Everyday Mom's Meals: Indiana Made {A Review of Hurst Beans}
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Wednesday, October 9, 2013

Indiana Made {A Review of Hurst Beans}

I am so excited to not only be bringing a fantastic recipe, perfect for fall, to you today, but also a company and their products from right here in my home state of Indiana, Hurst Beans!

The N.K. Hurst Company was established as a family business in 1938 beginning a long history in the food business with the trading and distribution of sugar. Since 1948, the Hurst name is recognized as being a first quality packager of dry edible beans; and the company is still proudly owned and operated by 2nd, 3rd, and 4th generation Hurst families!!! 

This is my favorite thing about this company. Sure, the beans are tasty and easy to use, and make a fantastic meal your family will love, but knowing they are coming from a truly family owned and operated business, doing things the right way for the past 75 years is simply too hard to come by in today's world not to be appreciated, admired and respected. 

Now I am going to be completely honest with you. I have passed Hurst packaged dry beans in the supermarket a thousand times. Heck, I've probably bought a package or two, and I never knew they were being made a mere 2 hours from me in Indianapolis. So, you can imagine my excitement when I was given the opportunity to do this review.

The folks at Hurst were kind enough to send me a few varieties of their beans to try, but the minute I opened the box I knew exactly which one I was going to cook with first. The 15 Bean Soup Mix. 

Why? Because this is the one I know with a shadow of a doubt I've seen in my stores before. In fact, I even watched someone cook with them about a year ago. Oh, and let's not forget the assortment of beans you can see just by glancing at the package. That means flavor like no other! 
Plus, I found this super easy recipe on their website, that utilized my favorite friend in the kitchen, my Crock Pot! 

I made this soup on a chilly day when I knew we would be busy all day long, and I wanted supper waiting to fill us up, and warm us up...Oh did it ever!! This has deep, rich, flavor that your family will love. And, it is a no soak method...making it even easier! 

If you don't know what foods and products are coming out of your state, please do some research and find out! Locally made products are so much fun to experience, and in this case, so delicious too! You can find Hurst Beans on Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest for more information, tips and recipes. 


Crock Pot 15 Bean Soup From Hurst Beans
1 package Hurst Beans 15 Bean Soup Mix
1 lb. smoked sausage, chopped
8 c. water
1 large onion, diced
1 clove garlic, minced
1 tsp. red pepper flake
1 (15 oz.) can diced tomatoes 
Juice of 1 lemon

NO SOAK METHOD. Sort and rinse beans. Drain. Place in Crock Pot with 8 cups water, sausage, red pepper, onion and garlic. Cook on HIGH for 5 hours, or until beans are tender. Stir in tomatoes, flavoring packet from bean mix, and lemon juice. Cook for 30 additional minutes and keep warm until ready to serve. *NOTE* Make sure you don't add the tomatoes until the beans are tender. The acid in them will prevent the beans from becoming tender if added too soon. 


Shared on The Country Cook Oct. 11, 2013





*Disclaimer* I was provided with free product in exchange for this review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

The bean soup was just like you made it using stove top method. It's amazingly delicious!