Butter Beans

This is my favorite bean in the world. My grandparents, Bop Bop and Big Joe, used to grow these in their garden. After dinner we’d rush out there to pick what was ready so we could have them for dinner the next day.

Both sets of grandparents and 3 sets of my great grandparents either had a huge garden or farms, and I got my love for living off the land from them.

It was so satisfying, and still is, to know that the hard work we put in led to a tasty meal.

Butter Beans

Serving Size : 12

Prep time: 5 minutes; Cook time:  4 hours

2 lbs. dried or fresh Lima beans, washed well

1/4 country ham hock or country ham slices

1 stick butter

Cracked pepper, to taste

1 T garlic powder 

1 T onion powder 

Prep work:

-make sure there are no rocks or clumps of dirt in beans, if you use dried

• Put sorted lima beans in a large pot.  Add water to pot 2” above beans.

• Bring beans to a boil; turn down to medium.  

• Stir and add in country ham or bacon grease.  Cook for 3 hours, stirring about every 20 minutes, until beans are soft.  Add water, as needed, as water cooks down.

• Add stick of butter, salt and pepper. Cook until butter has melted and all excess water has cooked out.

• Stir and serve.