Green Beans and Country Ham

Serves 4

What makes this green beans recipe southern is the country ham in place of regular smoked ham, an idea I came up with after I moved to the south. The other difference between this and Pennsylvania Dutch Green Beans and Ham, which is in the similar and related recipes, is the lesser amount of broth. Like its northern counterpart, this southern version is very versatile in that you can use any amount of the ingredients you prefer. If you want to keep it a little lighter, omit the butter, but it adds a wonderful layer of flavor. Most Pennsylvania Dutchmen serve green beans and ham as a main dish with rye bread and apple butter. Southerners serve it cornbread or biscuits.

Ingredients

• 2 pounds green beans, cleaned, stem ends removed, and snapped
• About 1/4-pound thinly sliced country ham (see notes below)
• 1 pound regular or baby potatoes, cut as needed into about 1-1/2 inch pieces
• 1 large onion, coarsely chopped
• Water
• Pepper to taste
• 4 tablespoons butter, preferably unsalted

Place the ham slices in a large sauté or other high-sided pan. Add about 3 cups of water. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat, cover and simmer until ham is tender. Remove ham from pot and cut into small pieces. Return to the pot and add the beans, potatoes and onions. Season with pepper. Add a bit more water if needed, but not too much. Bring back to a boil, then reduce heat, cover and simmer until beans are very tender, about 1 hour, depending on the size and age of the beans. Taste the beans and add salt if needed. However, since country ham is very salty, additional salt probably will not be necessary. If there appears to be too much broth, cook on high without the cover until some of the moisture evaporates. Add butter to the beans and stir until melted; replace lid and cook an additional 10 minutes. Serve immediately or set over very low heat until serving.

Notes: If you want a meatier main dish and are not familiar with country ham, I suggest you add some regular smoked ham. More country ham might make it too salty and intense for most people.