In this article
Soup beans is not bean soup, and anyone from the mountains will tell you so. Bean soup is a soup with beans in it. Soup beans are beans, a whole pot of pintos cooked until they are soft enough to mash against the side of the bowl, in a broth so thick with their own starch that a spoon stands up in it. In Kentucky, West Virginia, Tennessee and every mining town between, this was supper two or three nights a week, and the cornbread was crumbled straight into the bowl.
There is not much to it and that is the point. Dried pintos, an onion, a smoked turkey wing for the smoke, the salt and a little fat, water, and time. The wing gives up everything it has over the long simmer and the meat falls off the bone into the pot. Then a bowl, a wedge of cornbread broken over the top, and chopped raw onion, which is not a garnish but part of the dish; sharp against the soft smoky beans, it is the whole flavor.
The two things people fight about are the soak and the salt. Soaking overnight makes the beans cook more evenly, and it is the method we give first, with a quick soak as the alternative. Plenty of grandmothers never soaked a bean and made fine soup beans; they simply cooked them an hour longer. On the salt there is less argument. It goes in for the last hour, once the beans have softened. Salted early, they can stay stubborn for a long time.
Why this soup beans works
- Pinto beans. They cook soft and creamy inside with a skin that holds, and they give off enough starch to thicken their own broth.
- A smoked turkey wing. One wing seasons the whole pot with smoke, salt and a little fat, and the meat falls into the beans by the end.
- A long, low simmer. Two to three hours at a bare bubble, lid half on, softens the beans without bursting them and thickens the broth.
- Salt near the end. Beans soften faster in unsalted water. Salt for the last hour seasons them through without holding them hard.
Ingredients
Serves 6 as a bowl supper, more as a side. The measurements are in US cups with grams in brackets.
For the beans
- 1 pound dried pinto beans (450g), about 2 1/4 cups
- 1 smoked turkey wing (about 12 ounces, 340g), or 2 smoked turkey drumettes
- 1 large yellow onion, peeled and cut in half
- 8 cups water (about 2 liters), plus more as needed
- 1 1/2 teaspoons fine salt, or to taste
- 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
For the bowls
- A skillet of cornbread, cut in wedges
- 1 white or yellow onion, chopped fine
- Soft butter, for the cornbread
Buy the freshest dried beans you can; old beans take much longer to soften and sometimes never do. The smoked turkey wing is in the meat case near the smoked turkey legs, and it is the only meat this pot needs.
How to make soup beans
Soaking
- Spread the beans on a tray, pick out any small stones or shriveled beans, and rinse them well in a colander.
- For the overnight soak, cover the beans with cold water by 3 inches and leave them on the counter 8 to 12 hours, then drain. For the quick soak, bring them to a boil in 8 cups of water, boil hard for 2 minutes, then cover, turn off the heat and let stand 1 hour before draining.
Cooking
- Put the drained beans in a heavy 5 to 6 quart pot with the turkey wing, the onion halves and 8 cups of fresh water. The water should cover everything by about 2 inches.
- Bring to a boil over high heat and skim off any grey foam. Turn the heat down to the lowest setting that keeps a few lazy bubbles breaking the surface, and set the lid on half open.
- Simmer for 1 1/2 to 2 hours, stirring gently every 20 to 30 minutes and scraping the bottom, and add a cup of hot water when the level drops below the beans. They are ready for salt when one squeezed between your fingers is soft through with no chalky center.
- Add the salt and pepper and simmer another 45 minutes to 1 hour, lid half on, until the broth has gone thick and cloudy and the beans are creamy inside. Do not add water in this last hour unless the pot is truly dry; this is when the broth thickens.
- Lift out the turkey wing, pull the meat off the bone in shreds and return it to the pot, discarding skin and bone. Stir in the onion halves or throw them away. Mash a dozen beans against the side of the pot with the back of a spoon and stir them in to thicken the broth. Taste for salt; beans take more than you think.
- Ladle the beans and their broth into deep bowls, crumble a wedge of cornbread over each and top with a spoonful of chopped raw onion. Serve hot, with more cornbread and butter on the side.
Tips that make the difference
- Keep the simmer lazy. A hard boil breaks the skins before the insides are creamy.
- Add only hot water when the pot needs it. Cold water shocks the beans and slows them down.
