Texas Style Beans Recipe With Pinto Beans

By
Diana Rattray
Diana Rattray
Diana Rattray
Southern-cuisine expert and cookbook author Diana Rattray has created more than 5,000 recipes and articles in her 20 years as a food writer.
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Updated on 05/4/22
High Angle View Of Baked Beans Cooking On Stove
Jim Hammer / EyeEm / Getty Images
Prep: 60 mins
Cook: 5 hrs
Soaking Time: 8 hrs
Total: 14 hrs
Servings: 8 to 10 servings

Texas-style beans are like nothing else. If you're used to baked beans, these are not what you're in for. Texas-style beans incorporate the savory of salt pork, the sweet of sugar, a bit of spice and the heartiness of well-cooked pinto beans to make what can only be called the best way to have beans period. Served as a main dish alongside cornbread, this recipe is a great idea for large parties. 

Ingredients

  • 2 cups dried pinto beans

  • 12 cups water, divided

  • 1/4 pound salt pork, diced

  • 1 cup chopped onion

  • 1 clove garlic, minced

  • 2 teaspoons salt

  • 1 dash freshly ground black pepper

  • 2 (14.5-ounce) cans tomatoes

  • 3/4 cup diced green pepper

  • 1 tablespoon sugar

  • 6 drops bottled hot pepper sauce

Steps to Make It

  1. Gather the ingredients.

  2.  In a 2-quart bean pot or casserole, cover pinto beans with 6 cups of water; soak overnight. 

  3. Drain the water from the beans. Cover the beans with 6 cups of fresh water; add salt pork, onion, and garlic to the beans.

  4. Bring the beans to a simmer and cover. Cook on medium-low heat, covered, for 2 hours.

  5. Stir in salt, pepper, tomatoes, green pepper, sugar, and hot pepper sauce.

  6. Cover and simmer on low heat for 3 hours more. 

  7. Serve beans with cornbread wedges or hot cooked rice.

  8. Enjoy.

Tip

  • If time is of the essence, you can forgo the need for overnight soaking and cut the cook time down to 1 hr 15 minutes by using canned beans, such as Ranch Style Beans. Instead of cooking in a bean pot, you would bake the beans in a preheated oven at 375 F for 45 minutes after sautéing the onion, green pepper and garlic with the salt pork for 10 minutes prior. Add in the tomatoes, sugar and hot pepper sauce with the canned beans just before placing in the oven.

Recipe Variations

  • Use seasoned tomatoes in the recipe, such as zesty chili-style.
  • Omit the pork for vegetarian beans.
  • Add a fresh minced jalapeño pepper to the beans.
  • Add 1/2 teaspoon of cumin to the beans for Tex-Mex flavor.
Nutrition Facts (per serving)
252 Calories
10g Fat
32g Carbs
10g Protein
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Nutrition Facts
Servings: 8 to 10
Amount per serving
Calories 252
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 10g 13%
Saturated Fat 3g 17%
Cholesterol 10mg 3%
Sodium 750mg 33%
Total Carbohydrate 32g 12%
Dietary Fiber 7g 26%
Total Sugars 6g
Protein 10g
Vitamin C 23mg 113%
Calcium 68mg 5%
Iron 2mg 13%
Potassium 796mg 17%
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.
(Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate.)