Butter Beans Recipe

Creamy, buttery, and soul-satisfying, these homemade butter beans are the perfect comfort food. Whether looking for a nutritious side dish or a filling main course, you now have the ideal recipe. Add smokey bacon bits, and everyone will be doing the happy dance!

Course dinner, Main, Side Dish

Cuisine American, Southern

Diet Gluten Free

Prep Time 10

Cook Time 1 30

Soaking Time 8

Total Time 9 40

Servings

Calories 316kcal

Author Imma

Ingredients

1 pound (450g) dried butter beans
4-6 slices thick-cut bacon, chopped
1 large yellow onion, diced
2 medium carrots, peeled, halved, and sliced
1 cup red bell pepper, diced
1 stalk celery, diced
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 teaspoons fresh thyme, chopped
2 bay leaves
1 tablespoon bouillon
1 tablespoon Creole seasoning
4 cups chicken broth
4 cups water
¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes
Salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

Pour butter beans into a large bowl, rinse under cold water, and remove debris or broken beans. Fill the bowl with 4 cups cold water, and let them sit overnight or for 8-12 hours. After soaking, drain the beans, rinse under cold water, and set aside.
Heat a large 6- or 8-quart saucepan over medium-high. Add the bacon. Cook, stirring frequently, until it's golden, 3-5 minutes. Transfer the crispy bacon to a paper-towel-lined plate and set it aside.
Add the onion, carrots, celery, bell pepper, celery, garlic, and thyme to the same cooking pot. Sauté for 5 minutes until vegetables are soft.
Next, add the drained beans, bay leaves, bouillon powder, Creole seasoning, and half of the cooked bacon into the pot, stirring to combine well.
Then add the chicken broth and water and stir well. Bring it all to a boil, then reduce the heat to medium-low, cover the pot, and let it simmer for 1-1½ hours until the butter beans are soft. Stir occasionally to distribute the starch evenly and make a nice, creamy broth.
Taste, season with salt and pepper as needed, gently mix, and then remove from the heat. Sprinkle with finely chopped parsley, serve, and enjoy.

Notes

Some people like firmer, intact beans (about an hour), while others like them softer and creamier (about 1½ hours). So you can adjust the total cooking time to suit your preferences.
You can also adjust the thickness to your liking. If you want soup, then add broth or water. And if you want it thicker, mash some of the beans and then simmer it for a few minutes longer.
Don't sweat it if you forget to soak the beans because it only takes about 30 minutes longer to cook. Or use canned butter beans if you're short on time and can't hold off the craving anymore. ;)
If you don't have Creole seasoning on hand, check out my super easy recipe.
Please remember that the nutritional information is a rough estimate and can vary significantly based on the products used in the recipe.

Nutrition