Growing up, my family, my friends’ families, and the folks at church all made baked beans with a little ground beef, diced onion, and diced green bell pepper. I didn’t know that wasn’t the way everyone made baked beans until much later in life, and I felt horrible knowing that so many people had not experienced that love. We always just called them “baked beans”, but to differentiate between just a pot of beans with maybe some brown sugar and bacon and this recipe, we’ll call them “loaded baked beans” from now on. Let’s get into it!
Your grocery list
Produce
- Medium onion
- Green bell pepper
- Portobello mushrooms
Dairy
- Unsalted butter
Pantry items
- Brown sugar
- Salt
- Pepper
- Garlic powder
Canned items
Equipment/tools you’ll need
- Cutting board and knife
- Large pot with lid (or aluminum foil for covering the pot)
- Slotted spoon
Step by step instructions for making loaded baked beans
Prep your ingredients
Dice one medium onion (yellow, sweet, or white will work fine for this recipe), one green bell pepper, and 1/2 cup of mushrooms (optional).
Brown the ground beef
Heat a large pot over medium heat and add ground beef (or turkey), breaking up the meat as it cooks. Season with 1/2 teaspoon each of salt, pepper and garlic powder. When there is no more pink left in the meat, drain at least half of the fat that has rendered in the pot. You can soak it up with a paper towel as well, but be careful!
Add vegetables and beans
Add diced onion, pepper, and mushroom (if using) to the pot and sauté for 2-3 minutes. Add canned baked beans of your choice and stir everything to combine.
Simmer and season to taste
Everything is already cooked, but you want to give the onion and pepper some time to soften a bit and the flavors to meld together. Cover and simmer for 10 minutes. Uncover and add brown sugar, butter, and salt to taste. For one large can of baked beans, I usually add 2-3 tablespoons of brown sugar, 1-2 tablespoons of butter, and a teaspoon of salt (or less). Cover and simmer for another 10-15 minutes to finish.
How to make baked beans from scratch
I make a lot of things from scratch, but baked beans isn’t often one of them. Canned baked beans can be “doctored up” and made into something special, but just in case you’re curious, here are the steps to making a batch from scratch.
- Start by soaking 1 pound of dried navy beans in water overnight. Drain the beans and then cook them in a pot of boiling water for 30 minutes.
- While the beans are cooking, prepare the sauce by sautéing 3 slices of chopped bacon and ¼ cup of chopped yellow onion in a large pan until the bacon is cooked through.
- Add ½ cup of tomato sauce, 1 tablespoon of brown sugar, 1 tablespoon of molasses, 1 tablespoon of maple syrup, 1 teaspoon of dried mustard, 1 tablespoon of apple cider vinegar, and 1 cup of apple juice to the pan and stir to combine.
- Add the cooked beans to the pan and mix well. Pour the mixture into a casserole dish and bake in the oven at 325°F for 2-3 hours until the beans are fully cooked and the sauce has thickened.
A full recipe and blog post is coming very soon.
Adjustments you can make
- Use ground turkey instead of ground beef
- Add a little kick with a pinch of red pepper flakes
- Garnish with crispy bacon or potato chips (don’t knock it til you try it!)
What to eat with your loaded baked beans
While baked beans like these can be eaten alone, they are also a great side dish. They pair nicely with smoked meats and barbecue, rice, macaroni and cheese, pasta salad, potato salad, and other Southern cookout staples.
How long will loaded baked beans keep?
Stored in an airtight container in the fridge, they are best eaten within 5 days.
Loaded Baked Beans
Equipment
- Cutting board and knife
- Large pot with lid Aluminum foil can be used as a lid as well
- Slotted spoon
Ingredients
- ½ lb. ground beef or turkey
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 medium onion
- 1 green bell pepper
- ½ cup mushrooms
- 1 large can Southern-style baked beans, 26 oz
- 2 tablespoons brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
Instructions
- Dice onion, green bell pepper, and mushrooms. Heat a large pot over medium heat and add ground beef (or turkey), breaking up the meat as it cooks.
- Season with salt, pepper and garlic powder. When there is no more pink left in the meat, drain at least half of the fat that has rendered in the pot.
- Add diced vegetables to the pot and sauté for 2-3 minutes. Add canned baked beans of your choice and stir everything to combine.
- Cover and simmer for 10 minutes. Uncover and add brown sugar, butter, and salt to taste.
- Cover and simmer for another 10-15 minutes to finish.
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