Rancher’s Bean Dish

Ingredients

• 6 cups cold water
• 2 ¼ cups dried pinto beans
• 2 tablespoons butter
• ½ pound bulk pork sausage
• 2 cups peeled tart apple slices
• 1 ½ cups tomato juice
• 1 cup chopped onion
• ¼ cup brown sugar
• 2 cloves garlic, mashed
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 1 teaspoon chili powder
• 1 teaspoon dry mustard
• ¼ teaspoon coarse black pepper
• ¼ cup Jamaican rum
• ¼ cup sour cream, for topping

Step 1

Soak the beans in cold water in a pot and let them sit for at least 8 hours or overnight. Once they’ve soaked, add the butter to the pot and bring everything to a boil. Then turn the heat down to low, cover the pot, and let the beans simmer gently until they’re tender, which should take about 2 hours.

Step 2

While the beans are cooking, heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the pork sausage and cook it, stirring often, until it’s nicely browned and crumbly, about 5 to 7 minutes. Drain off most of the fat, but keep 2 tablespoons of the drippings for later.

Step 3

Add the cooked sausage along with the reserved drippings, apple slices, tomato juice, chopped onion, brown sugar, garlic, salt, chili powder, mustard, and black pepper to the pot of beans. Bring the whole mixture back to a boil, then lower the heat again, cover, and let it simmer for another 2 hours so all those flavors can meld together.

Step 4

Finally, stir in the rum, then ladle the beans into bowls and top each serving with a dollop of sour cream. Enjoy!