Stewed Baby Lima Beans (AKA Butter Beans)

Ingredients:

• 1 (1-pound) dried Baby Lima Beans
• 1 package Smoked Sausage, chopped
• 3 oz. bacon, cut into 1/2 inch squares
• 1 yellow onion, chopped
• 1 Bell Pepper Chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 4-5 cups chicken stock or water (enough to cover the beans with 1/2" to 1" of fluid)
• 1 teaspoon salt, to taste
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, to taste
• 3 Bay Leaves
• 2 tbsp Tarragon Vinegar
• 5 shakes Tabasco
• 1 tsp Creole Seasoning
• Baking soda
• 1 Batch of No BS Rice

Directions:

1. Rinse and sort beans.
2. Soak the beans overnight in SALTED water
3. Put Bacon into the Instant Pot and sauté on medium until browned and slightly crispy, but still moist. Remove bacon, but leave bacon grease in Instant Pot.
4. Put Sausage into the Instant Pot and sauté on medium until browned and crispy. Remove sausage, but leave fat in Instant Pot.
5. Add the onions, a pinch of baking soda, and a pinch of salt into the rendered fat  and sauté until translucent.
6. Add the bell pepper and a pinch of salt until the pepper is soft.
7. Add garlic and creole seasoning and sauté for 30 seconds.
8. Add the beans, bacon, sausage, vinegar, seasonings, and stock/water (enough to cover the beans with 1/2" to 1" of fluid) in the Instant Pot. Stir. Twist to lock the lid, and turn the valve to sealing.
9. Use Manual mode to cook at high pressure for 35 minutes. When the timer beeps, allow the pressure to release naturally for 20 minutes. Then, turn the valve to venting.
10. Once completely vented, remove lid.
11. Remove 3-4 cups of beans from Instant Pot into a bowl and mash until uniformly smooth. Return mashed mixture to Instant Pot and stir into Pot.
12. Use Sauté mode on medium to reduce liquid and cook till thickened (Timer automatically sets for 30 minutes, this should be long enough).
13. Salt and pepper to taste.
14. Serve hot, over No BS Rice.

*If beans are not soft enough after cooking, put the lid back on and make sure the release valve is set to “sealing.” Use Manual mode to cook at high pressure for another 5 to 10 minutes. The pot will quickly come back up to pressure because the contents are already hot.