Make baked beans from scratch for your next holiday dinner or family barbecue! Navy beans are simmered in a rich, sticky sauce made with molasses, brown sugar, and bacon.
Elevate your baked beans recipe by making them from scratch! My recipe is simple and packs plenty of flavor from the addition of bacon, molasses, brown sugar, and onions.
Though it takes more time to make baked beans with dried beans, it's well worth the effort. The end result is a batch of tender baked beans in a sticky sauce that's mildly sweet and savory.
If you prefer less-sweet baked beans - try this recipe! It's got just enough sweetness without being overpowering. It's the perfect side dish for your next barbecue or family dinner.
Ingredients and substitutions
- Beans - You'll need 16 ounces of dry navy beans for this recipe. I recommend buying a new bag of dried navy beans for best success. Old beans (more than 1 year old) can have issues softening, no matter how long they're cooked. If you'd prefer to make this recipe with canned beans, you'll need four 15-ounce cans of navy beans.
- Bacon - Adds salty, savory, and smoky flavor to the baked beans. You could also add chopped ham and/or a leftover ham bone for extra flavor.
- Onion - Adds flavor to the beans. I don't recommend omitting the onion.
- Beef broth - Adds savory flavor and thins the sauce.
- Tomato sauce - The base of the sauce. Adds acidity and savory flavor.
- Apple cider vinegar - Adds tanginess to the sauce. Combined with the tomato sauce and brown sugar, it's similar to adding ketchup to baked beans.
- Brown sugar - Adds just enough sweetness without being overwhelming. If you prefer a sweet baked bean, add an extra ¼ cup of brown sugar to your recipe before baking.
- Molasses - Adds sweetness, flavor, and stickiness to the sauce.
- Seasoning - Chili powder, salt, and pepper add savory flavor to the baked beans.
- Dijon mustard - Adds tanginess to the baked beans. Dijon mustard could be substituted with yellow mustard if needed.
- Tomato paste - Adds concentrated savory flavor to the baked beans. I don't recommend omitting this ingredient.
Tips and tricks
Soak your beans - Do not skip the step of soaking and cooking your dried beans before beginning. Dried beans take time to soften and skipping these steps will result in hard, undercooked beans. If you don't have time to soak and cook your beans, use canned beans instead.
Beans won't soften? - If you've soaked and cooked your beans and they still feel like tiny, hard rocks, your beans may be old. Beans older than one year may not soften, no long how much they're cooked. One method that can sometimes work is to add ¼ teaspoon of baking soda to the water while soaking your beans. This helps break down the pectin and other minerals in the beans.
Sauce look thick? - Once you've poured your beans into the casserole dish, the sauce may look thick. Add ½ cup of water and stir to incorporate. As you check on your baked beans, you may want to add another ½ cup of water to keep the sauce to your desired consistency.
Storage
Leftover baked beans will keep for 3 to 4 days in a tightly sealed container in the refrigerator.
Baked beans also freeze well, up to 3 months in a freezer-safe container. To thaw, transfer to the refrigerator to thaw overnight.
Frequently asked questions
Yes! Baked beans can be made 1 to 2 days ahead of time. Prepare your baked beans as directed below. Before baking your casserole dish, cover and store in the refrigerator. On the day of serving, bake as directed below in the recipe card.
Aside from the beans, every ingredient in the recipe adds flavor. Omitting ingredients will result in a loss of flavor. To add more flavor to your sauce, sauté diced bell pepper or jalapenos along with the onion. You could also add a few dashes of your favorite hot sauce. For sweeter baked beans, double the listed brown sugar.
Yes. Substitute the dried beans with four 15-ounce cans of navy beans and skip the steps of soaking and simmering the beans.
Baked beans are typically made with navy beans. Navy beans, despite the name, are white beans that are slightly smaller than most other types of beans. You're welcome to make baked beans with any type of beans you have on hand, like cannellini beans, great northern beans, or even kidney beans.
Occasionally, older dried beans won't soften after soaking and simmering. It has nothing to do with the recipe itself, but the beans you have on hand. It can be hard to determine how long beans have been stored at the grocery store or in a warehouse, even when you've just purchased them. Try soaking your beans with ¼ teaspoon of baking soda. This helps break down the pectin and other minerals and soften the beans. If your beans still won't soften, you may need to replace them with a fresh bag.
Recommended
📖 Recipe
Baked Beans From Scratch
Ingredients
- 16 ounces dried navy beans
- 8 slices bacon, chopped
- 1 medium onion, diced
- 8 ounces tomato sauce
- 8 ounces beef broth
- ¼ cup (53 g) brown sugar
- ¼ cup (60 g) molasses
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
- 1 tablespoon dijon mustard
- 2 teaspoons chili powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon pepper
Instructions
Dry bean prep
- Add dry beans to a large stock pot and and cover with water 4 inches above the beans with extra room in the pan. Allow beans to soak on the counter top for 8 hours, or overnight.
- Drain and rinse beans, return to pot, and cover with water 2 inches above the beans. Bring to a simmer, cover, and reduce heat to low. Cook for 1 hour. Drain beans and set aside.
Baked beans
- Preheat oven to 325℉.
- Return pot to the stovetop over medium heat. Add diced bacon and cook until crispy. Remove bacon from the pan and set aside. Drain all but 2 tablespoons of bacon grease from the pan.
- Add onions and cook until lightly browned around the edges and tender, about 4-5 minutes. Remove from heat.
- Return the soaked beans and cooked bacon to the pan along with ½ cup of water and the remaining ingredients: tomato sauce, beef broth, brown sugar, molasses, tomato paste, apple cider vinegar, dijon mustard, chili powder, salt, and pepper. Stir to combine.
- Pour bean mixture into a 9x13 pan and spread into an even layer.
- Cover with foil and bake for 2 hours. Uncover, stir, and add a splash of water if the pan is looking dry.
- Remove foil and bake for another 30 minutes, or until sauce has thickened to your liking.
- Remove from oven and serve warm.
Equipment Recommendations
Notes
- Using canned beans: Skip the dry bean prep section of the recipe and replace the soaked beans with four 15-ounce cans of drained and rinsed navy beans.
- For sweeter baked beans: Double the listed brown sugar if you like sweet baked beans.
- Make ahead: To make baked beans 1-2 days ahead of time, prepare the recipe as written. Before baking your casserole dish, cover and store in the refrigerator. On the day of serving, bake as directed above.
- Leftovers: Leftover baked beans will keep for 3 to 4 days in a tightly sealed container in the refrigerator. Baked beans can also be frozen for up to 3 months. To thaw frozen baked beans, transfer to the refrigerator to thaw overnight.
I really liked this recipe. I had all ingredients on hand, since I left out the bacon, and brown sugar (so it wouldn't be too sweet). The sauce was so tangy!