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Baked Beans Recipe
Ash Tyrrell

Baked Beans Recipe

I still remember the first time I served these baked beans at a backyard cookout. The pot came back to me scraped clean before the burgers were even done grilling. I've made this recipe more times than I can count, and it never fails to steal the show from every other side dish on the table. What I love most is that it starts with canned beans, so I get that slow-simmered, all-day flavor in about an hour.
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Total Time 1 hour 11 minutes
Servings: 6
Ingredients Method Notes

Ingredients
  

  • 4 slices thick-cut bacon chopped into small pieces — thick-cut holds up better and gives you meatier, crispier bits than regular bacon
  • 1 medium yellow onion diced — this builds the savory base that balances all the sweetness
  • 1 teaspoon kosher salt divided
  • 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper divided
  • 2 cans about 15 ounces each small white beans, such as navy, great northern, cannellini, or pinto, drained and rinsed — plain canned beans work best here, so skip the pre-seasoned pork and beans, which throws off the flavor balance
  • 3/4 cup water — helps the sauce cook down to just the right consistency
  • 1/4 cup packed brown sugar light or dark — brings sweetness and a hint of molasses flavor without turning bitter
  • 1/4 cup molasses — go for regular molasses not blackstrap, since blackstrap is far more bitter than sweet
  • 1/4 cup ketchup — adds a mellow tomatoey sweetness
  • 3 tablespoons prepared yellow mustard — the tang here cuts through the richness of the bacon and sugar
  • 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar or distilled white vinegar — balances the sweetness so the beans don't taste like dessert
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons garlic powder
  • 1 teaspoon smoked paprika — this is what gives the beans that deep campfire-style smokiness

Method
 

  1. Heat your oven to 350°F first so it's ready when you need it. Add the chopped bacon to a large skillet over medium heat and cook until it's crisp and deeply browned, which takes about 6 to 8 minutes. Use a slotted spoon to move the bacon to a paper-towel-lined plate, then pour off all but 2 tablespoons of the fat.
  2. Return the skillet to medium heat with that reserved bacon fat still in the pan. Add the diced onion along with half the salt and half the pepper. Cook, stirring every so often, until the onion turns tender and starts to pick up some golden-brown color, about 6 to 8 minutes.
  3. Add both cans of drained beans, the water, brown sugar, molasses, ketchup, mustard, vinegar, garlic powder, smoked paprika, and the remaining salt and pepper right into the skillet with the onions. Stir everything together well and bring the mixture up to a gentle simmer on the stovetop.
  4. Pour the beans and all of that sauce into your baking dish, then scatter the reserved crispy bacon evenly over the top. Bake for about 45 minutes, until the sauce is bubbling at the edges and the beans have darkened slightly in color. Let the dish rest for 5 minutes before serving so the sauce can thicken up.

Notes

  • I always make sure my bacon is really crispy before pulling it out — soggy bacon just doesn't hold up once it bakes on top
  • I like to taste the sauce before it goes in the oven and adjust the vinegar if it tastes too sweet to me
  • I've found that letting the beans rest for a few minutes after baking makes a big difference in how thick and glossy the sauce turns out
  • If I'm short on time, I skip the oven entirely and just simmer everything on the stovetop until it thickens
  • I try to use a mix of bean varieties every time I make this, since it gives the dish a more interesting bite than just one type