Homemade Baked Beans Slow Cooked with Bacon and Molasses
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My youngest loves homemade baked beans and cornbread, possibly even more than he loves sloppy Joes. He’ll eat them for three meals a day if I let him. I like this recipe because of the earthy molasses, bacon (can’t go wrong with bacon) onions and garlic (don’t skimp on the onions, and use fresh garlic if you can). It’s a simple recipe but really tasty.
Homemade Baked Beans
Ingredients
1 lb. dried pinto or navy beans
½ lb. bacon (about 12 slices)
1 large onion, finely diced
3 tablespoons molasses
½ cup brown sugar
1 cup ketchup
1 teaspoon dry mustard
½ cup apple cider vinegar
1 teaspoon salt
1 ½ teaspoons ground black pepper
1 ½ tablespoons minced garlic or 1 teaspoon garlic powder
Directions
Place dried beans in a large bowl and add enough water to cover by 2-3 inches (about 8 cups). Let the beans soak overnight. (I put them in my 8 qt stockpot). Often I’ll use a mix of dried beans from the garden for a blend of different textures.
Drain and rinse the beans. Simmer beans in a heavy bottomed stockpot or Dutch oven with 8 cups of water and 1/4 cup of apple cider vinegar until tender, about 1 to 2 hours (longer is fine, especially if your beans are older). Don’t boil, as this may make your beans tougher.
Drain and set aside, reserving 2 cups of the cooking liquid.
Preheat oven to 350° F. Using a large, heavy pot or Dutch oven, cook the bacon until crisp, 7 or 8 minutes. Add the beans and all other remaining ingredients and bring to a simmer. Add some of the cooking liquid if the mixture is too thick.
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Note: If I’ve got the beans already in one pot on top of the stove, I’ll cook the bacon and onions separately and then add them and everything else to the bean pot.
Transfer pot to oven. Bake uncovered for 2-3 hours (or to desired thickness) until the beans are tender, stirring occasionally.
Makes 6-8 servings.
We’ve got a bake oven in the top of our masonry stove, so during the heating season I bake the beans in there in a stoneware pot. It gives them extra smokey goodness. When it’s not heating season, I bake them in the regular stove in my 5 Qt Dutch oven. I tried a thinner enameled pot, but a thicker pot works better because there is less risk of scorching. I like to cook them until they’re nice and mushy, but they don’t look as pretty in the photos.
I hope you and your family enjoy a little beans and corn bread, too.
PrintHomemade Baked Beans
Ingredients
- 1 lb. dried pinto or navy beans
- 1/2 lb. bacon (about 12 slices)
- 1 large onion, finely diced
- 3 tablespoons molasses
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 1 cup ketchup
- 1 teaspoon dry mustard
- 1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 1/2 teaspoons ground black pepper
- 1 1/2 tablespoons minced garlic or 1 teaspoon garlic powder
Instructions
- Place dried beans in a large bowl and add enough water to cover by 2-3 inches (about 8 cups).
- Let the beans soak overnight. (I put them in my 8 qt stockpot).
- Drain and rinse the beans.
- Simmer beans in a heavy bottomed stockpot or Dutch oven with 8 cups of water and 1/4 cup of apple cider vinegar until tender, about 1 to 2 hours (longer is fine, especially if your beans are older). Don’t boil, as this may make your beans tougher.
- Drain and set aside, reserving 2 cups of the cooking liquid.
- Preheat oven to 350° F.
- Using a large, heavy pot or Dutch oven, cook the bacon until crisp, 7 or 8 minutes.
- Add the beans and all other remaining ingredients and bring to a simmer.
- Add some of the cooking liquid if the mixture is too thick.
- (Note – If I’ve got the beans already in one pot on top of the stove, I’ll cook the bacon and onions separately and then add them and everything else to the bean pot.)
- Transfer pot to oven.
- Bake uncovered for 2-3 hours (or to desired thickness) until the beans are tender, stirring occasionally.
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Originally publish in 2012, updated January 2016.