I doubled the recipe, following the ingredient amounts with minor exceptions: I had 2 lbs. of bacon so I used it all, and I started with 1Tbls salt and then added to taste. I probably ended up using 2Tbls. I also added 2tsp cayenne pepper. I wasn’t sure about “do not under cook the bacon”. When cooking gumbos I like to cook my bacon until it is brittle and the fat completely rendered. For these beans, I used thick cut bacon, cut in about 1/2 inch strips. Then I cooked it on medium heat until almost brittle – around 40 minutes. Most of the fat cooked down but there were the occasional pieces of very well done fat. Mmm! I soaked the beans overnight and cooked them gently in nothing but the water for about 3 hrs before they were approaching tender. I added the rest of the ingredients and brought to a light boil for the last hour. I will be cooking this recipe again very soon and will add the tomatoes and cilantro at the very end, as the recipe states, because they did cook down and left no ‘chuncky’ tomato in my dish.

These were by far the best beans I’ve ever cooked. I served the bean soup with beef and shrimp fajitas to a party of 14. I like to think I cook a mean fajita and great seafood, but I had more guests wanting seconds on the frijoles. Thank you for this recipe!