"Aghadoe" Beans

    There are only a handful of true barbeque side dish options out there in the food world. You've got your coleslaw, mashed potatoes, yams and one other magical fruit. Baked beans of course! I’ve honestly never made them before but I knew they would be gobbled up by the crew and could easily be made vegan. I played around with the idea of bacon, maple, molasses, spice and also yams. Fast-forward into my crock-pot and discover the miracle of my food brain below.

  Saucy Slow-Cooked Beans with Bacon, Maple, and Yams

• 1 medium sized yam, cut into small cubes
• 1/2 lb. pepper bacon, cut into small pieces
• 1 Tbsp vegetable oil
• 1/2 cup water
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 1/4 cup molasses
• 1/2 cup ketchup
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 2 Tbsp maple syrup
• 2 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce
• 1 Tbsp hot sauce (I prefer Crystal for a more vinegary hot flavor)
• 1 tsp dry mustard
• 1 tsp black pepper
• Pinch or two of salt to taste

1. In a medium frying pan, bring 1 Tbsp of vegetable oil to medium-high temperature, add in yams. Fry yams until they begin the cook slightly on all sides about 7ish minutes. Add in a half cup of water, turn heat down to medium, cover with a lid and let steam in pan for at least 10 minutes until they begin to soften. Remove from heat.
   
2. In a large pan, cook bacon over medium heat just until it barely begins to crisp. Remove bacon from pan and place on a paper towel to remove excess grease.
   
3. Leave pan at medium temperature, add in chopped onions and cook in the bacon grease until onions become translucent. Remove from heat.
   
4. In a medium-sized pot, over medium heat; combine molasses, ketchup, brown sugar, maple syrup, Worcestershire sauce, hot sauce, dry mustard and pepper. Slowly bring this mixture to a simmer until it is well combined and bubbly.
   
5. Fill your crock pot with the yams, beans, bacon, onions and warmed sauce. Set crock pot to low heat and let cook for 6ish hours. Season with salt if it needs any. (Depending on your time table, you can cook these on high for just 2 to 3ish hours, or it can even be done on the stove in about 45 minutes over a medium heat.)
   
6. Serve and enjoy…possibly with pulled pork sliders and coleslaw.

*If you want to have these beans without bacon, simply cook your onion in 1 Tbsp of vegetable oil instead of bacon grease. Voila, vegan beans. 

*For the shoot, I doubled this recipe and I actually left the slow cooker going all night. On warm-setting they cooked for 10 hours with no problems.