we only use a charcoal grill.

[Claire]

Make sure you peel the eggplant after grilling it if you're trying to fool hubby. You can actually pierce it, put it on whole. Let the skin get nice and brown on all sides. When cool, halve it and scoop out the innards. They'll almost be baba ganoush already. If necessary, chop up, and toss in with the beans. The eggplant will virtually disappear, just lending body and the smokey (ham) flavor to the beans.

When we were on the road full time, it would crack me up that the older men that would be taking their walks would always want to know what I was cooking on the mini weber, it smelled so good. Inevetably, I hadn't yet put the meat on, I was grilling veggies. Now whenever we fire it up, I take the time to grill a large number of veggies. Some we eat with the meal, but they're great for a later meal, especially over angel hair pasta. But, as I said, you'll get that smokey flavor if you're aiming for some meatless meals (we're omnivores, but usually eat meatless one or two days a week on GP).