Backyard Smokey Beans Cowboy Stew Recipe
Prep time: 20 minutes
Cook time: 1–1½ hours
Serves: 6–8
Cooking temperature: Low simmer / 160°C oven
Big, hearty and packed full of smoky flavour. This is proper comfort food – sausages, bacon, beef and beans slowly cooked in a rich tomato sauce and seasoned with our Backyard Smokey Beans Rub.
Cook it in a Dutch oven over the BBQ for even more smoky flavour, or make it in the kitchen for an easy family dinner.
Ingredients
8 good-quality pork sausages
500g beef mince
200g smoked streaky bacon, roughly chopped
1 large onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
2 × 400g tins baked beans
1 × 400g tin chopped tomatoes
2 tbsp tomato purée
40–50g Backyard Smokey Beans Rub
1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
1 tbsp runny honey or brown sugar
200ml beef stock
1 tbsp oil
Method
1. Brown the sausages
Heat a large heavy-based pan or Dutch oven and add a small amount of oil. Add the sausages and cook until nicely browned on the outside.
They don't need to be completely cooked at this stage. Remove them from the pan and set aside.
2. Cook the bacon
Add the chopped bacon to the same pan and cook until it starts to become golden and slightly crispy.
Add the diced onion and cook for another 4–5 minutes until softened.
3. Brown the beef
Add the beef mince and break it apart with a wooden spoon. Cook until nicely browned, allowing it to pick up all those flavours from the bacon and sausages.
Add the garlic and cook for another minute.
4. Add the Smokey Beans Rub
Sprinkle over the Backyard Smokey Beans Rub and stir thoroughly through the meat.
Cook for around 1 minute to wake up all those smoky tomato, paprika, garlic and herb flavours.
5. Build the stew
Add the chopped tomatoes, tomato purée, Worcestershire sauce, honey and beef stock.
Stir everything together, scraping any of those lovely browned bits from the bottom of the pan.
Add the baked beans and gently stir them through.
6. Add the sausages
Cut the browned sausages into chunky pieces and add them back into the stew.
Give everything a good stir and bring it to a gentle simmer.
7. Cook low and slow
Cover and cook gently for approximately 45 minutes.
Remove the lid and continue cooking for another 20–30 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the sauce has become rich and thick.
If you're cooking on the BBQ, place the Dutch oven over indirect heat at approximately 160°C and let it slowly bubble away.
For an extra hit of BBQ flavour, leave the lid off for part of the cook and add a little smoking wood to the BBQ.
8. Check the seasoning
Give the stew a taste before serving. If you want an even bigger Backyard flavour, stir through another small sprinkle of Smokey Beans Rub and cook for a further 5 minutes.
If the sauce becomes too thick, simply add a splash of beef stock or water.
9. Serve
Spoon the Cowboy Stew into big bowls and serve piping hot.
It's brilliant with crusty bread, buttery mashed potatoes, a baked potato or simply eaten straight from the bowl.
For something really indulgent, load it onto crispy fries and finish with grated cheese.
Backyard Tip
If you've got time, make this on the BBQ in a cast-iron Dutch oven. Brown everything directly in the pot, build the stew and then move it over to indirect heat. Leave the lid off towards the end and let a little wood smoke roll over the top.
The Backyard Smokey Beans Rub already brings tomato, hickory, smoked paprika, garlic and herbs to the party, so let the rub do the work.
One pot. Big flavour. Proper Backyard grub.