Super Bowl Beer Snacks

Perhaps you’re headed to a Super Bowl party this Sunday and are inspired to show up with a killer dish in hand. When asked the question ‘so what did you bring?’ can any answer be more awesome than ‘drunken beans’? This recipe is best made a day ahead of time and goes down deliciously when accompanied by warm tortillas and washed down with beer. So go ahead and sacrifice a bottle, just have another one in hand to drink while you’re cooking.

Drunken Yeti Beans

serves approx. 8 (as a side dish)

Ingredients:

4 cups cooked beans, mixture of kidney, pinto, and/or similar style (3 cans, but best results from dried)

1 cup chicken stock
1 1/2 cups dark beer (used 1 cup Claymore Scotch Ale + 1/2 cup Espresso Oak Aged Yeti)

1 bay leaf
3 slices bacon, diced
1 medium onion, coarsely chopped
5 garlic cloves, chopped
1 pound mushrooms, coarsely chopped

2 Tbsp bottled chili sauce

2 Tbsp honey

1 Tbsp Dijon mustard

1 Tbsp apple cider vinegar
kosher salt and black pepper, to taste
Chopped cilantro + lime wedges for serving

Directions:
1) Heat beans plus stock until just boiling.

2) Add the beer, bay leaf, and simmer for about 20 minutes.

3) Meanwhile, in an ungreased heavy skillet over medium heat, cook the bacon until crispy. Remove bacon to a paper towel-lined plate and pour off all but 1 tablespoon of excess bacon fat. Keep the flame at medium and cook the onion and garlic in bacon fat until translucent and fragrant, about 10 minutes. Add the mushrooms and cook until soft. Add the cooked bacon back in and stir. Transfer this mixture to beans.

4) In separate bowl whisk together chili sauce, honey, mustard, and vinegar and stir into pot with beans.

5) Season liberally with kosher salt and black pepper to taste, and simmer for 10 minutes longer to allow flavors to blend. Add more stock, if needed.

6) Serve with chopped cilantro, lime wedges and warm tortillas, as desired. And remember folks, recipes work best when used as a guideline and not an assembly manual.