Ingredients:
1 lb dried lima beans
1/2 lb rind from a baked ham or 1/2 lb bacon
3 tablespoons flour
3 tablespoons oil
3 -4 dashes liquid smoke (optional)
salt and pepper
1/4 cup coarsely chopped pecans
Directions:
Sift through the beans for “Foreign Bodies” and rinse.
In a stock pot, cover the beans with 2 inches of water and soak for 4-5 hours.
Chop the baked ham rind to about 1/4 inch squares.
If you use bacon, cook it off about three quarters of the way to render out some of the fat and drain well before chopping.
(Reserve the fat for the roux later, at your option!) Drain the soaking water, add the meat to the beans and cover with water by about 2 inches.
Bring the beans to a slow boil, add the Liquid Smoke, salt and pepper, cover and reduce the heat to a low simmer until tender.
(From 45 minutes to 2 hours, depending on the beans and the heat so check them often.) When the beans are nearly tender, in a small sauce pan, mix the flour and oil (you can use the leftover bacon fat) and heat, mixing until bubbling.
Because of the variable of how much water is left in the beans, I’ve found it’s better to thicken the sauce backwards.
Start spooning bean water into the roux to thicken it to a paste (like thin mashed potatoes) then adding the paste back into the beans a tablespoon at a time, and stirring to the desired thickness.
Keep in mind it won’t fully thicken until it comes to a boil and it may take a few tries to get it how you want it.
Serve in a large bowl topped with the chopped Pecans.
Any leftovers will freeze.
Servings: 8-10
Time preparation: 10 min.
Time total: 160 min.