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Baked Beans Recipe – sweet, tangy, & easy!

4.63
/5
2 hrs 10 mins
17 Comments
Jump to Recipe Video
By: Rachel GurkPosted: 08/04/2021Updated: 07/25/2022

This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my disclosure policy.

Beans in a bowl, text overlay reads "the best baked beans."
Beans in a bowl, text overlay reads "the best baked beans."
Beans in a bowl, text overlay reads "the best baked beans."
close up of beans, text overlay reads "the best baked beans."

Popular at picnics and potlucks, this baked beans recipe is sweet and tangy, and just watch those beans disappear. Everyone loves them!

Recipe Overview

Why you’ll love it: They’re a potluck and BBQ super star!

How long it takes: just over two hours, mostly hands off
Equipment you’ll need: baking dish, small bowl, and a spoon
Servings: 8 generous servings

Close up of homemade baked beans with bacon on a wooden spoon.
Table of Contents
open
  • 1 Recipe Overview
  • 2 About these baked beans
  • 3 What You’ll Need
  • 4 How to make baked beans
  • 5 FAQs
  • 6 Make It Your Own
  • 7 Looking for a slow cooker recipe?
  • 8 Make-Ahead Ideas
  • 9 Storage & Reheating Tips
  • 10 Warning!
  • 11 More bean recipes
  • 12 Get the Recipe: Baked Beans Recipe – sweet, tangy, & easy!

Homemade baked beans are just the greatest!  I’m a big fan of all things baked beans (yes, even canned) but really nothing beats homemade. These baked beans are the perfect combination of sweet and tangy and I could eat the whole pan but that might be a potentially bad situation.

Bring these baked beans to your next family party, reunion, potluck, or picnic. I guarantee you won’t be bringing any home with you. Everyone will be asking for your recipe. They go great with grilled burgers, hot dogs and sloppy Joes.

One thing I really like about these beans is that they aren’t super runny. Sometimes you almost need a bowl for your beans or the juice runs all over your plate. This recipe makes a thicker, more sticky baked bean casserole that stays put on your plate. That is, until you shovel them into your mouth.

For a really traditional picnic, serve baked beans with homemade creamy potato salad and classic coleslaw. These mini patriotic fruit tarts are perfect for Memorial Day or Fourth of July celebrations and they’re super simple and festive.

P.S. Love traditional dishes like baked beans? Try homemade meatloaf, tuna casserole, or cheesy potatoes. For dessert, Texas sheet cake is a traditional favorite.

Overhead view of baked beans filling image.

About these baked beans

These beans are easy to make. It shouldn’t take you more than fifteen minutes to prepare them. However, they do need to bake awhile, two hours, more or less. Don’t worry about timing things exactly. Baked beans are pretty easy going.

Here’s a quick rundown of the recipe with a few extra tips and ideas.

As always, you’ll find the complete printable recipe with complete instructions, measurements, and nutrition information near the end of this post.

What You’ll Need

  • Canned beans: A large jar of great Northern beans, along with over-sized butter beans, gives a nice textural contrast. If you’d prefer to use all great Northern beans, that’s totally fine too. Whatever type you use, make sure to rinse and drain them.
  • Onion: Lots of chopped onion go into these beans. They’ll cook down so don’t worry about finding chunks of onion in the beans. Any type of onion works, but we love a sweet onion.
  • Bacon: Bacon adds a nice smoky salty flavor to the beans. Keep reading for variations.
  • Ketchup: A good amount of ketchup adds tomato tanginess and gives the beans a nice saucy consistency. We like to choose a variety without high-fructose corn syrup, but pick your favorite.
  • Dark Brown Sugar: Light brown sugar can be substituted, too. Adjust the amount according to how sweet you like baked beans.
  • Molasses: You’ll find that molasses adds so much flavor to beans. Don’t skip the molasses!
  • Dijon Mustard: Really, any type of mustard is fine. Even dried mustard would work for this recipe.
  • White Vinegar: Vinegar contributes to the tanginess of the beans. Other types of vinegar are fine, too, especially cider vinegar. Avoid balsamic vinegar.
Overhead view of ingredients needed for recipe.

How to make baked beans

Basically, there are two easy steps to prepare the beans for baking. Mix the beans, diced bacon, and chopped onion in a large baking dish. There’s no need to cook the bacon first.

Beans, uncooked bacon, and onions in a baking dish.

Next, mix the sauce ingredients together in a small bowl or large measuring cup: ketchup, brown sugar, molasses, mustard and vinegar.

Sauce being whisked together in a small glass bowl.

Pour the sauce over the beans, bacon, and onions.

Sauce poured over beans.

Stir until everything is good and mixed up.

Uncooked beans in a blue casserole dish.

Bake the beans in your oven. Give them a stir halfway through the cooking time. If the beans seem like they’re getting dry, cover them with foil. Sometimes, I cover the beans with foil for the first hour, and then bake them uncovered for the last hour. It’s up to you. It kind of depends on how saucy you like your beans. 

