Baked Beans from Scratch

Make a delicious homemade baked beans recipe! It is easier than you think to make Baked Beans from Scratch.

Forget the can, make your baked beans from scratch

I am all about a cooking shortcut, but sometimes you need to take your time and make a recipe from scratch. These baked beans from scratch are going to blow your mind.

They are loaded with flavor AND although it might seem like a lot of work, they don’t take that much on hand effort. Soak your beans overnight and then do about 20 minutes of sautéing the next day.

Then, slow cook the beans in the oven for a few hours. Your house will smell incredible and you will be left with thick, rich homemade baked beans. Your barbecue guests will be blown away at how delicious these beans taste.

Kitchen tools

• Mixing bowls
• Measuring spoons, measuring cups and liquid measuring cup
• Dutch oven or other oven safe pot
• Whisk
• Sharp knife and cutting board
• Large mixing spoon

How to serve

Homemade baked beans are the ultimate summer barbecue side dish. You will fall in love with the deep rich flavor of these homemade beans and want to serve them with EVERYTHING!

Here are some of my favorite protein packed dishes to serve with these beans:

• Air Fryer Ribs
• Perfectly Grilled Steak
• Marinated Grilled Chicken Thighs
• Grilled Lemon Pepper Chicken Wings

Can i make these in the slow cooker?

Yes! One of the best way to make homemade baked beans is in the slow cooker or crockpot.

After you soak the beans, set them aside. Saute the garlic, onion and bacon on the stovetop. Then, mix all other ingredients together in the slow cooker.

Slow cook over low heat for at least 6 hours. After 6 hours taste the beans to make sure they are tender before turning off the heat.

Ingredients

• Navy beans
• Bacon
• Garlic and sweet onion
• Ketchup, molasses, brown sugar, white vinegar, mustard and worcestershire sauce
• Smoked paprika and salt
• Chicken broth

Can i make these vegetarian?

Skip the pork and make this bean recipe vegetarian. To make a vegetarian bake beans recipe simply omit the bacon and replace the chicken broth with vegetable broth.

If you want to add more of the smokey flavor that the bacon adds, you can try using some extra smoked paprika OR a little bit of liquid smoke.

Ingredient substitutions

You should follow this recipe closely in order to make the best baked beans, but there are a few substitutions. I like to use navy beans for this recipe, but you can use any white bean like cannellini or great northern beans.

You can use maple syrup in place of molasses, but the beans will not have as deep of a syrupy flavor.

Do you have to soak beans before making baked beans?

Yes! If you want to cook beans from raw, you must soak them for no less than 12 hours in order for them to be tender.

If you try to skip this step and cook them without soaking, they will be too tough and not the proper texture when cooked.

How to make baked beans recipe from scratch

Step 1: soak and cook navy beans

To begin, soak the navy beans. Cover the beans in 2-3 inches of water.

More water than you think, they’ll soak a lot up! Soak them overnight. They can soak for up to 24 hours, but no less than 12 hours

Then, drain the beans and add them to a large pot and cover with water. Bring to a boil, then reduce to simmer and allow to simmer for 2 hours, until softened.

Step 2: Saute on stove top

Next, drain the beans once again and set aside. Preheat the oven to 325F.

In a large dutch oven or other oven-proof pot, add the diced bacon and cook until crispy. Remove with a slotted spoon. Leave about 1-2 tbsp of bacon grease in the pot, but you can discard the rest.

Then, while the bacon is cooking, stir together the remaining ingredients in a mixing bowl and set aside. Add in the onion and garlic to the dutch oven and saute in the bacon grease until soft, about 5 minutes.

Step 3: Slow cook in the oven

Add the beans and the bacon back in. Stir in the sauce and broth that you’ve mixed together. It’ll probably be quite liquidy at this point, but will thicken up significantly in the oven.

Cover the pot and move it into the oven. Allow it to bake for at least 2-3 hours, stirring every 45 minutes to an hour or so. 

Once the beans are thickened and very tender, they’re ready to serve!

Storage and reheating

Allow the homemade baked beans to cool completely and then transfer to an airtight container. Sore in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.

Reheat on the stove top in a pot or in the microwave. Cook until just warmed through and serve.

Check out these other BBQ side dishes

• Summer Corn Salad
• Quinoa Chickpea Salad
• Grilled Watermelon Salad
• Herb and Mustard Potato Salad

You can find the full recipe below. If you make this recipe, please rate and review it in the comments, or share it with me on Instagram!

Recipe

Baked Beans from Scratch

★★★★★ 5 from 1 review

This homemade baked beans recipe will change the way you look at a can of baked beans

Recipe By: Madeline

Prep: 20 minutesCook: 4 hoursTotal: 4 hours 20 minutes

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Servings: 8 servings 1x

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Ingredients

• 1 lb dried navy beans
• 1/2 lb bacon, diced
• 2–3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 small sweet onion, finely diced
• 1/2 cup ketchup
• 1/2 cup molasses
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 2 tbsp mustard
• 3 tbsp white vinegar
• 2 tbsp worcestershire sauce
• 1 tbsp smoked paprika
• 1 tbsp salt
• 3 cups chicken broth

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Instructions

1. Cover the beans in 2-3 inches of water (more water than you think, they’ll soak a lot up!) and soak them overnight. They can soak for up to 24 hours, but no less than 12 hours
2. Drain the beans and add them to a large pot and cover with water. Bring to a boil, then reduce to simmer and allow to simmer for 2 hours, until softened.
3. Drain the beans once again and set aside.
4. Preheat the oven to 325F.
5. In a large dutch oven or other oven-proof pot, add the diced bacon and cook until crispy. Remove with a slotted spoon. Leave about 1-2 tbsp of bacon grease in the pot, but you can discard the rest.
6. While the bacon is cooking, stir together the remaining ingredients in a mixing bowl and set aside.
7. Add in the onion and garlic to the dutch oven and saute in the grease until soft, about 5 minutes. Add the beans and the bacon back in. Stir in the sauce and broth that you’ve mixed together. It’ll probably be quite liquidy at this point, but will thicken up significantly in the oven.
8. Cover the pot and move it into the oven. Allow it to bake for at least 2-3 hours, stirring every 45 minutes to an hour or so. 
9. Once the beans are thickened and very tender, they’re ready to serve!

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.