Somehow Allons-Eat! became 5 years old. How did that happen? Time sure does fly. Surprisingly, in 5 years we have yet to include a recipe for one of the most well-known summer cookout staples: baked beans.
Everyone (usually) has one or two recipes that only their mom can make just right. Kyle’s mom is renowned for her baked beans recipe. The recipe includes bacon, ground beef, garlic and onions that have all been slow cooked for hours with a variety of beans and spices. The end result is a smoky, slightly-sweet-slightly-spicy baked bean dish that can upstage any entree served alongside them.
Whether Kyle’s mom is inviting you to a summer cookout or she is going to one, it is just assumed she will be making a huge crock of her “Jean’s Beans” for the occasion. While the prep of the beans for the recipe is mostly hands-off, they do require a long cooking time, so some planning ahead is necessary. These beans are not suited for a quick weeknight meal. These beans need some love and some time to get them just right.
Kyle decided he wanted to capture the flavor of his mom’s beans in a recipe that didn’t require the hours-long cooking time. Just a little visit over to Smitten Kitchen and he found the solution. Included in her post for Minimalist Barbecue Sauce there is a stove-top miracle for “Fake” Baked Beans. This recipe helps transform a premeditated, make-ahead dish into a spur of the moment weekend side dish. These beans are not technically baked, but they still possess the same delicious flavors of their low-and-slow namesake.
Smitten Kitchen’s recipe was used as a jumping off point for Kyle’s beans. After tweaking the recipe and playing around with the flavors he worked to recreate Jean’s Beans without all the cooking time.
The first test batch was made with bacon, the second batch without. Surprise, surprise – the bacon wasn’t really missed in subsequent batches (what? that seems like crazy talk). But, for all our vegetarian followers, even the Worcestershire can be swapped for A1 steak sauce to make the dish completely vegetarian!!
One of the best things about this particular recipe is it’s versatility – especially with the type of beans you use. This batch consisted of red kidney and cannellini beans, but navy beans and pinto beans would also work great. In fact, during one test batch, after the onions and garlic were already sizzling on the stove, Kyle discovered he only had garbanzo beans on hand. Even though garbanzo beans are a tad unconventional, they tasted just as delicious as all the other bean batches.
So, even though entertaining is not quite the same this summer, this baked bean recipe will take your mini-cookout, even just for two, to another level. Enjoy!
Inspired by Smitten Kitchen.
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 small yellow onion (or ½ of a large one), minced
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- ¼ teaspoon cumin
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- ¼ ground black pepper
- 2 15-ounce cans of beans, drained and rinsed (I used a mix of red kidney and cannelini beans, but white navy beans or even garbanzo beans would work too!)
- 3 tablespoons ketchup
- 2 tablespoons dark brown sugar
- 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
- 1 teaspoon hot sauce (I used Chipotle Tabasco to enhance the smokiness)
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- 2 teaspoons soy sauce
- ½ cup water
- Heat oil in a medium saucepan over medium-low heat. Add onion and saute slowly until soft, about 5 to 8 minutes. Add garlic, paprika, cumin, salt and pepper and cook for another 2 to 3 minutes.
- Add beans, ketchup, sugar, vinegar, hot sauce, Worcestershire sauce, soy sauce and water and stir to combine. Increase heat to medium-high and bring mixture to a boil. Reduce heat back to medium-low and simmer, stirring occasionally, until the sauce becomes thick, about 10 minutes. Adjust seasoning with salt and pepper to taste.
joker izle says
Pretty! This was a really wonderful article. Thank you for providing this info. Darrelle Jarrid Aila