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Boston Baked Beans are made with navy beans that are cooked low and slow in the oven in a rich, sweet sauce made with molasses, brown sugar, and maple syrup.
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Classic Boston Baked Beans
Today we’re sharing our own ‘secret family recipe’ for Boston Baked Beans. This is a recipe that Jack has perfected over the years, and it’s so much better than any canned baked beans you can buy.
Boston Baked Beans are one of those dishes that I never really liked – until I ate Jack’s recipe! Sure, I ate canned baked beans on occasion, and I just never understood what the fuss was all about.
But Jack’s Boston Baked Beans are tender and delicious – and the sauce is rich and sweet thanks to a combination of salt pork, onion, molasses, brown sugar, and maple syrup. The sauce gets an even more amazing depth of flavor from Dijon mustard, ketchup, dry mustard, Worcestershire sauce and a hint of vinegar.
Reader Review
“Best Boston baked beans recipe yet. I make them every couple of months. Brings me right back to Mom’s homemade Boston baked beans when I was a kid.” -Shirley
Why You’ll Love Boston Baked Beans
The combination of flavors in this recipe is deep, rich, and so delicious!
Although this recipe takes some time to make – first to soak the beans, then to cook in the oven – it’s mostly hands-off time so you can go about your day while the beans do their thing.
This dish is great for neighborhood potlucks and barbecues, as well as game day parties, or any other occasion.
This recipe makes a big pot of beans – so you can feed a hungry crowd, or enjoy leftovers at another meal.
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Why are my Baked Beans still hard after cooking them for hours?
If you read through the comments on this recipe, you’ll see that some of our readers had problems with hard beans, even after cooking them for hours. One reader tried this recipe multiple times and reported back each time…he loved the flavor but couldn’t get the texture quite right!
We believe the issue is caused by a few different things: old/stale beans, adding salt and acid too soon in the cooking process, and hard water.
Be sure to buy fresh dried navy beans. If possible, we suggest visiting a store that sells beans in bulk, rather than buying the bagged beans that might be on the shelf at the supermarket – you’ll never know how long they’ve been on the shelf. Our local Portuguese market has the best beans we’ve cooked and we know they are fresh.
Take the time to soak the beans overnight. This step starts to soften the skins before cooking. (Some people say that soaking also helps make the beans less “gassy”!)
Make sure you rinse any excess salt off the salt pork before dicing, and do not add the salt until the beans have cooked for at least 90 minutes. (If you add salt at the beginning, the beans will stay hard and not fully soften.)
One of our readers suggested waiting to add the ketchup and vinegar because acid can sometimes keep the beans hard if added too early.
If your water is hard, consider using bottled water instead of tap water to make this recipe. Another reader told us her grandmother (who had hard water) would add 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon of baking soda to the cooking water for every pound of beans. (We haven’t tested the baking soda theory ourselves.)
Key Ingredients & Substitutions
Navy Beans – The success or failure of this recipe all comes down to the quality of the dried beans you buy! Unfortunately, you won’t know how fresh those dried navy beans that have been sitting in a bag on a supermarket shelf really are. We have made this recipe countless times – and always buy dried beans that are sold in bulk from a reputable market. There, they are loose in barrel or bucket, and you can portion and weigh out however much you need. These cook up into a nice, perfectly tender bean. The bagged beans may take longer to cook and could require more water to get to the right consistency. It is worth it to buy quality for this recipe.
Salt Pork – Look for fatty salt pork with little or no visible meat.
Yellow Onion
Molasses – Choose unsulfured molasses. We used Grandma’s brand.
Pure Maple Syrup – Avoid imitation or sugar free maple syrup for this recipe.
Dijon Mustard
Worcestershire Sauce
Dry Mustard – We are fans of Colman’s Mustard Powder.
Brown Sugar
Black Pepper
Garlic Powder
Water – The amount of water you use to cook the beans will vary based on the freshness of your navy beans.
Ketchup
Apple Cider Vinegar
Kosher Salt
Special Tools You’ll Need
Cutting Board and Sharp Knife
Various Measuring Cups and Spoons
Bowl or Container – To Soak the Beans
4-5 Quart Dutch Oven with Lid
Large Wooden Spoon or Firm Silicone Spatula
How do I make Boston Baked Beans?
Sort through the dry beans and dispose of any foreign matter like small pebbles or sticks.
