The Best Baked Beans You’ll Ever Make!
I feel so dang lucky because we are really good friends with a guy who makes the world’s best barbeque. He should really start a restaurant because he would just crush it. My husband and I love barbeque and have had it everywhere from Texas to the top rated ribs joint in St. Louis, Missouri and our friend Bryan’s barbeque beats them all!
We’ve known he makes the world’s best ribs for years and he just keeps adding to his repertoire. He’s since made us delicious pork belly, pulled pork and most recently they had us over to have a little Christmas get together and he was going to smoke a brisket. He got a new smoker recently and was gracious enough to share a 13 pound brisket with our family. He started smoking it at 6:00 am and it was ready to go that night at 8:00 pm. It was well worth the wait--it was perfect! The great thing about being friends with him is it works out well because he I love to make sides that go well with bbq, so he is kind and gracious enough to smoke a brisket all day in exchange for a huge bowl of potato salad with plenty of leftovers to spare for all.
I didn’t have enough time to make my potato salad this time and also have always wanted to try my hand at making baked beans, which is of course a perfect side dish for brisket. There is nothing better than a side of perfectly sweet and spicy baked beans. Look no further, my friends--I’ve got you covered with another fantastic 5-star recipe I found that I can’t wait to share with you.
This baked beans recipe is packed with tons of bacon and barbeque sauce to bring the perfect blend of sweet and savory. It has molasses and brown sugar and “backstage flavors” like mustard, cinnamon, red pepper flakes and smoked paprika to bring tons of depth and flavor. When you first taste these beans they taste really quite sweet and creamy, then follows a wave of mild spicy flavor that lingers and keeps you coming back for more! Overall I’d say they have quite a mild spice to them, even when you add the can of green chiles, but if you like them even spicier you can add tons of chili powder and hot sauce. You can easily make them vegetarian by omitting the bacon and using vegetable broth.
This baked beans recipe was written for the Instant Pot, which is what I was looking for--but it can be easily adapted for the slow cooker or even the stove top. You can make the beans completely from scratch with dry beans (no soaking!), or you can go the route I did and use canned beans. You simply pair it with your favorite bbq sauce, I used Sweet Baby Ray’s original sauce, cook up some crispy bacon to mix in at the end, and dump the rest of the ingredients in your Instant Pot and you have perfect “baked beans” in no time. Mine were ready in about 30 minutes since I used canned beans. This will be a recipe I will make again and again for years to come, I am sure! My husband said, “Don’t lose this recipe!!” It’s a good one.
When you initially cook the bacon, you can optionally drizzle a layer of maple syrup or sprinkle a little brown sugar (or do both) on your bacon before you cook it to add more depth to the flavors. This was the first time I did this and I loved the way it turned out. I make bacon quite often for big breakfasts on the weekends and I can’t wait to try this trick more often going forward.
What are your favorite side dishes to go with a barbeque meal? What is your favorite bbq meat to order or make? I don’t know if it gets any better than brisket! I’m going to have to ask my friend Bryan to share his secrets so I can share them with you guys some day. He is an amazing barbeque chef.
10 slices bacon
1 tablespoon brown sugar (optional)
2 tablespoons maple syrup (optional)
1 pound . pinto beans (dry*)
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
8 cups water or broth of choice
1 medium sweet onion (diced)
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1/2 cup brown sugar (use less, if you want to reduce sugar)
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1 tablespoon liquid smoke
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
2 tablespoons molasses
3/4 cup barbecue sauce
1 can (4 oz) diced green chiles, ( optional)
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground mustard
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1 cup water
Directions:
Notes:
*You can use canned beans, 3 cans (15.5 ounces each) of either northern, pinto or kidney beans. Also, you can use a combo of these. If using canned beans, skip the instructions for Cooking Dry Beans and jump to Make Baked Beans.
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We’ve known he makes the world’s best ribs for years and he just keeps adding to his repertoire. He’s since made us delicious pork belly, pulled pork and most recently they had us over to have a little Christmas get together and he was going to smoke a brisket. He got a new smoker recently and was gracious enough to share a 13 pound brisket with our family. He started smoking it at 6:00 am and it was ready to go that night at 8:00 pm. It was well worth the wait--it was perfect! The great thing about being friends with him is it works out well because he I love to make sides that go well with bbq, so he is kind and gracious enough to smoke a brisket all day in exchange for a huge bowl of potato salad with plenty of leftovers to spare for all.
I didn’t have enough time to make my potato salad this time and also have always wanted to try my hand at making baked beans, which is of course a perfect side dish for brisket. There is nothing better than a side of perfectly sweet and spicy baked beans. Look no further, my friends--I’ve got you covered with another fantastic 5-star recipe I found that I can’t wait to share with you.
This baked beans recipe is packed with tons of bacon and barbeque sauce to bring the perfect blend of sweet and savory. It has molasses and brown sugar and “backstage flavors” like mustard, cinnamon, red pepper flakes and smoked paprika to bring tons of depth and flavor. When you first taste these beans they taste really quite sweet and creamy, then follows a wave of mild spicy flavor that lingers and keeps you coming back for more! Overall I’d say they have quite a mild spice to them, even when you add the can of green chiles, but if you like them even spicier you can add tons of chili powder and hot sauce. You can easily make them vegetarian by omitting the bacon and using vegetable broth.
This baked beans recipe was written for the Instant Pot, which is what I was looking for--but it can be easily adapted for the slow cooker or even the stove top. You can make the beans completely from scratch with dry beans (no soaking!), or you can go the route I did and use canned beans. You simply pair it with your favorite bbq sauce, I used Sweet Baby Ray’s original sauce, cook up some crispy bacon to mix in at the end, and dump the rest of the ingredients in your Instant Pot and you have perfect “baked beans” in no time. Mine were ready in about 30 minutes since I used canned beans. This will be a recipe I will make again and again for years to come, I am sure! My husband said, “Don’t lose this recipe!!” It’s a good one.
