The Ultimate Easy BBQ Baked Beans
These easy baked beans are so flavorful and delicious, not to mention easy to make. They are the ultimate side dish, and an excellent addition to summer barbecues and parties. These BBQ baked beans are a family favorite.
Serve them with Baby Back Ribs, Summer Coleslaw, Corn on the Cob, and Eclair Ice Box Cake for the ultimate summer feast.
The Ultimate Easy BBQ Baked Beans
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Background:
The first time I decided to make The Ultimate Easy BBQ Baked Beans I realized that everyone on the planet claims that theirs are the best. Some people mix in various mustards, or liquors, or molasses, or brown sugar, or both. Southern Baked Beans, BBQ Baked Beans, Easy Baked Beans.
There are a ton of variations, from baked beans with bacon, to baked beans with sausage, to baked beans with salt pork or short ribs. And they all claim to be the best. And chances are, they are all pretty good.
Because there were so many options, I knew I had to make my own and experiment to find the “ultimate” recipe. The recipe that offers the perfect combination of sweet, tangy, and hearty, with some salty bacon, or some flavorful sausage.
So, I took all the best parts of the other “WORLD’S BEST BAKED BEANS” and made the ultimate recipe. One that always has my family licking their plates clean, and my friends begging for more.
Not only are theseThe Ultimate Easy BBQ Baked Beans actually baked, but they also combine sweetness, heat, vinegar, and many other delightful flavors that all combine to make something truly magical.
My family wants these to make an appearance at every BBQ we throw over the summer. Pretty sure they would have eaten the whole pan themselves if I would have let them. But of course, I wanted some of them too!
To really crack the case on making the best beans in the business, you’ve got to pay close attention to the extra added instruction below, these tips can really help bring your beans to the next level, and be the reason why this is the recipe you come to over and over again.
BBQ Baked Beans Tips
- Simmer and Bake: To get The Ultimate Easy BBQ Baked Beans , you need to first simmer all the ingredients in a letting flavors meld and combine, then bake to finish them off. Trust the process. They are going to smell amazing, and you are going to think you can skip the baking and just eat them out of the pot. But baking your baked beans adds a little something extra, so don’t skip it!
- Start with great beans: I use Bush’s Baked Beans because the better ingredients you start with, the better the finished product will be. So use the best bacon you can get your hands on, the best sausage, the best onions, and of course the best beans!
- Garnish: It is amazing what a little bit of freshness, like green onion, can do to lift the flavors. They are rich, heavy, and ultimately delicious baked beans, but adding a little garnish gives them a little light refreshing burst!
- Too runny?: If your beans end up too juicy for your liking, just pour off the excess liquids into a separate saucepan. Next, mix a small amount of cold water and a tablespoon or two of cornstarch. Stir the starch into the juices and simmer them on the stovetop until the sauce thickens, then stir that mixture back into your beans. Voila!
Recipes that Go Well with Baked Beans
- Light Creamy Cucumber Salad
- Pineapple Limeade
- Slow Cooker Hawaiian Pineapple Ribs
- BBQ Beef Sandwich
- Eclair Ice Box Cake
Other great sides for BBQ’s:
- Cheddar Bacon Florida Sweet Corn
- Red Bliss Potato Salad with Dill
- Spiced Sweet Potato Wedges
- Classic Mustard Potato Salad
- Mexican Corn Salad
The Ultimate Easy BBQ Baked Beans
Ingredients
- 1 Tbs olive oil
- 1 small yellow onion finely chopped
- 1 pound hot Italian sausage
- 1 red bell pepper cored, seeded, and finely chopped
- 1 yellow bell pepper cored, seeded, and finely chopped
- 1 can pork and beans 16 ounces
- 1 can Bush's Original Baked Beans 24 ounces
- 1 cup barbecue sauce
- ½ cup ketchup
- 1 Tbs whole grain or dijon mustard
- 2 Tbs spicy brown mustard
- 2 Tbs Worcestershire sauce
- 1 Tbs soy sauce
- 1 tsp chili powder
- 2 Tbs molasses
- 4 Tbs brown sugar
- 8 slices bacon cooked until crispy
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and spray a 9x13 baking dish with cooking spray.
- In a large heavy bottom Dutch Ovenadd 1 Tbs olive oil, and the onions, after 3-5 minutes add in Italian sausage.
- Brown the Italian sausage, and when half done, add in the bell peppers.
- Cook until sausage is fully browned, and veggies are soft.
- Drain meat mixture.
- Add the beans, barbecue sauce, ketchup, mustard, other mustard, Worcestershire sauce, soy sauce, chili powder, molasses and brown sugar to the sausage and onions and peppers.
- Simmer mixture for 5 minutes.
- Pour mixture into a baking dish.
- Cook bacon until nice and crispy.
- Sprinkle the bacon pieces over the top of the bean mixture.
- Cover and cook for 40-45 minutes.
- After 45 minutes, remove the foil and continue to bake for an additional 10 minutes.
- Let sit for a few minutes, and then serve.
Nutrition
Our recipe card software calculates these nutrition facts based on averages for the above ingredients, different brands, and quality of produce/meats may have different nutritional information, always calculate your own based on the specific products you use in order to achieve accurate macros for this recipe.
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Lindsay | With Salt and Pepper says
I think ‘best’ is overused and love that you came up with the ‘ultimate’! Baked beans are a necessity at out BBQ’s and I’m always looking for new recipes to spruce them up. These sound amazing!
Jessica F. says
What brand BBQ sauce do you use? So many different ones.
Rachael says
I used Sweet Baby Rays Original
Marianne says
I used Bull’s-Eye Hickory Smoke and everyone loved them. I’m sure you could use any BBQ sauce you like and you’ll like the beans just as well.
Carol Wolff says
These look delicious. I have been looking for a good bean recipe. Do you drain the beans?
Rachael says
Hi Carol, I don’t, but the end results are rather runny, so if you don’t like a runny baked bean, feel free to drain first.
Kelly says
I make these often… These are delicious
Tami says
Can you make them ahead? I’ll do them on the stove top, chill then use a Crock-Pot the next day.
Or should I bake them, chill and put into a Crock-Pot?
Rachael says
You sure can! And it is nice because the flavors meld even more! You could do it either way, but it is fine to not bake them before hand, and just cook in the slow cooker.
Pam says
Can these be made ahead of time and baked the next day? Sound so good!
Rachael says
yes! And they will be so good.
Marianne says
Yum yummy recipe to be sure! And It is a fairly easy one (although a 10 minute prep time is completely inaccurate because of all the chopping and measuring required). Nonetheless, five star recipe for sure!
Rachael says
Thank you. I will have to adjust the prep time. I am glad you liked the recipe.
Pam says
Can these be fixed ahead of time and baked the next day? Sound delicious.
Rachael says
They sure can!
Jennifer says
These sound amazing, has anyone used something other than Italian Sausage?
Rachael says
You can use any ground sausage. Sometimes I use a sweeter one, like a maple sausage.
Natalie Marshall says
I’ve made these several times & my friends request them for all our bbqs! Making today yummm. Thank you!
Betty says
Try not to eat too much bacon. Could I substitute turkey bacon instead?
Rachael says
yes you can!