Place the dry beans in a bowl or container and cover with three quarts of tap water. Let sit out at room temperature overnight or at least for 12 hours.
Drain the beans and rinse under cold water. Drain again and set aside.
Sauté salt pork to brown in Dutch oven. Add onions and cook.
Add drained beans, molasses, maple syrup, mustard, Worcestershire sauce, dry mustard, brown sugar, black pepper, garlic powder and two cups of water.
Bring to a boil, cover, and place in the oven for 90 minutes.
Stir the beans, adding in the ketchup, vinegar, and salt along with another cup of water only if needed and continue to cook for 90 more minutes. Reduce oven temperature and add more water if needed and cook for another 60 minutes. Stir, check the water level, adding a little if needed. Or if too loose, simmer on low heat on the stovetop to desired consistency.
Cooking Tip
The amount of water used in this recipe will vary depending on a few variables including the freshness of the dry beans, and the accuracy of the oven temperature. You will use at least two cups of water and as much as five or six cups.
Serving Suggestions
Boston baked beans go great with a fish cakes and coleslaw dinner, or make Franks and Beans and serve with Boston Brown Bread – a dark, slightly sweet bread made with or without raisins.
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Frequently Asked Questions
What make Boston Baked Beans different from other baked bean recipes? The addition of molasses to the sauce is typically what differentiates Boston Baked Beans from the other recipes that add brown sugar and corn syrup.
Can I make Boston Baked Beans in the slow cooker? We’ve never tried doing so ourselves but one of our readers has with good results. Please scroll through the comments below to see their cooking method. You can definitely cook the beans ahead of time in the oven according to the recipe, then keep warm in the slow cooker.
It is possible to use canned beans in this recipe? You can, but the cooking time will be much less. Note that the deep flavors of the sauce won’t develop as much when cooking for a shorter amount of time.
Can I can these baked beans? We’ve never tried canning these beans ourselves, but one of our readers has – see in the comments below. Please note that safe canning practices require a sufficient amount of acidity in the recipe to ensure that the food is preserved during the canning process. We have never tested the acidity level of this recipe, so we cannot verify if this recipe is safe to can.
How do I store any leftovers? Store refrigerated in a covered container for up to four days.
How do I reheat the leftovers? You can microwave individual portions or reheat in the saucepan on the stove, stirring frequently to warm through.
This Boston Baked Beans recipe originally appeared on A Family Feast in May 2015. We’ve updated the post with additional cooking tips and new photos, but the delicious recipe remains the same.
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Boston Baked Beans
Boston Baked Beans are made with navy beans that are cooked low and slow in the oven in a rich, sweet sauce made with molasses, brown sugar, and maple syrup.
Prep: 13 hoursCook: 4 hoursTotal: 17 hours
Ingredients
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Instructions
Pick over the beans looking for small pebbles or sticks, then soak the beans overnight at room temperature in three quarts of tap water.
After soaking overnight, drain and rinse under cold water and drain again. Set them aside.
Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.
In a 5–6-quart Dutch oven over medium high heat, add the salt pork pieces and cook for about 15 minutes to brown.
Add the onions and cook for two minutes.
Add the drained beans, molasses, maple syrup, Dijon mustard, Worcestershire sauce, dry mustard, brown sugar, pepper, garlic powder, and two cups of water. Do not add ketchup, vinegar, or salt yet.
Bring the mixture up to bubbling, cover, and place in the oven for 90 minutes.
After 90 minutes, remove from the oven and add the ketchup, vinegar and salt and stir. Check the consistency. If it is very wet, do not add water. If a lot of the water has been absorbed, add a cup or two of water. Cover and place back into the oven for 90 more minutes.
Remove from the oven and again check for consistency and add a cup or two of water only if needed. Reduce the oven to 275 degrees F, cover and continue to cook for one more hour.
Remove the pot of beans and check for doneness. The beans should be soft with a slight chew and the liquid should be thick. If the beans need longer, continue to cook in 30-minute intervals, adding more water if needed. If the beans are cooked, but the liquid is too loose, cook on the stovetop on medium low, stirring often until the right consistency.
Serve and enjoy.
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Notes
Our recipe took four hours in the oven plus five minutes on the stovetop to thicken and we only used 2 ½ cups of water. Our beans were very fresh.
© Author: A Family Feast
Cuisine:
American, New England
Method:
baked
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