Rinse dry beans and discard any shriveled or imperfect beans.

Cover in a large sauce pan with a couple of inches of water. Bring to a boil on stove top and simmer about 35 minutes.

Drain beans in colander.

While beans are simmering, cover bottom of your slow cooker insert with bacon slices or veg oil.

Mix all remaining ingredients in a large bowl.

Transfer drained beans to slow cooker insert, pour the sauce over the beans and stir gently to help distribute the sauce. Be careful not to disturb the bacon at the bottom.

Add water so the sauce comes up to the top of the beans. This will probably be 2-3 cups of water.

Cook on low heat 7-8 hours. Check after about 4 hours and add another cup of water if water is below the beans. (If you are fixing in the am and leaving it for the day add an extra cup of water in the beginning).

If you want a thicker sauce, 1 hour before you plan to serve remove approx 1 cup of beans and mash them with a fork till they form a paste. Stir paste back into the bean mixture and let them cook another hour.