Harriet Scherer's Frank and Bean Concoction
This dish has a decidedly Asian kinda flavor. The first time I made it for my
wife (she's from Taiwan) she thought I'd gotten the recipe from a Taiwanese
cook book. Apparently, franks and beans done this way are very, very popular
there. This dish was first served to me by my mother. She had gotten the recipe
from our neighbor (hence the name).
This is a "quick 'n dirty" dish made mostly with stuff folks have on hand. It
does not involve complicated preparation techniques, a laundry-list of
ingredients, nor a great deal of time.
A red bell pepper
A green bell pepper
A big fat sweet ("chef's") onion — Vidalias are great for
this
4 cloves of garlic
Olive Oil for sauteeing the vegetables
A package of your favorite hot dogs (I like Hebrew National 'cause they're
all-beef and very, very tasty. New York's Sabrett brand are also great dogs.)
2 Cans Campbell's Pork and Beans (the recipe relies on the somewhat runny
consistency and less-sweet taste of this brand)
4 Tablespoons Soy Sauce
Cut the peppers and onion up into coarse pieces. Slice the garlic cloves, or
mash using a garlic press. Saute all of these items in the oil until the onion
turns translucent. You don't really want to brown any of these ingredients.
Cut the hot dogs into 1" pieces and saute for a bit with the vegetables. Add
the beans and the soy sauce and cook for about an hour, until the flavors are
thoroughly comingled.
Spicy lovers will enjoy the addition of some jalapeno slices to this dish. I
sometimes use two cans of Goya black beans for an interesting twist.