50g bacon or pork fat (we used left over from a roast pork belly)
200g smoked bacon trimmings or lardons
1 large onion, chopped
2 bay leaves
2 dried chillies
Instructions
Soak the beans overnight (or for at least three hours) with plenty of cold water in a large bowl (they will expand) and the teaspoon of bicarbonate of soda
Drain the beans and discard the water. Place them in a medium sized pan with 2.5 litres of water, the shallot, garlic clove, thyme, dried chillies, bay leaves and spring onion tops. Bring to the boil and simmer, part-covered for 45 minutes to an hour until tender.
Meanwhile heat the pork fat in frying pan, add the lardons and fry to render the fat completely. Add the copped onion, some salt and pepper, the bay leaves and chilled and fry for a 5 or so minutes until the onions are soft and sweet.
When your beans are ready, fish out the aromatics, but keep the cooking liquid. From your frying pan remove the chillies and bay leaves, and spoon in the beans along with a little cooking liquid.
Give the whole lot a good mash until you achieve a texture somewhere between chunky and creamy (you could blend the lot if you wanted to go smooth). Check for seasoning.
Serve with a steak, fried egg and, of course, your favourite chilli sauce.
