Cowboy Calico Beans

Name: Cowboy Calico Beans
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 4 h
Total time: 4 h 30 min
Yield: 8 servings.
Ingredients: 1 pound lean ground beef (90% lean); 1 large sweet onion, chopped; 1/2 cup packed brown sugar; 1/4 cup ketchup; 3 tablespoons cider vinegar; 2 tablespoons yellow mustard; 1 can (16 ounces) butter beans, drained; 1 can (16 ounces) kidney beans, rinsed and drained; 1 can (15 ounces) pork and beans; 1 can (15-1/4 ounces) lima beans, rinsed and drained

This is a tradition at the table when my girlfriends and I go up north for a girls' weekend. The husbands and kids are left at home, but the slow cooker comes with us! —Julie Butsch, Hartland, Wisconsin

Ingredients

1 pound lean ground beef (90% lean)
1 large sweet onion, chopped
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 cup ketchup
3 tablespoons cider vinegar
2 tablespoons yellow mustard
1 can (16 ounces) butter beans, drained
1 can (16 ounces) kidney beans, rinsed and drained
1 can (15 ounces) pork and beans
1 can (15-1/4 ounces) lima beans, rinsed and drained

Directions

In a large skillet, cook beef and onion over medium heat until meat is no longer pink; drain.
Transfer to a 3-qt. slow cooker. Combine the brown sugar, ketchup, vinegar and mustard; add to meat mixture. Stir in the beans. Cover and cook on low until heated through, 4-5 hours.

Nutrition Facts

3/4 cup: 326 calories, 5g fat (2g saturated fat), 35mg cholesterol, 808mg sodium, 52g carbohydrate (22g sugars, 10g fiber), 22g protein.

Originally published as Cowboy Calico Beans in Taste of Home Everyday Slow Cooker & One Dish Recipes 2010

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Aug 16, 2019

MISSING INGREDIENT: B.A.C.O.N!!
koppkidsmom

Aug 4, 2019

Just made these beans for dinner and they are AWESOME. Used a pound of pork sausage instead of ground beef and family just loved them.
djfeathers

Jul 26, 2019

I make this same recipe but add a pound of bacon. I could eat it every day. I make it quite often and give recipe out as often. It’s YUMMY!
bealler4

Mar 12, 2018

Delicious! When I took them to a family function...my brother wouldn’t stop eating them!
Sherrie

Dec 30, 2017

Tebecca, lima beans and butter beans are two different beans. Each has its own distinctive flavor.
miltons

Dec 24, 2017

Very, very good. Always take this to a Christmas eve family potluck, and come home with an empty pot. But this year I have some leftover (hard to believe) bbq baby back ribs, and instead of hamburg, I wonder------. To Rebecca ...no I don't think they're the same thing. Certainly don't taste the same. I like to use baby butter beans, and a splash of maple syrup.
Rebecca

Nov 28, 2017

I am wanting to make this dish but am wanting to know why the recipe would call for 16 ounces of butter beans and 15.25 oz of lima beans. Aren't they the same thing? If the intention is to add two cans, why wouldn't it call for 2-16 oz cans of either lima or butter beans?
Staceyhoff1972

Oct 4, 2017

I love this recipe. I especially like you can use any kind of beans you have on hand but you do need the pork and beans. Yummo
racingfan3

Nov 24, 2016

I made a double batch for a church supper. Everyone loved them. So I have a pot on now to have for myThanksgiving dinner.
Lstrange

Oct 13, 2016

I like these beans! I've made them about 10 times, Sweet, sour, meaty, Good!