Crock Pot Beans and Hot Dogs

Mix the ingredients, turn on the crock pot, and dinner is done. All you need to make this delicious meal are some easy-to-find ingredients—most likely already in your pantry—great seasonings, and a quick mix. As busy days seem to go by without enough hours to make wholesome meals, keep this dish on your weekly menu because it is as easy to make as it is tasty. Hot dogs, canned beans, spices, and tomato and barbecue sauces make a sweet and savory concoction that needs no supervision on your part once in the crock pot. Serve over white rice, or accompany with buttermilk biscuits or freshly baked yeast rolls. There's no wrong way of eating it. Crispy tortillas chips can also be added on top to serve it as a thick soup with slices of avocado and a sprinkle of cheese. Place all the ingredients in the crock pot at lunchtime and come back to a steaming pot of creamy beans and flavorful hot dogs coated in a succulent sauce.

Budget-friendly canned items like beans and vegetables can make wonderful meals. Packed at the peak of their freshness, these types of vegetables and legumes preserve all of their nutritional value and can be an asset in the kitchen for busy families that are pressed for time. Great in soups and stews or as the base for vegetarian burgers or meatballs, canned beans are a must in your pantry. Besides, their shelf life lasts many months into the future, so there is little risk of spoilage. If possible, go for organic because this adds an extra guarantee that the food you are buying hasn't been sprayed with pesticides or treated with additives or antibiotics to preserve its freshness. If using homemade beans, do soak them prior to boiling as this allows for faster cooking and the release of the kind of sugars that make beans hard to digest.

When buying hot dogs, read the labels because, unless it says "all-beef," the meat is most likely a mixture of pork, beef, and chicken trimmings. Although it is up to you and your taste, all-beef and all-pork hot dogs are really delicious, filling, and great when used in this dish. Our recipe keeps well and can be frozen flat in freezer bags and stored standing up for a space-saving meal.