Pioneer Woman’s Beans and Cornbread is a favorite comfort food meal. Homemade cornbread is smothered with homemade beans and topped with a delicious array of fixings.
Pioneer Woman’s Beans and Cornbread
You can’t make one without the other!
It’s true! Beans and cornbread go together like peanut butter and jelly. They’re so good when served together. This recipe from the Pioneer Woman (Ree Drummond) comes from her first book: The Pioneer Woman Cooks. I love that she included this one in her book because this is exactly what I imagine her family eating on her ranch in Oklahoma!
The majority of the recipes in The Pioneer Woman Cooks cookbook are easy-to-make, pure comfort food- perfect for filling the tummies of hard working ranchers. I let my son choose the recipe he’d like me to make and share from this book. He chose Beans and Cornbread!
🛒Ingredients needed:
- pinto beans
- bacon
- salt and pepper
- seasonings, as desired
- cornmeal
- flour
- baking powder and baking soda
- buttermilk
- milk
- egg
- shortening
✏️How to make Pioneer Woman’s Beans and Cornbread:
*The complete, printable recipe with all ingredients and instructions is at the end of this post.
PREPARE THE BEANS:
-
Rinse the beans thoroughly and pick out any little rocks or sticks that might have gotten packed into the bag along with the beans. Place them in a large pot with the bacon, and pour water over the top (1 or 2 inches above the beans). Bring to boil over medium-high heat, then reduce to low and cover. Simmer for 2 to 3 hours (mine took close to 3). If the liquid appears to be evaporating quickly, add more water as needed during cooking. The beans are done when they’re tender but not mushy. Add in pepper and salt. Stir them up and add optional seasonings as desired.
PREPARE THE CORNBREAD:
-
Preheat the oven to 450°F. In a bowl, whisk together the cornmeal, flour, baking powder and salt. Measure the buttermilk and milk in a measuring cup. Stir in the egg with a fork. Add the baking soda and stir (it’ll bubble a bit). Pour into the bowl with the dry ingredients and stir with a fork just until combined. In a small bowl, melt ¼ cup shortening in the microwave. Slowly add the melted shortening to the batter, stirring just until combined. In an iron skillet over high heat, melt the remaining 2 tablespoons of shortening. Pour the batter into the hot skillet and spread to even out the surface. Cook on the stovetop for about a minute, then bake in the oven for 15 to 20 minutes, or until golden brown. The edges should be crispy.
➡️Recipe Tips:
- In place of bacon, you may substitute diced ham or a ham hock instead. Ham will add more flavor to the beans than bacon.
- I suggest being generous with the extra spice suggestions.
- Go crazy with the garnishes. They make this dish yummy.
- This cornbread recipe is not a sweet one. It’s considered a classic Texas Cornbread… grainy in texture, flatter and very crispy on the outside. Perfect for pairing with beans.
✔️What to do with beans and cornbread?
- Plate your beans and cornbread side by side, or put a big old ladle-full of of beans right on top of your cornbread. Whatever you prefer! Top with freshly chopped cilantro, shredded cheese, chopped red onion, sour cream and/or fresh tomato.
- Invite friends over for dinner. This recipe makes A LOT!
- The best thing about serving beans and cornbread for dinner is that you can set out the fixings (just like tacos) and let everyone add what they’d like.
★How to Store:
leftover beans can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Beans also freeze nicely, so if you prefer, place then in a tightly sealed container and save in the freezer for a later day. (Cornbread also freezes well!)
❤️Why I love this recipe:
- I love the origin story of beans and cornbread: They come from the south, specifically in the Appalachian mountains. Soup beans were served with cornbread and greens. In rural areas (where food was scarce in the winter), dried beans were a staple food. Sometimes people crumbled their cornbread into their beans and preferred to eat it that way.
- This recipe makes a lot and I appreciate the leftovers which can make delicious lunches for the next few days.
- Growing up, my mom made a very similar recipe quite often. It was always a family favorite!
Fun fact from Wikipedia: “Beans and Cornbread” was also the traditional meal served to NASA launch crews following a successful space shuttle launch. The tradition was begun on April 12, 1981, by NASA test director Norm Carlson and was continued after every successful launch.
