Smoked Turkey w/ Pinto Beans, YUM

Okay so if you are like I was growing up you probably hated beans or still do. I remember my mother always telling me how important it was for me to eat them because they were very good for you because they contain a lot of fiber, as well as a host of other good for you nutrients.

Well it wasn't until I got married that I began to like beans. As I have mentioned in earlier post my husband is from overseas. Specifically he is from Angola, Africa. Angolan food is a similar to a mix between Cuban, Portuguese, and African flavors. This is mainly because of two reasons. The first reason is because Angola was colonized by the Portuguese, so the country is heavily influenced by Portugal. The second reason is because Angola was once a communist country and was allies with Cuba because of this. Many Angolan's and Cubans migrated between countries leaving their impressions on one another.

Like in Cuba, black beans and rice, are pretty staple foods in my husband's country. When he moved here he would make them every week, just about. I noticed though, that he did not make his beans the usual way that I was used to seeing them made. What I learned is that they way they prepare beans in his country are almost like a two step process. First they boil the beans, and then they "marinate" them.

Well the first time I tasted these "marinated" beans I was hooked! So I decided to learn his method and couple it with the way my mom made hers and came up with my own recipe joining together the two techniques. So I hope you out there who find yourself disliking beans, give this recipe a shot, as a promise you will enjoy it going forward, and then you too will be able to enjoy the wonderful nutritional benefits of the extraordinary bean.

Smoked Turkey w/ Pinto beans

Ingredients:
1 pkg of smoked turkey pieces (2 drum legs or 2-3 wings)
1 tall large can of pinto beans (28 oz), drained and rinsed
1/2 of a medium onion, chopped
3 cloves of garlic minced or 2 tbsp of minced garlic
1 bay leaf
2 tbsp of olive oil

Directions:
First thing you will need to do is rinse off your smoked turkey pieces and cover them with water as you place them in a crock pot. Put the lid on and let the meat cook in the crock pot for about 4-6 hrs, or until meat begins to fall off the bone. (If you don't have a crock pot, boil the smoked turkey on the stove for about 2 hours on med-low heat.)

Once the meat is done, remove it from the liquid to cool and reserve the liquid to the side for later use.

Using a 6qt pot over medium heat, combine olive oil and onion to the pot and sauté until the onions becomes translucent. Next add in the garlic and the beans and sauté them about one minute. Now using a strainer, to catch any bones, strain the reserved liquid from the smoked turkey, into the pot with the beans and onion mixture. The liquid should cover the beans. If you do not have enough then use enough water to make sure the beans are covered. Add the bay leaf and lower the heat to med-low and let simmer.

While the beans are simmering take your cooked smoked turkey and pull the meat away from the bones. Discard any skin and bones for trash. Once you have pulled away all the meat add it to the bean mixture and continue to let simmer over med-low heat for about 30mins, checking back often to just stir.

Once the 30mins has passed serve the beans, along with baked cornbread. Makes about 4-6 servings.