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These smoked baked beans are a delightful addition to any barbecue or gathering, bringing a unique twist to the classic comfort food. Seasoned with apple cider vinegar, molasses, brown sugar, bacon and plenty of black pepper, these beans are the perfect BBQ side dish. From their rich and tangy flavors to their tender texture, these savory beans are sure to please both your taste buds and your guests.

Cast iron skillet filled with baked beans topped with crispy bacon and coarse ground black pepper.


 

Tender beans simmered in a rich, tangy sauce infused with the irresistible essence of smokiness. Whether you’re firing up your grill or using a smoker, these beans will elevate your barbecue game. Serve these beans alongside some Smoked Brisket, Smoked Pulled Pork or some tender Pork Ribs.

Ingredients In smoked Baked Beans

Ingredients needed to make smoked baked beans laid out on the counter.
  • Navy Beans: Baked beans are made with navy beans which are small, tender, and white. These beans have a soft, velvety texture and a slight nutty flavoring that makes them perfect for the rich sauce of baked beans. You can make this recipe with canned or dried beans. If you’re using dried beans, please follow the directions on our more traditional Baked Beans recipe for instructions on how to prep the beans for this recipe. 
  • Bacon: use nice thick-cut bacon; if you can find peppered bacon, grab some. Otherwise, we’ll be seasoning the top of our bacon with extra pepper to get that pop of flavor. 
  • Apple Cider Vinegar: adds a vinegary tang to balance out the rich flavors of the sauce. 
  • Molasses, Light Brown Sugar, BBQ Sauce: add a deep rich flavoring with the molasses and a hint of sweet with the light brown sugar. Pick a BBQ sauce that you like, the sauce will either add more sweetness or you can pick on that will add a hint of spice and heat.
  • Onion Powder, Ground Mustard, Salt, and Black Pepper: the perfect spice blend for your baked beans. Coarse ground black pepper is a main feature in this recipe that gives a Texas BBQ flair.

How to Smoke Baked Beans

Beans in a cast iron skillet with ingredients on top to stir in for flavor.
Baked beans in a cast iron skillet before cooking.
  1. Prepare the beans: if you’re using dried beans, be sure to soak and pre-cook your beans. If using canned beans, drain and rinse two cans of beans and keep the liquid in one can; mix this with the sauce. 
  2. Mix the sauce: Add the beans and the ingredients for the sauce into a cast iron skillet or a disposable aluminum baking tin. 
  3. Pre-cook the bacon: cook the bacon slightly in a skillet over medium heat to render out a large portion of grease. Don’t cook the bacon to become crispy; that will happen in the smoker. 
  4. Top the beans: spoon the bacon onto the top of the beans and spread it into an even layer; this way, the flavor will seep down into the beans while the bacon cooks. 
Bacon being cooked to render fat in a skillet.
Baked beans in a skillet topped with bacon before cooking.
  1. Smoke: Place in smoker and cook at 250℉ for 2-3 hours uncovered until bacon is darkened and crispy on top.
  2. Remove from the smoker and allow to cool briefly before serving. 
  3. Stir when serving to mix in the bacon. 

Best Wood for Smoking Beans

Most hard or fruit woods will work for beans. Some options include: Oak, Hickory, Maple, Apple, or Cherry. Typically you can use whatever wood you already have going at the time. The only wood we don’t recommend is Mesquite since the flavoring can be too intense for the beans.

Variations:

  • Spice: up the heat in these beans by adding some sliced jalapeños in with the beans.
  • Ground Beef: if you want a hearty dish you can easily add add ground beef in with the beans.
  • No Outdoor Cooking Equipment: to skip using the smoker, you can easily make these baked beans in your oven, here’s our Oven Baked Beans recipe.
Crispy bacon on top of baked beans.

Storage Information

  • Refrigerator: store leftover beans in a sealed container in the refrigerator for 3-4 days.
  • Reheating: Place the beans in a pot on the stovetop and heat over medium heat until warmed through.
  • Freezer: these beans can be stored in the freezer. Allow the beans to cool down completely, then store in a sealed freezer safe container for up to 6 months. To thaw, remove to the refrigerator overnight.

More Smoker Recipes

Smoked Baked Beans

5 from 1 vote
Prep: 15 minutes
Cook: 3 hours
Total: 3 hours 15 minutes
Servings: 8
Author: Serene
These smoked baked beans are a delightful addition to any barbecue or gathering, bringing a unique twist to the classic comfort food. 
Cast iron skillet filled with baked beans topped with crispy bacon and coarse ground black pepper.

Ingredients  

  • 3 (15 ounce cans) navy beans
  • 1 teaspoon onion powder
  • cup light brown sugar
  • 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
  • 2 tablespoons molasses
  • 2 tablespoons bbq sauce
  • 1 teaspoon dried mustard
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • ½ teaspoon coarse ground black pepper plus extra for the top
  • ½ pound thick cut bacon chopped

Instructions 

  • Preheat smoker to 250 degrees F using either pecan, cherry, apple, maple or oak.
  • Drain and rinse two of the cans of beans, pour into a cast iron pot or skillet, or use a 8×8 disposable aluminum baking tin. Pour in the third can of beans with the liquid. Stir to combine. 
  • Add the onion powder, brown sugar, vinegar, molasses, bbq sauce, dried mustard, salt and pepper. 
  • Stir to combine. 
  • Cook bacon briefly in a skillet to render out some fat. Drain out the fat then place the bacon pieces on top of the beans.
  • Sprinkle the top with coarse black pepper.
  • Place in smoker and cook at 250℉ for 2-3 hours uncovered until bacon is darkened and crispy on top.
  • Remove from the smoker and allow to cool briefly before serving. 
  • Stir when serving to mix in the bacon. 

Notes

Navy Beans: can substitute canned beans for dried beans.
  1. Use 1 lb of dried beans. Soak the beans overnight.
  2. Cover with water and bring to a boil over medium heat. Let the beans cook for an hour.
  3. Strain the beans but reserve the cooking liquid and add 1 cup of the liquid back into the beans.
Storage:
  • Refrigerator: store leftover beans in a sealed container in the refrigerator for 3-4 days.
  • Reheating: Place the beans in a pot on the stovetop and heat over medium heat until warmed through.
  • Freezer: these beans can be stored in the freezer. Allow the beans to cool down completely, then store in a sealed freezer safe container for up to 6 months. To thaw, remove to the refrigerator overnight.

Nutrition

Calories: 179kcal | Carbohydrates: 15g | Protein: 4g | Fat: 11g | Saturated Fat: 4g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 5g | Trans Fat: 0.04g | Cholesterol: 19mg | Sodium: 383mg | Potassium: 160mg | Fiber: 0.2g | Sugar: 14g | Vitamin A: 20IU | Vitamin C: 0.1mg | Calcium: 23mg | Iron: 1mg

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

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Photography by the talented ModernFarmhouseEats.com


Welcome to my kitchen!

Welcome to the House of Yumm!! My name is Serene. I’m the food photographer, recipe developer, and official taste tester around these parts.

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