Cooking In Real Time: How To Use Leftover Soda

We have leftover soda from our Super Bowl party that I want to use before it goes completely flat. If you're in the same boat, try these recipes!

Coke pork chops

4 boneless pork loin chops (about 6 oz. each)
1 large onion, sliced in narrow rings
½ cup ketchup
½ cup Coca Cola (not diet)

Put the chops in an 9-inch-by-9-inch baking pan coated with cooking spray, and cover with onion rings. Combine ketchup and Coke, and pour over meat. Bake uncovered in a preheated 350-degree oven for 30 to 40 minutes, until meat reaches 145 degrees on a meat thermometer.

Sparkle carrots

1 pound frozen carrot slices
1 Tbsp. butter
1 cup Sierra Mist or 7Up
1 Tbsp. sugar
¼ tsp. salt

Place all ingredients in a large pan with a lid, so that the soda covers the carrots. Cover and cook over medium-to-low heat for six to 10 minutes until the carrots are cooked through and glazed.

Root beer-baked beans

I’ve seen baked bean recipes with 15 or more ingredients—not so these beans!

Because you’re not using canned beans, they don’t have that sludgy texture and flat taste that needs a ton of seasoning to make interesting. These beans have comparatively few ingredients and an enticing taste and smell.

Here’s the effortless way to prepare dried beans: Soak a pound of beans in a big pot of cold water. Cover the pot and let the beans soak overnight. Or, bring the beans and water to a boil and immediately turn the heat off. Let them sit for a couple of hours.

That’s it, now you’re ready to cook the beans!

Drain the soaking water from the beans. Put the beans back in the pot, add enough water to cover the beans by two inches and—here’s my flavor-boosting trick—add two tablespoons of dried onions.

Simmer the beans (try not to let them boil) for an hour, checking occasionally to make sure they’re not getting dry.

After an hour, taste the beans. If they are still “al dente,” let them simmer an additional half hour and taste them again. They should be tender but not overdone.

To drain the beans, place a colander in a large bowl and pour the beans into the colander. Hang on to that cooking water; you may need it for this recipe.

8 cups cooked white navy beans, drained
6 oz. bacon (4 to 6 slices)
2 garlic cloves, pressed
2 large onions, any color
1 large crisp apple
12 oz. (1.75 cups) bottled root beer, not diet (IBC is good!)
1 Tbsp. apple cider vinegar
1/3 cup unsulphured molasses
2-3 Tbsp. brown sugar
1 tsp. salt
2 Tbsp. tomato paste

In a Dutch oven or other large, heavy, oven-proof pot with a lid, cook bacon slices on medium until crispy. Drain the bacon on paper towels. Pour out the bacon grease, leaving just enough to cover the bottom of the pot.

Peel and roughly chop the onions and apple, and sauté in the pot along with the garlic on medium heat, just until apple and onions start to brown.

Wrap the paper towel around the bacon slices and crumble the bacon in your hands. Add the bacon crumbles to the pot along with the root beer. Scrape up the crispy bits on the bottom. Add the rest of the ingredients except the beans and stir. Pour in the beans and stir gently.

Cover and place in a 375-degree oven for one and a half hours—no need to preheat. Check on the beans every half hour. If they are getting too dry, stir in some of the beans' cooking water or some apple cider. If they seem too wet, remove the lid for the last 10 minutes of cooking.