Recipes for Beans:
- Sweet and Spicy Baked Beans
- Rubios No-Fried Pinto Beans
- Slow Cooker Mexican Beans
- Spicy Black Beans with Onion and Bacon
- Vermont Baked Beans
Beans and Cornbread
Beans served over cornbread topped with all of the fixings.
Ingredients
BEANS:
- 4 cups dried pinto beans
- 4 slices thick cut bacon, cut into 1-inch slices
- 2 teaspoons ground black pepper (more or less, as desired)
- 1 teaspoon salt
- seasonings: chili powder, cayenne pepper, garlic powder & oregano (sprinkle in, as desired)
CORNBREAD:
- 1 cup yellow cornmeal
- ½ cup all purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup buttermilk
- ½ cup milk
- 1 large egg
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ cup + 2 tablespoons shortening
- optional addition: one small can of diced green chiles
OPTIONAL TOPPINGS:
- sour cream, fresh cilantro, chopped onions, grated cheese, chopped tomato
Instructions
PREPARE THE BEANS:
- Rinse the beans thoroughly and pick out any little rocks or sticks that might have gotten packed into the bag along with the beans. Place them in a large pot with the bacon, and pour water over the top (1 or 2 inches above the beans). Bring to boil over medium-high heat, then reduce to low and cover. Simmer for 2 to 3 hours (mine took close to 3). If the liquid appears to be evaporating quickly, add more water as needed during cooking. The beans are done when they're tender but not mushy. Add in pepper and salt. Stir them up and add optional seasonings as desired.
PREPARE THE CORNBREAD:
- Preheat the oven to 450°F. In a bowl, whisk together the cornmeal, flour, baking powder and salt. Measure the buttermilk and milk in a measuring cup. Stir in the egg with a fork. Add the baking soda and stir (it'll bubble a bit). Pour into the bowl with the dry ingredients and stir with a fork just until combined. In a small bowl, melt ¼ cup shortening in the microwave. Slowly add the melted shortening to the batter, stirring just until combined. In an iron skillet over high heat, melt the remaining 2 tablespoons of shortening. Pour the batter into the hot skillet and spread to even out the surface. Cook on the stovetop for about a minute, then bake in the oven for 15 to 20 minutes, or until golden brown. The edges should be crispy.
Notes
- In place of bacon, you may substitute diced ham or a ham hock instead. Ham will add more flavor to the beans than bacon.
- I suggest being generous with the extra spice suggestions.
- Go crazy with the garnishes- they make this dish yummy.
- This cornbread recipe is not a sweet one. It's considered a classic Texas Cornbread... grainy in texture, flatter and very crispy on the outside.
Nutrition
Serving: 1serving, Calories: 424kcal, Carbohydrates: 56g, Protein: 18g, Fat: 13g, Saturated Fat: 4g, Cholesterol: 27mg, Sodium: 554mg, Potassium: 1123mg, Fiber: 11g, Sugar: 3g, Vitamin A: 85IU, Vitamin C: 4mg, Calcium: 156mg, Iron: 4.1mg
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
i have tried to make ham and beans several times with dry beans. I have soaked them over night and today i soaked them for 7 hours and have then cooking now for 3 hours .. they are still hard. The recipe on web site says to cook them for 2 hours and then add ham or bacon and cook for 2 more hours. I dont understand how they can be done in short time. Plz let me know what i am doing wrong. tks
Here is an answer I found on Google: https://cooking.stackexchange.com/questions/93606/cant-get-beans-to-cook-to-tender#:
aren’t you supposed to soak dry pinto beans overnght?
In many cases, yes. In this recipe, they are simmered on the stove until tender. As I mention in the instructions, it took about 3 hours for mine to be done.
Super delicious recipe! I used ham and chipotle red pepper and topped with cilantro, red onion, and some plain greek yogurt. I thought the cornbread batter was thin as written so I added a bit more flour, cornmeal and baking powder. Super delicious, hearty meal for a cold night.