Baked Beans

Baked Beans

Nothing rounds out a barbeque like baked beans.  Up until this spring I’d always bought the canned variety, which seemed pretty tasty.  We had a big barbeque in March and I decided to make some from scratch for the first time just for fun.  I found a slow cooker recipe on allrecipes to try (which means they technically are not baked).

There's that pulled pork from the Dry Rub post last week, all cooked up and covered in delicious coleslaw.

You will need

3 cups organic dry navy beans ($1.99 per lb, $1.99 x .656lb = $1.31)

1 ½ cups ketchup ($3.25 per 32oz, $3.25/3.31 cups = $.98 x 1.5cups = $1.47)

1 ½ cups water (free)

¼ cup molasses ($3.45 per 12fl.oz, $3.45/12fl.oz = $.29 x 2fl.oz = $.58)

1 large organic onion, diced ($1.20)

1 Tbsp dry mustard ($7.49 per lb, $7.49 x .016lb = $.12)

1 Tbsp salt ($.47 per 26oz, $.47/30.69tsp = $.02 x 3 = $.05)

6 slices thick local bacon, cut into ½ inch pieces ($9.99 per lb, $9.99 x .375lb = $3.75)

1 cup brown sugar ($.99 per 16oz, $.99/2.35 cups = $.42)

Not so pretty in the beginning, but you can see the potential.

Soak the beans overnight.  Drain the soaking water, and cook the beans in fresh water until tender (Not cooking the beans in the soaking water makes them less likely to give you gas, definitely worth the extra step!).  Drain the beans again, and dump them in the slow cooker with the remaining ingredients.  Cook on low for at least 8 hours, stirring occasionally. 

By the way- the original recipe calls for soaking the beans and then throwing them in the slow cooker with everything else.  There were a lot of comments that the beans never turned soft, and someone mentioned that this was because the acid in the ketchup kept the beans from cooking, so I cook them all the way through before putting them in the Crock Pot, and this could be done the night before if you wanted.    

Now your entire house smells delicious, and you get to take the credit for a dish that had about 5 minutes of hands on time.

I LOVE these.  They are sweet and saucy and pair perfectly with pulled pork.

Try It

$8.90 for 11 cups, or $.81/cup.

Buy It

$2.29 for 28oz of Bush’s Original, about 3 cups, or $.76/cup.

Verdict

These are a little more expensive to make, but the beans are organic, there is depth to the flavor of the sauce, and the bacon almost dissolves in the cooker, adding smoke and flavor as opposed to that gross fatty blob that floats in the canned stuff.  I will Try It from now on, they’re so good!


NEXT WEEK: Ketchup!