I am firmly in the camp that baked beans are an integral part of a Full English Breakfast. They are the gravy that binds it all together. That said, who wants to go through all the effort to make a vague and often inferior approximation of tin? These beans are jam packed full of flavour, delicate, sweet, spiced and salty, completely different from their canned cousins. I use boczek for this recipe (basically Polish bacon) as they have a Polish section in my local supermarket and in many across the UK, It’s a wonderfully smoky, fatty pork that’s not too salty and half the price of Italian pancetta. I’d also advise starting this on a Saturday morning putting the beans on to soak ready for a delicious Sunday brunch. This recipe is perfect if you have the Fast Slow Pro but also wonderful in the Risotto Plus.

Ingredients

  • 500g dried haricot beans
  • 400g boczek
  • 4 tbsp date molasses
  • 1 tbsp English mustard
  • 10 pickled onions, halved
  • 1 tsp liquid smoke (I use Wrights)
  • 1 tbsp sweet paprika
  • 1 tbsp white miso paste (optional)
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1 tsp black pepper

Instructions

  1. Soak the beans in a large bowl or pan covered with cold water. Leave to soak for at least 8 hours or overnight.
  2. Refresh the water and add the beans to your slow or pressure cooker and using the sauté setting, boil the beans for 15 minutes, you may need to top up a little water during cooking to make sure they are just covered. After 30 minutes change to a low slow cook
  3. Chop the boczek or bacon into small cubes and add to the pot along with all the ingredients except for the salt and white miso paste. Stir until everything is dissolved.
  4. Continue for a further 4 hours, stirring occasionally. Once the beans are tender, stir in the miso paste and salt to taste and give it another 30 minutes.

They are even better the day after I promise you.