Baked beans have been a staple side dish in the United States and other countries for decades. While they are generally easy to make, I’ve sometimes been a touch disappointed when I’ve had these at a potluck or a restaurant. Sometimes they are a bit bland. The point of this recipe is to show an easy way to make extra delicious baked beans. Perhaps it might be a bit arrogant to call these “extra delicious,” but this is what my husband — an experienced baked bean aficionado — decided to call them.

In the past I have made baked beans from scratch, which means that you have to parboil the beans and then add spices and then bake them in the oven low and slow. This takes a bit of time. Since I have been trained as a chef, you might think that I insist on doing it this way. However, I don’t think that you need to make them from scratch. I have found that if you start with a good quality can of baked beans, they will taste just as good as if you had spent the extra time to make them from scratch.

I like to use Bush’s Original Baked Beans as my base, although others would also work. I have found that canned beans are never perfect just as they are. They are so much better if you jazz them up with ingredients like onion, bacon, mustard, BBQ sauce, and other spices. Just adding a few extra ingredients to the canned beans make them extra enjoyable.

I’ve tried to make sure that these baked beans have a good balance of tang, sweetness, and savoriness. The next time you’re looking for an easy side dish or just something for your next meal, I hope you make these!

Ingredients

• 1 28 oz can Bush’s Original Baked Bean
• 1 14 oz can pork & beans in tomato sauce
• 1/3 cup mild BBQ sauce
• 1/3 cup yellow onion, small diced
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp black ground pepper

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Grease a round baking dish with oil or non-stick cooking spray and set aside. Mix all bean ingredients together in a bowl. Transfer the mixture to the prepared baking dish.

Bake in a preheated oven for 45 minutes or longer, depending on your desired consistency. You can also cook the beans in a sauce pan for 10 minutes over medium heat, stirring often.

Serves 4-6

Did you make this dish? I’d love to know how it turns out! Feel free to like this post and comment or use the hashtag #globaldinein on Instagram. If you would to be notified of upcoming posts, please consider subscribing to my blog!