Very close up view of baked great northern and butter beans.

FAQs

Are baked beans healthy?

Beans are a good source of plant protein and fiber, along with many nutrients (Healthline). They can be low in calories depending on what’s added to them. Often canned baked beans have a lot of added sodium so it’s healthier to make your own. Just remember that adding a lot of sugar and bacon, while making the beans really tasty, may detract from the health benefits of baked beans.

How do I make baked beans thicker?

If you cover the beans during the baking time, they will be juicier. If you like them thicker, or not as saucy, leave them uncovered the entire baking time.

What is the difference between Boston baked beans and baked beans?

Interestingly, the city of Boston in Massachusetts, has a nickname of “Beantown” because of their famous baked beans. Dating back to colonial times, early settlers learned from Native Americans how to grow and cook nutritious dried beans. Using molasses as a sweetener, often the beans were started on Saturday night to be eaten on the Sabbath. Boston baked beans are still traditionally made with dried navy beans (a small white bean), molasses, and salt pork, and are baked for a long period of time. If you like, try these Boston Baked Beans by Serious Eats.
Most baked beans recipes today are more tangy and usually include brown sugar, vinegar, ketchup, and bacon. There are many recipes which are often passed down from generation to generation. Often baked beans aren’t baked at all but cooked in a slow cooker or on the stovetop.

Make It Your Own

  • Make vegetarian baked beans by omitting the bacon.
  • If you’re not a fan of bacon but still want meaty beans, try ground beef, turkey, or sausage. Brown before adding it to the beans. Link sausages can be added as well, or even hot dogs. Some people like to place the bacon strips on top of the beans instead of mixing it in.
  • Substitute different types of canned beans. If you’d rather start with dry beans, cook them as directed on the package before proceeding with this recipe. An Instant Pot works great for cooking dried beans quickly.
  • Looking for a new twist? Try frijoles borrachos (drunken beans) with a southwestern flair.
image of slow cooker baked beans in a white slow cooker with a wooden spoon

Looking for a slow cooker recipe?

Try Crock Pot Baked Beans. The recipe is very similar but has a lesser amount of sauce ingredients since the slow cooker locks in all the moisture. It’s great for parties because it will stay warm all evening if you leave the slow cooker on warm.

Get the Recipe
Baked beans in a small white bowl.

Make-Ahead Ideas

While the beans really don’t take too long to put together, if you want to get a jump on things, get them ready to bake up to a day ahead and refrigerate in a covered container.

If you’re using a glass baking dish, let it come to room temperature for 15-20 minutes so that it doesn’t break when you place it in your hot oven.

Storage & Reheating Tips

Store leftover baked beans in a covered container in the fridge for up to 5 days. If they seem a little drier, add a bit of water or broth before reheating. Reheat on the stove or in the microwave until heated through.

Warning!

Reheating over low heat on the stovetop is the best method, but sometimes the microwave is just quicker and easier.

However, beans tend to explode when heated in the microwave so cover the dish to save yourself clean-up time, and don’t overheat.

More bean recipes

Baked beans aren’t the only way to eat beans. I try to incorporate beans into my menu whenever I can. They are really good for you! Try:

  • Instant Pot Black Bean Soup (no need to soak beans)
  • Bean and Bacon Soup (canned or dry beans) — similar to the canned version but lots better!
  • Air Fryer Chickpeas — a crispy snack
  • Quinoa Chickpea Salad with Blackberries & Candied Pepitas
  • Moroccan Stew with Butternut Squash and Chickpeas
  • 7 Layer Dip Recipe THE BEST!
  • Black Bean Dip Recipe — also a great sandwich spread!
  • Ground Turkey Soup with Beans & Spinach (20 minutes!) — one of my most requested recipes!
  • 15 Bean Soup
  • Vegetarian Tacos with Delicata Squash and Black Beans

Did you make this? Be sure to leave a review below and tag me @rachelcooksblog on Facebook, Instagram, or Pinterest!

Close up view of baked beans on a wooden spoon.
Recipe

Get the Recipe: Baked Beans Recipe – sweet, tangy, & easy!

4.63 from 8 votes
Prep Time: 10 mins
Cook Time: 2 hrs
Total Time: 2 hrs 10 mins
8 servings
Print Rate Recipe
Prevent your screen from going dark
Popular at picnics and potlucks, this baked beans recipe is sweet and tangy, and just watch those beans disappear. Everyone loves them!

