You must try braised green beans in the tradition of the South if you have never tasted them before. A Southern-style picnic with cornbread would be incomplete without this side dish of soft sweet green beans cooked gently with smoky bacon. The simplicity of this dish's preparation thanks to the slow cooker is one of my favorite things about the recipe below.
The classic preparation calls for hours of boiling fresh green beans with ham or bacon, which imparts a smokiness and saltiness to the beans. If you're trying to make this recipe vegetarian, you may replace the bacon with 2 teaspoons of smoky paprika and the chicken stock with vegetable broth. The bacon really amps up the taste, however.
