Easy Smoked Cowboy Beans
I put my spin on a new side dish; you have to try my version of Grandma’s Smoked Cowboy Beans.
Growing up, Grandma’s Baked Beans were always a hit at every Backyard BBQ. They weren’t quite cowboy beans, but they also were not far from it.
Over the weekend, I wanted to revisit an old family recipe and see what we can do with Grandma’s baked beans and how we can turn them into a version of smoked cowboy beans.
The result was amazing. Taking a more traditional Backyard BBQ approach, I took this to a new smokey level of awesomeness. This is one of those family recipes to cherish and I will make sure to keep it around for a long time.
Smoked Cowboy Beans
Ingredients
- 1 lb Pork Shoulder (You can use bacon if preferred)
- BBQ Seasoning
- 1 Large Can Bush’s Beans (Original)
- 1 Onion
- 2 Jalapenos
- 1 Can Beer
- 1 Cup Ketchup
Directions
- My grandmother used bacon, but I wanted to give this version more of a BBQ flavor. I trimmed and cut 1 lb of pork shoulder into thin slices. and seasoned with a brown sugar based BBQ rub. The Yuengling BBQ Rub I grabbed in Pottsville, PA was the perfect choice of Brown Sugar & BBQ.
- In a hot cast iron skillet brown the pork shoulder (this is where you would fry the bacon if used.)
- Once cooked, remove pork and place on cutting board to cool
- Take diced onion and pepper and brown in skillet
- Now that the pork has cooled a little take a sharp knife and cube up the strips.
- Open beer and drink half of the can.
- Combine pork, onions & peppers in skillet with the other half of the beer.
- Mix together and add the can of beans
- Add Ketchup, with a little more BBQ seasoning to taste and stir
- Preheat Smoker to 275°
- Place cast iron skillet in smoker. I like to combine cooks whenever possible, so if you are also smoking beef, place skillet under the beef.
- Smoke for three hours stirring beans every 45 minutes
- Remove and serve as an amazing side dish!
Thank you Grandma for always bringing the flavor to the cookout! We miss you!
Cowboy Beans are the perfect pairing for everything BBQ from Ribs to Chicken to Hot Dogs and Burgers. Our version of the family BBQ always has some sort of baked beans or smoked beans, so give this one a shot — make it your own with different veggies or seasoning and enjoy!
Grilled Jawn Backyard BBQ Grill Guide
See what’s in our Backyard and the what we use to cook.