Ingredients

  • 1 jar (48 oz). great Northern beans, rinsed and drained
  • 1 can (15.25 oz.) butter beans, rinsed and drained
  • 2 cups finely diced yellow onion (about 2 medium onions)
  • 6 oz. sliced bacon, cut into 1-inch pieces
  • 1 ½ cups ketchup
  • 1 cup packed dark brown sugar
  • ⅓ cup molasses
  • 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
  • 4 tablespoons white vinegar

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 325ºF.
  • Add beans, onion, and bacon to a 9×13-inch baking dish; mix.
  • In a small bowl, stir together ketchup, molasses, mustard, vinegar, and brown sugar. Pour over bean mixture and mix until evenly distributed.
  • Place beans in oven and bake for 2 hours, stirring once halfway through baking time.

Notes

  • Yield: 7 cups. 
  • For vegetarian baked beans, omit bacon.
  • Other types of canned beans may be substituted.

Nutrition Information

Calories: 356kcal, Carbohydrates: 63g, Protein: 12g, Fat: 8g, Saturated Fat: 3g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 5g, Cholesterol: 21mg, Sodium: 990mg, Fiber: 4g, Sugar: 47g

This website provides approximate nutrition information for convenience and as a courtesy only. Nutrition data is gathered primarily from the USDA Food Composition Database, whenever available, or otherwise other online calculators.

© Author: Rachel Gurk
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  1. Sarah Ladouceur says

    July 9, 2022 at 12:05 am

    Can I can this after I make it??? I really love this recipe! I’d love to be able to can it and make it shelf stable somehow instead of buying cans of beans.

    Reply
    • Rachel Gurk says

      July 14, 2022 at 9:54 am

      I haven’t canned these and I’m not an expert on canning, so unfortunately I can’t give you any guidance here. Maybe google it?

      Reply
  2. Judith says

    May 30, 2022 at 1:29 pm

    5 stars
    I (we) LOVE these beans!!The sauce is sooo good I made yesterday for our pool party at my sons, everyone loved it! I only got like a tbsp. So I’m making them right now in this 80 something heat with air conditioners on. Yummy❤️Ty for this recipe!!

    Reply
    • Rachel Gurk says

      June 2, 2022 at 7:58 am

      Perfect for a pool party! I’m glad they were a hit. Thank you for taking the time to leave a review!

      Reply
  3. Janet says

    June 29, 2011 at 2:30 pm

    I am considering making these for this 4th of July weekend. Was wondering if these would be easy to make a day (or two) ahead of time, and then reheat. Comments? Thanks!

    Reply
    • Rachel says

      June 29, 2011 at 5:57 pm

      Sure, I don’t see why not. We had some leftover and they were great!

      Reply
  4. Lauren at Keep It Sweet says

    June 3, 2011 at 1:29 am

    I love baked beans but have never made them from scratch. This looks pretty easy and delicious!

    Reply
  5. Olga @ mangotomato says

    June 2, 2011 at 8:18 pm

    I really like the redesign, the new name and the header!
    Did not do anything for Memorial day: it was way too hot. So I stayed in AC’ed condo and organized my closets ;)

    Reply
    • Rachel says

      June 2, 2011 at 8:20 pm

      Thank you so much. I really appreciate you saying that. I thought “Rachel’s Recipe Reviews” was a little too dull. Sounds like you had a good Memorial Day–works for me! I worked, woohoo….

      Reply
  6. Mom says

    June 1, 2011 at 11:36 pm

    These were really yummy! Much, much, much better than canned. They’re pretty forgiving–you can add what you like.

    Reply
  7. thehealthyapron says

    June 1, 2011 at 2:09 pm

    I need to try making these sometime! I used to love baked beans (but those were from a can!) I like that you made yours homemade!!

    Reply
  8. Brittany (A Healthy Slice of Life) says

    June 1, 2011 at 1:13 pm

    So cute!! Love your new design/look/name/etc!

    And those beans don’t look too bad either :)

    Reply
  9. Krista {Budget Gourmet Mom} says

    May 31, 2011 at 9:01 pm

    I have never made baked beans from scratch but these sound so easy and delicious that I may give it a try! I’ll have to watch out for leftovers though!

    Reply
  10. Geni says

    May 31, 2011 at 3:13 pm

    Love the new site and the new name…very catchy and cute! I am so happy to have a tried and true homemade baked bean recipe. I never have made them from scratch and yours looks finger licking good, but I suppose I shouldn’t eat the beans with my hands…right?

    Reply
    • Rachel says

      May 31, 2011 at 3:15 pm

      Go for it! I won’t judge ;)

      Reply
  11. Brooke @ Veggie Table says

    May 31, 2011 at 2:21 pm

    Looks yum (minus the bacon, haha)! We celebrated MD with veggie burgers, brewskis, and patio time – it’s soooo hot/humid/smothering in lower Alabama that we didnt get to spend as much time outside as we originally planned but did manage to at least eat lunch on the patio. Short week!!!! :)

    Reply
  12. Nutmeg Nanny says

    May 31, 2011 at 2:07 pm

    Love! I made homemade baked beans for the first time last year too! I love that you added butter beans…yum! Also those chunks of bacon are calling my name….. :)

    Reply

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