Old Fashioned Stewed Green Beans With Bacon

This recipe is my absolute favorite green bean recipe. I make it all the time. We love it. It is so simple and so comforting. It reminds me of Sunday suppers with my grandmother after church. A lot of things remind me of when I was younger. lol. That is how it goes, though. A smell, a food, a meal, a place, even just a simple bowl or a plate, takes me right back to those days.

Ahhh, the good ol’ days.

INGREDIENTS:

1 1/2 lb of Green Beans – trimmed ( ends cut and cut into pieces about 1/2 inch long)
4 to 5 slices of Bacon
1/2 Onion – diced
2 C. Chicken Broth (home-canned or store-bought)
Salt and pepper – to taste
Pinch of sugar – about 1/2 Tsp.

DIRECTIONS:

1. In a saucepan over medium heat, add the bacon and cook until crisp. This should take about 5 to 6 minutes. Remove from the pan to a paper towel-lined plate and set aside to cool.
2. Remove most of the bacon fat. You can keep it or discard it. You want to leave at least 1 tbsp of fat in the pot.
3. Add the diced onion and cook until soft. This should take about 4 to 5 minutes.
4. Add the green beans and stir to coat in the bacon fat.
5. Add enough of the chicken broth to cover the beans. I usually add about 1 1/2 to 2 cups of broth. You can always add more if needed later.
6. Bring the beans to a boil and then turn the heat to medium-low and simmer for 30 minutes to 1 hour. Stir occasionally to prevent burning. Add more broth if needed.
7. When the beans are as tender as you want them, you can add in some salt and pepper to taste. Add in the sugar and stir to mix well.
8. Add the bacon and stir to combine. Check for taste and adjust if needed.
9. Serve hot.

• I use frozen or fresh green beans, but you can also use canned green beans that have been drained and rinsed. It just depends on how long you have in the kitchen. Canned green beans take about 15 minutes, and you won’t need as much broth for them. You can use about 3/4 cup of broth per can of green beans you use. Any style of green beans will work for this.
• You can use home-canned chicken broth, or you can use your favorite store-bought broth. Yes, you can use vegetable broth for this as well. If you want to control the salt in this, then use low-sodium store-bought broth. Always start with a little salt because you can always add more later.
• If you don’t have or don’t like bacon, try adding in some kielbasa or other style of link sausage. I would use the plain kielbasa so you can control the flavor, but you do you.
• I save my bacon grease and put it in a bacon grease container in my fridge for later use. You can discard the bacon grease if you do not keep it for cooking. I would keep it, though, because it adds a ton of flavor to all your dishes…. well, don’t use it for baking; that would be gross. lol. You can find bacon grease containers at your local Walmart, DG, or online. There are so many to choose from. If you don’t want to do that, just keep it in a mason jar with the lid tight and in the fridge. That works well, too.
• When I want to reheat these green beans, when I make a double batch, I just add them to a pot on the stove and bring them up to a boil for 5 minutes, and boom… you’re done and ready to serve.
• Enjoy! They are so good.