Favorite Baked Beans

Overhead view of baking dish with baked beans, topped with fresh parsley as a garnish.

5 from 1 vote

Favorite Baked Beans with Bacon! These are the baked beans that EVERYONE loves! Loaded with a sweet, brown sugar sauce and seasoned with black pepper bacon. These beans are the perfect side for all your BBQs

Prep Time20

Cook Time3 30

Total Time3 50

Course: Side Dish

Cuisine: American

Servings:

Author: Serene

Equipment

Ingredients

1 lb dried navy beans OR 4 (15 oz cans) navy beans
½ lb bacon peppered
½ cup yellow onion diced
½ cup light brown sugar
1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
2 tbsp molasses
¼ cup bbq sauce
1 tsp dried mustard
1 tsp salt (only use ½ tsp if using canned beans)
½ tsp coarse black pepper

Instructions

Using Dried Beans

Sort the dried beans ensuring no rocks and add to a large bowl. Cover with water and let soak overnight.
Drain the beans, rinse and add to a large pot. Cover with water and bring to a boil over medium heat. Let the beans cook for an hour.
Strain the beans but reserve the cooking liquid and add 1 cup of the liquid back into the beans.
Preheat oven to 300℉.
In a large skillet cook the bacon over medium heat until some grease renders out. Don't cook the bacon until crispy.
Remove the bacon from the skillet, add the diced onion and saute in the bacon grease until softened and translucent.
In the same large skillet, add the beans with liquid, and the ingredients for the sauce. Stir until combined.
Pour the beans and sauce into a 3 qt baking dish. Chop the pre-cooked baocn and spread on top of the beans. Cover with foil and bake for 2 hours.
Remove the foil and continue baking for 30-45 minutes until the bacon is crispy and sauce is thickened.

Using Canned Beans

Skip steps 1-4 above.
Preheat oven to 350℉.
When adding the beans to the skillet after sauteing the onion, keep the liquid in the beans from the cans. Use half the amount of salt when making the sauce.
Bake at 350℉ for 1 hour. Remove the foil and continue baking for 30 minutes until bacon on top is crispy and sauce is thickened.

Notes

Storage:

Leftovers: store in a sealed container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
Freezer: can be stored in the freezer for up to 3 months. Allow to thaw overnight in the refrigerator and reheat on stovetop or in the oven when ready to serve.

Nutrition