So I Asked my 87 Year Old Mother.....

[16Adams]

Did we put beans in chili to make it stretch the meal to feed 6?
She looked at me as if I’d just turned into a Martian. Her reply was interesting. We ate beans because your father loved beans. We had so much hamburger we gave it to neighbors. Your grandad would have a steer butchered maybe a roast and a couple steaks and 400# of hamburger in 1-2# packages. His freezer was always full of hamburger and he’d fill a sack for us often. Your dad would eat beans and hamburger or grilled hamburgers every meal. Beans and cornbread. Pintos,Navy,Lima he loved them all.
So I asked why didn’t we smoke. She thought a minute and replied. There wasn’t time. 4 kids, your Dad worked shift work and was finishing his degree.

So there you go. We fried, grilled because of time, and ate beans because Dad liked them. And even though I remember him sleeping in the car with a bottle of maalox, he always had time to take me fishing at Low Water Dam.

 

[Nuco59]

Sooo- just to be clear.

You are not a Martian, right?

(it's ok if you aren't

but it'd be really cool if you were- your secret would be safe with us.)

I thought it was a fair question - the beans - not the Martian thing. I figured beans in chili were automatically an extender. We eat a lot of beans -but rarely in chili.

 

[Mikhail]

Never have been a great fan of beans until I discovered Trappey's Jalapinto Beans. Yum.

Then I found beans and meat bowls in Texas. Double yum.

We had it in chili growing up, but it was definitely to stretch it out.

 

[Stlsportster]

I love beans in chili. Texture, silkyness of the gravy as the starch of the beans break down. Outstanding.

The extended excessive wind warnings as I’ve aged have converted me to a true Texas no bean chili fan. Out of necessity.

Also, I can’t eat granola anymore. The wife won’t allow either.

 

[16Adams]

I’d have to ask but I don’t think beans were cooked specifically for chili. A pot of beans just seemed to always be there. I had an aunt who was a prolific canner. We always had fresh home made chow chow. Even after Dad earned his degree and began climbing the corporate ladder (we moved) when going back home we’d leave with jarred goods and hamburger.

 

[scp]

My grandpa was the same way...always had a some sort of beans with every meal...except breakfast.

 

[Hoss]

We truck patched when I was growing up.Had a dairy too.Always had purple hull peas,baby Lima beans,fresh sweet corn,crowder peas,fresh tomatoes,potatoes(in season)etc.,etc.,etc.at EVERY MEAL. Mom always made two different relishes and canned them.She called one pepper relish and it was green,it went on peas.The other was red and she called it chili sauce,it went on limas,never interchanged.A standard Dinner,what you guys call lunch would be a skillet fried hamburger steak,beans of some sort,greens ,squash,other fresh butter fried veggies, If in season,potatoes of some sort,cornbread and some kind of cobbler,pie or cake for dessert.Damn,I miss Mom!

 

[Hoss]

My grandpa was the same way...always had a some sort of beans with every meal...except breakfast.

Mine too.He had dessert at EVERY MEAL.My grandma was the only one I ever saw make one pancake.It was for my Grandpa,every morning for his breakfast dessert.He would eat a regular breakfast,then butter that one pancake and pour white Karo on it.EVERY MORNING!!!

 

[mike243]

My grandparents had white beans 2 meals of the day, clear Karo syrup with butter for the biscuits in the morning,granny poured her coffee into a saucer and blowed on it to cool it lol

 

[blake]

My great grandmother's depression era chili recipe (TN not TX) called for 1 cup dried pintos for 3 lbs of meat. She had specific instructions on how to soak and pre-cook the beans.
When asked by my cousin before she passed, why not more beans?...she replied "Well, (long pause) I grew up eating beans all the time. Chili is a special treat." Then asked, why any beans, she quipped "I couldn't afford 4 lbs of meat". According to the newspaper article, she ran through 350 lbs of meat (and 4 butcher shops) making chili at a fair in the '30's (I don't remember the year).

Family meals always had a minimum of 3 veggies, beans of some sort was a pretty much a sure thing.

 

[TC Smoke & Que]

Man I sure miss those meals, always hearty and great tasting. Real cooking because Mom made it!

My problem is, my wife does not like beans, any type.:sad:

 

[ModelMaker]

Same kind of hillbilly dad, beans a couple times a week, pinto,navy usually cornbread in the CI skillet. After dinner (dad always worked second shift) mom would scoop a cup of beans out on to a saucer and let them cool. Next, mush them with a fork, butter up some white bread, cover with the smooched beans then a thick slice of raw onion, salt, pepper and wrapped in waxed paper.
He brought home a trophy once from his co-workers for most quantity and worst smelling flatulence. We were so proud...
Ed

 

[Big George's BBQ]

Never met my Grandfather Dont remember chili growing uo but I do like beans in my chili

 

[BillN]

We ate a lot of beans as a kid and I still eat a lot of beans mostly because I like them and secondly cause they are good for you and third there is the musical and aroma therapy aspect...:wink: