Icemageddon Houston 2018 - Ham and bean something is afoot...

caliking

Office is closed today because we don't know what to do when the the temp drops below 40°F. That leaves me at home looking for something to do. 

Pulled out a ham bone from the freezer. I think its from this past Thanksgiving. Found some anasazi beans in the pantry. Probably a few years old. All I know is that they are some kind of bean. Found an onion, some baby carrots that are a few months old, some kind of expired rib rub, shawerma rub, cumin. Added a little garlic,  and went to town. 

Only to find that the LBGE was frozen shut. In Houston. 

Starter cubes had the lid open in 5 mins or so. Loaded up with lump and a few chunks of apple wood. Because that's all I could find in my pit of a garage. 


Ham bone roasted for an hr or so (the little bit on the side was the chef's treat).


Made a roux with lard from one of our pigs (2 actually). Some Better Than Bouillon Vegetable flavor (also found in the pantry, unopened, AND not expired!). Dropped the beans and ham bone in. 



We'll see what happens. 

SciAggie

I've never made beans with a roux.

20stone

Duuuuuuuuude.  That looks awesome

caliking

SciAggie said:

I've never made beans with a roux.

Me neither. Found a Saveur recipe for some kind of Hungarian ham and bean stew, and riffed off of that. Figured since I was using this rub, that it qualified


I’m not particularly following the recipe, so I think I’ll end with something different. So far the roux seems lost in the water added to the pot, but maybe it’ll thicken up in a few hours. 

northGAcock

I am a big fan of soup in the winter. You look for some cornbread to compliment? You gonna have fun with the soup.

caliking

Current status.

Double, double toil and trouble;
Fire burn and caldron bubble...

caliking

Found some ‘shrooms, so in they went. 

caliking

My day so far...

ol’ skool B B King on the Sonos, inside and out. Egg purring away. The sun may be trying to warm things up. 

I’ve had worse days

caliking

20stone said:

Duuuuuuuuude.  That looks awesome

it seems to be coming along rather nicely. Hope it turns out as good as it looks and smells so far. 

caliking

northGAcock said:

I am a big fan of soup in the winter. You look for some cornbread to compliment? You gonna have fun with the soup.

You, sir, are a trouble maker.

I have some rye sourdough that I baked this weekend, but I'm off to the pantry again to see what I have. 

SaltySam

The fact that you wrote “expired rub” and “probably a few years old” made me feel so much better about myself and my cooking. 

Mattman3969

I’m betting this will be grand!!   Do you have any curry to add to it?   That seems to be the only thing your missing besides the kitchen sink.  Lol. 

caliking

SaltySam said:

The fact that you wrote “expired rub” and “probably a few years old” made me feel so much better about myself and my cooking. 

I'm a hoarder, so expiry dates are like speed limits... merely suggestions. If it passes the smell/taste test, then its good. Things get testy when caliqueen gets it in her head to clean out the pantry every once in a while. 

caliking

Mattman3969 said:

I’m betting this will be grand!!   Do you have any curry to add to it?   That seems to be the only thing your missing besides the kitchen sink.  Lol. 

The cumin was my nod to that. I considered adding some homemade "curry powder" to the mix, but figured I had to draw the line somewhere  

caliking

@northGAcock don’t let anyone tell you that you don’t occasionally have good ideas.



Had to do it in the oven, since I have to pick up caliprince in a bit. It may have turned out slightly overdone. But credit is due for using lard from one our pigs. And a Wagner skillet. 

SciAggie

That’s how I like cornbread. Beans & cornbread... killer combo. Based on the ingredient list, just top that bowl of beans and cornbread with a vinegary hot sauce or a dollop of sour cream and you’ll be in heaven. 

SciAggie

I’m giving armchair advice because I have nothing better to do at the moment.

Legume

SciAggie said:

I’m giving armchair advice because I have nothing better to do at the moment.

This whole forum is armchair advice driven by procrastination.  You’re good.

northGAcock

caliking said:

northGAcock said:

I am a big fan of soup in the winter. You look for some cornbread to compliment? You gonna have fun with the soup.

You, sir, are a trouble maker.

I have some rye sourdough that I baked this weekend, but I'm off to the pantry again to see what I have. 

lol .....enjoy!

northGAcock

caliking said:

@northGAcock don’t let anyone tell you that you don’t occasionally have good ideas.



Had to do it in the oven, since I have to pick up caliprince in a bit. It may have turned out slightly overdone. But credit is due for using lard from one our pigs. And a Wagner skillet. 

Trust me....I am seldom accused of having a good idea. You put the enjoying on that soup brother.

JRWhitee

I made soup today too, inside on the stove. Yours looks great @Caliking

setdahook

I have not had a road trip in a long time but if I don't get that cornbread recipe I will be on your doorstep come Sunday. 

Focker

I like how you roll on "snow day".
I need to explore options, and find that luxury. 
Nice post.

caliking

No drumroll for me, since I didn't get a plated shot. Things got busy once the kid was home.

The stew,  or whatever it ended up being, was pretty damn good. Big shout out to @northGAcock for the cornbread nudge. It turned out quite well. Great crunchy crust on the bottom. I haven't made cornbread in a long time, and had forgotten how good it could be. 

SciAggie

No plated shot - now that’s just wrong. 

Canugghead

Nice cook and I still say you can give other food bloggers a run for their money!

caliking

SciAggie said:

That’s how I like cornbread. Beans & cornbread... killer combo. Based on the ingredient list, just top that bowl of beans and cornbread with a vinegary hot sauce or a dollop of sour cream and you’ll be in heaven. 

That would have been my MO, but I didn't feel like going to the store to pick up sour cream. I dressed my bowl up with a roasted habanero hot sauce,  and it hit the spot.

caliking

setdahook said:

I have not had a road trip in a long time but if I don't get that cornbread recipe I will be on your doorstep come Sunday. 

I usually like Saveur recipes, so I picked the first one that Google found. Simple and quick.

https://www.saveur.com/article/Recipes/Mary-Hickss-Corn-Bread

The crust was beautiful (I'm sure the lard helped), but I probably should have pulled it 5mins earlier.

northGAcock

caliking said:

SciAggie said:

That’s how I like cornbread. Beans & cornbread... killer combo. Based on the ingredient list, just top that bowl of beans and cornbread with a vinegary hot sauce or a dollop of sour cream and you’ll be in heaven. 

That would have been my MO, but I didn't feel like going to the store to pick up sour cream. I dressed my bowl up with a roasted habanero hot sauce,  and it hit the spot.

.....and for saying I ain’t goin to the damn sto....

....that’s called makin do.

caliking

SciAggie said:

No plated shot - now that’s just wrong. 

I agree wholeheartedly I'm disappointed in myself, partly because soup/stew is  easy to take pictures of too.

The day funneled in to this 10 minute window where the cornbread had to come out of the oven, last beer needed to be finished, stew had to be pulled off the egg, an errand had to be run, and the kid needed to be picked up. 

Didn't have it in me after that. And I didn't have any sour cream.

SciAggie

@caliking Friend, I’m just yankin’ yer chain. The last couple of good cooks I’ve done had no finish shots either. There are more important things sometimes than posting pics on a forum. Sounds like you had a great day and I’m sure the beans were spectacular.