When you initially cook the bacon, you can optionally drizzle a layer of maple syrup or sprinkle a little brown sugar (or do both) on your bacon before you cook it to add more depth to the flavors. This was the first time I did this and I loved the way it turned out. I make bacon quite often for big breakfasts on the weekends and I can’t wait to try this trick more often going forward.
What are your favorite side dishes to go with a barbeque meal? What is your favorite bbq meat to order or make? I don’t know if it gets any better than brisket! I’m going to have to ask my friend Bryan to share his secrets so I can share them with you guys some day. He is an amazing barbeque chef.
Best Instant Pot Baked Beans - No Soaking
Instant Pot Baked Beans are so easy to make, no need to soak them at all! This delicious homemade side dish is ready in about one hour! Author: Catalina Castravet Total Time: 1 hour 30 minutes
Prep time:
Serving size: 8
Calories per serving: 216
Ingredients:
Serving size: 8
Calories per serving: 216
10 slices bacon
1 tablespoon brown sugar (optional)
2 tablespoons maple syrup (optional)
1 pound . pinto beans (dry*)
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
8 cups water or broth of choice
1 medium sweet onion (diced)
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1/2 cup brown sugar (use less, if you want to reduce sugar)
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1 tablespoon liquid smoke
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
2 tablespoons molasses
3/4 cup barbecue sauce
1 can (4 oz) diced green chiles, ( optional)
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground mustard
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1 cup water
Directions:
Cook Bacon:
You can use pre-cooked bacon or you can brown it in the Instant Pot before adding the cooked beans. I prefer the oven method, here are the steps.
Preheat oven to 400°F. Arrange a rack in the lower third of the oven.
Line 1 baking sheet with aluminum foil. Lay the bacon onto a baking sheet in a single layer.
Sprinkle a little brown sugar over the bacon or drizzle a little maple syrup.
Bake until the bacon is deep golden-brown and crispy, 15 to 20 minutes. Begin checking around 12 minutes to monitor how quickly the bacon is cooking.
Remove from oven and set aside. When cooled chop into 1-inch pieces.
Cook Dry Beans:
Add dry beans, salt pepper, and 8 cups of liquid to the Pressure Cooker. Cover and make sure the valve points to Sealed. Cook on High Pressure for 25 minutes followed by a 20-25 minutes Natural Pressure Release.
Release manually the remaining pressure and carefully remove the lid.
Rinse the beans under cold water and drain.
Clean the pot and return it to the Instant Pot.
Make Baked Beans:
Add the cooked beans to the Instant Pot with the rest of the ingredients. Gently stir to combine. Cover with the lid and make sure the valve points to Sealed.
Cook on High Pressure for 10 minutes followed by a 10 minutes Natural Pressure Release.
Release manually the remaining pressure and carefully remove the lid.
Stir in the chopped cooked bacon.
If you would like to reduce the liquid, even more, you can select Sauté and cook the beans with the lid off on Sauté mode for 15 minutes, or until the liquid is reduced. You can also mix 1 tablespoon of cornstarch with 1 tablespoon of water and add the mixture to the beans to thicken the sauce.
Serve with extra bacon on top and fresh chopped parsley if desired.
Source: sweetandsavorymeals.com
You can use pre-cooked bacon or you can brown it in the Instant Pot before adding the cooked beans. I prefer the oven method, here are the steps.
Preheat oven to 400°F. Arrange a rack in the lower third of the oven.
Line 1 baking sheet with aluminum foil. Lay the bacon onto a baking sheet in a single layer.
Sprinkle a little brown sugar over the bacon or drizzle a little maple syrup.
Bake until the bacon is deep golden-brown and crispy, 15 to 20 minutes. Begin checking around 12 minutes to monitor how quickly the bacon is cooking.
Remove from oven and set aside. When cooled chop into 1-inch pieces.
Cook Dry Beans:
Add dry beans, salt pepper, and 8 cups of liquid to the Pressure Cooker. Cover and make sure the valve points to Sealed. Cook on High Pressure for 25 minutes followed by a 20-25 minutes Natural Pressure Release.
Release manually the remaining pressure and carefully remove the lid.
Rinse the beans under cold water and drain.
Clean the pot and return it to the Instant Pot.
Make Baked Beans:
Add the cooked beans to the Instant Pot with the rest of the ingredients. Gently stir to combine. Cover with the lid and make sure the valve points to Sealed.
Cook on High Pressure for 10 minutes followed by a 10 minutes Natural Pressure Release.
Release manually the remaining pressure and carefully remove the lid.
Stir in the chopped cooked bacon.
If you would like to reduce the liquid, even more, you can select Sauté and cook the beans with the lid off on Sauté mode for 15 minutes, or until the liquid is reduced. You can also mix 1 tablespoon of cornstarch with 1 tablespoon of water and add the mixture to the beans to thicken the sauce.
Serve with extra bacon on top and fresh chopped parsley if desired.
Source: sweetandsavorymeals.com
Recipe formatted with the Cook'n Recipe Software from DVO Enterprises.
*You can use canned beans, 3 cans (15.5 ounces each) of either northern, pinto or kidney beans. Also, you can use a combo of these. If using canned beans, skip the instructions for Cooking Dry Beans and jump to Make Baked Beans.
Sources:
- www.flickr.com
- www.commons.wikimedia.org
- www.sweetandsavorymeals.com
Mary Richardson
Weekly Newsletter Contributor since 2014
Email the author! mary@dvo.com
