Sweet N Sour Beans

Labor Day at the altar. Thirty-four people — family, neighbors, firefighters, the Rivera's staff. The last Labor Day before the restaurant opens, which means this is the last time the altar serves as the primary Rivera feeding station. After March 15th, the altar will still be home, still be sacred, still be the place where Sunday cookouts happen and holidays are celebrated. But Rivera's will be the professional kitchen. The altar will become what Roberto's cinder block grill has always been: the origin. The place where it started. The museum of the first fire.

I smoked two briskets — one for the party, one as a gift for Chief Martinez, who is retiring next month after thirty-two years. The retirement brisket is my tradition now: every firefighter who retires from the department gets a brisket from Marcus Rivera. I have made eleven retirement briskets in the last three years. The tradition started accidentally — I smoked one for a lieutenant who was leaving, and then everyone expected it, and now it is policy in everything but paperwork. The fire department runs on unwritten rules, and "Rivera makes the retirement brisket" is carved in the invisible stone of Station 19.

Diego played his first Little League game on Saturday. The team is called the Diamondbacks, because this is Arizona and every youth baseball team is called the Diamondbacks. Diego batted twice. He struck out both times, once looking (he was watching a bird), once swinging (he swung at a pitch that bounced two feet in front of the plate). His fielding was enthusiastic and inaccurate — a ground ball went through his legs, which he found hilarious rather than embarrassing, which is the correct emotional response for a six-year-old and which I hope he maintains forever.

After the game, Diego said, "Dad, baseball is fun but I am not very good at it." I said, "You don't have to be good at it. You have to enjoy it." He said, "I enjoy it a lot." I said, "Then you are perfect at it." He considered this, nodded, and asked for a hot dog. The boy has his priorities. Joy first. Hot dogs second. Batting average: irrelevant.

Six months to opening. The countdown is real now. Jessica has a spreadsheet with 147 line items between now and March 15th — permits, inspections, marketing, soft opening dates, staff scheduling, supplier contracts. The spreadsheet is color-coded. The spreadsheet has conditional formatting. The spreadsheet would make a Fortune 500 CFO weep with envy. Jessica Rivera, née Johansson, from Duluth, Minnesota, the woman who cried at a taco truck in 2010, has become the most formidable restaurant operations manager in the history of Mesa, Arizona. She does not have this title. She has the spreadsheet. The spreadsheet is the title.

You don’t smoke two briskets for thirty-four people without thinking hard about what sits beside them on the table — the brisket is the altar piece, but the sides are what fill the plates and keep people coming back. These Sweet N Sour Beans have been next to every retirement brisket I’ve ever made, and they were at Chief Martinez’s too: something tangy and rich that cuts through the smoke and fat in exactly the right way. Diego had two helpings before I even sliced the second brisket, which is the only review that matters.

Prep Time: 15 minutes | Cook Time: 1 hour | Total Time: 1 hour 15 minutes | Servings: 12

Ingredients

1 lb bacon, cut into 1-inch pieces
1 medium yellow onion, diced
3/4 cup brown sugar, packed
1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
1 teaspoon dry mustard powder
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1 can (15 oz) butter beans, drained and rinsed
1 can (15 oz) kidney beans, drained and rinsed
1 can (15 oz) pork and beans (do not drain)
1 can (15 oz) lima beans, drained and rinsed

Instructions

Cook the bacon. In a large oven-safe skillet or Dutch oven over medium heat, cook the bacon pieces until crisp. Remove bacon with a slotted spoon and set aside, leaving about 2 tablespoons of drippings in the pan.
Soften the onion. Add the diced onion to the bacon drippings and cook over medium heat for 5–7 minutes, stirring occasionally, until softened and just beginning to caramelize.
Build the sauce. Stir in the brown sugar, apple cider vinegar, dry mustard, garlic powder, salt, and pepper. Cook for 2 minutes, stirring until the sugar dissolves and the sauce is fragrant.
Combine the beans. Add all four cans of beans to the skillet and stir to coat thoroughly in the sauce. Fold in the reserved crispy bacon.
Bake low and slow. Preheat your oven to 325°F. Transfer the skillet (or pour into a 9x13 baking dish) and bake uncovered for 50–60 minutes, until the sauce has thickened and the top is slightly caramelized. Stir once halfway through.
Rest and serve. Let the beans rest for 10 minutes out of the oven before serving — the sauce will tighten up further as it cools slightly. Serve directly from the dish alongside smoked brisket or any cookout main.

Nutrition (per serving)

Sweet N Sour Beans — The Side Dish That Feeds Thirty-Four People and One Retiring Chief