Slow Cooked Creole Baked Beans

In looking for a good Creole flavored baked bean recipe, I was disappointed that none of them started with a base of the Holy Trinity, the Cajun and Louisiana Creole variant of mirepoix. I did my research on the hallmarks of good Creole flavors and created this dish.

After all was said and done, it was a lot of work to make a these baked beans in particular. While they did taste different than the baked beans out of a can, it was all subtlety. The thyme was a nice addition to the sweet and a dark flavors of your usual baked beans, while the andouille added a great smoky meaty flavor that didn't overpower.

Slow Cooked Creole Baked Beans

Ingredients:

• 2 lbs. dried beans (I use 1lb. navy and the other lb. Great Northern)
• 2 large onions, chopped
• 1 large bell pepper, chopped
• 4-6 celery stalks, chopped
• 1-2 cloves garlic, minced
• 2-3 Tbsp. butter
• ½ lb. andouille sausages, cubed
• ½ cup bourbon
• ½ cup molasses
• ½ cup dark brown sugar
• 1 cup ketchup
• 2 Tbsp. Creole seasoning blend (see below)
• 1 Tbsp. dried thyme
• 1 tsp. dry mustard, or more, to taste
• 1-2 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
• 1-2 cps water, on reserve
• Salt, if needed.

Directions:

1. In a small bowl, combine all ingredients; store in an airtight container. Sort through the beans, discarding any that are discolored or damaged, rinse them well. Put them in a large bowl or container, cover them by at least 2 inches with cold water, and soak overnight or longer. 
2. Sauté the onions, bell pepper and celery (Holy Trinity) with garlic in with 2 Tbsp. butter until tender, about 7 minutes. Remove from the pan and add to the slow cooker.
3. Fry the andouille in the remaining pan fat, adding the additional Tbsp butter, if needed, until slightly crisp, about 7 minutes. Deglaze the pan with the bourbon and add the pan’s contents into the slow cooker.
4. Drain the soaked beans and add to the slow cooker. Follow that with molasses, brown sugar, ketchup , creole seasoning, thyme, mustard and Worcestershire.
5. Cover and cook on low for 7 to 9 hours (or high for 4 to 5 hours), until beans are tender and flavorful. Check and add a little of the reserved liquid as necessary.
6. When finished cooking, taste to see if salt is needed and add, if necessary.

In making this again, I may cut the molasses.  It was a very strong taste - very rich and almost too earthy and caramel. However I noticed that most of the recipes that I found called for unsulfured molasses. I don't know if I had unsulfured molasses or not; it was tough just to find any molasses when I went food shopping!

Creole Seasoning Mix, adapted from Creole Seasoning Blend at allrecipes.com

Most of my friends swear by Tony Chachere's for their go-to seasoning of choice. It's great; I love it. However, I can't always find it in my local area stores, especially when I've run out and I want to use it immediately.  In those cases, I whip up a batch of Creole Seasoning and I know that I'll have some good New Orleans' kick in my food.

Ingredients: (Original recipe yield was 1¼ cups, based on one part = one tablespoon)

• 1 part dried thyme
• 1 part black pepper
• 1 part white pepper
• 1 part cayenne pepper
• 1 part sugar
• 2 parts onion powder
• 2 parts garlic powder
• 2 parts dried oregano
• 2 parts dried basil
• 3 parts salt
• 5 parts paprika *

Directions:
1.    In a small bowl, combine all ingredients; store in an airtight container.

* I have replaced some of the paprika with other peppers in a ratio of 1:1.  (e.g. 1 part Hatch chili pepper, 1 part West African hot pepper and 3 parts paprika, instead of 5 parts paprika.)