- If the beans are still hard after 2 hours, they are old. Give them another hour before you reach for the salt.
- Make the cornbread while the beans have their last hour. Soup beans wait happily; cornbread does not.
Variations
- White beans. Many mountain families used Great Northern or navy beans. Same method, a slightly shorter cook, a paler broth.
- With greens. Stir 4 cups of chopped kale or mustard greens into the pot for the last 30 minutes, an old way to stretch supper.
- A little heat. Add 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes with the onion, and pass hot sauce at the table.
- Fried potatoes on the side. Soup beans, fried potatoes and cornbread was the full mountain supper. Slice 4 potatoes thin and fry them until brown.
Storage and make-ahead
Soup beans are better the next day. Refrigerate, covered, for up to 5 days; the broth sets thick and loosens again when heated.
Reheat gently with a splash of water, stirring from the bottom. Add the cornbread and raw onion at the table, never before.
They freeze well for 3 months, broth and all. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator.
Frequently asked questions
Do I have to soak the beans?
No, but it helps. Soaked beans cook more evenly, in 2 to 3 hours; unsoaked beans need 3 to 4 hours and more water, and a few more will burst. If you forgot, use the 1 hour quick soak.
When does the salt go in?
For the last hour, after the beans have softened. Salt from the start slows the softening, especially with older beans or hard water, and can leave the beans firm after hours of cooking.
Why is my broth thin?
The beans needed more time with the lid half on, or too much water went in late. Mash a dozen beans, stir them in and simmer uncovered 15 minutes.
Is soup beans really a whole meal?
In the mountains, yes. Beans, cornbread crumbled in and raw onion on top fed a family through the week for very little money, and plenty of families still eat it that way on purpose.
Soak them or don’t, keep the simmer low, hold the salt until the beans give, and crumble the cornbread right into the bowl. Then settle the side dish question with whoever is at your table.
Soup Beans and Cornbread (The Appalachian Supper)
Appalachian soup beans: dried pinto beans simmered slow for 2 to 3 hours with a smoked turkey wing, an onion and salt until the broth turns thick, served with cornbread crumbled in and chopped raw onion on top. With the soak and the salt timing explained.
Ingredients
- 1 pound dried pinto beans (450g), about 2 1/4 cups
- 1 smoked turkey wing (about 12 ounces, 340g), or 2 smoked turkey drumettes
- 1 large yellow onion, peeled and cut in half
- 8 cups water (about 2 liters), plus more as needed
- 1 1/2 teaspoons fine salt, or to taste
- 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- A skillet of cornbread, cut in wedges
- 1 white or yellow onion, chopped fine
- Soft butter, for the cornbread
Instructions
- Spread the beans on a tray, pick out any small stones or shriveled beans, and rinse them well in a colander.
- For the overnight soak, cover the beans with cold water by 3 inches and leave them on the counter 8 to 12 hours, then drain. For the quick soak, bring them to a boil in 8 cups of water, boil hard for 2 minutes, then cover, turn off the heat and let stand 1 hour before draining.
- Put the drained beans in a heavy 5 to 6 quart pot with the turkey wing, the onion halves and 8 cups of fresh water. The water should cover everything by about 2 inches.
- Bring to a boil over high heat and skim off any grey foam. Turn the heat down to the lowest setting that keeps a few lazy bubbles breaking the surface, and set the lid on half open.
- Simmer for 1 1/2 to 2 hours, stirring gently every 20 to 30 minutes and scraping the bottom, and add a cup of hot water when the level drops below the beans. They are ready for salt when one squeezed between your fingers is soft through with no chalky center.
- Add the salt and pepper and simmer another 45 minutes to 1 hour, lid half on, until the broth has gone thick and cloudy and the beans are creamy inside. Do not add water in this last hour unless the pot is truly dry; this is when the broth thickens.
- Lift out the turkey wing, pull the meat off the bone in shreds and return it to the pot, discarding skin and bone. Stir in the onion halves or throw them away. Mash a dozen beans against the side of the pot with the back of a spoon and stir them in to thicken the broth. Taste for salt; beans take more than you think.
- Ladle the beans and their broth into deep bowls, crumble a wedge of cornbread over each and top with a spoonful of chopped raw onion. Serve hot, with more cornbread and butter on the side.
