Baked Beans

The family likes baked beans, but even the best store bought ones tend to be very watery. For a burgers and hot dogs meal on the grill recently, I decided to try to make my own baked beans.

The recipe below is adapted from what I first tried, and is an effort to make the beans a little less sweet and a little spicier.

Ingredients:

• ~6 oz bacon, sliced into thin strips (8-9 pieces)
• 1 large onion, small dice
• 1/2 cup ketchup
• 1 cup tomato puree (unseasoned)
• 1/2 cup dark brown sugar
• 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
• 1 TB Worcestershire sauce
• 1 tsp kosher salt
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
• 4 cans light red kidney beans (~14 oz each can)

[Preheat oven to 325 degrees F]
Step 1 - Render the bacon in an oven proof pot for 7 or 8 minutes until beginning to crisp up. Then add the onion to the pot for another 5 minutes or so to soften.

Rendered bacon and softened onion

Step 2 - Mix all liquids and spices (everything else but the beans) in a bowl. This is basically a homemade barbecue sauce base... Add the sauce to the pot and bring to a simmer.

Everybody in the pool

Step 3 - Add the beans (drained and rinsed) to the pot. Stir to mix everything together. Cover and put in the 325 degree oven for an hour. At the end of an hour, remove the lid and cook for another 15-20 minutes to thicken the sauce.

An hour and twenty minutes of baking later

The beans were very good, but as originally made were a little sweeter than I would prefer, and could have used a little more spice. For the recipe given above, I have replaced some of the ketchup (with its high sugar content) with additional tomato puree, added the cumin, and upped the amount of cayenne.

This is a very easy recipe that takes almost no prep, and basically just sits in the oven untouched until done. The only downside is that you need to start about two hours before you want to eat...