Baked Beans
Ingredients
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- 1 pound navy beans, dried – picked over and rinsed
- 8 cups water – for soaking
- 8 cups water – for simmering
- 1 medium onion – finely chopped
- 8 ounces salt pork – rind scored in a crosshatch
- 1/2 cup molasses
- 1/4 cup brown sugar – packed
- 1 1/2 teaspoons dry mustard
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper – freshly ground
- 3 cups water – hot (for baking and topping up as needed)
- 1 tablespoon cider vinegar
Instructions
1. Soak the beans: Place the navy beans in a large bowl and cover with 8 cups water (for soaking). Soak at room temperature for 8–12 hours, then drain and rinse.
2. Parcook the beans: Transfer the soaked beans to a Dutch oven and add 8 cups water (for simmering). Bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce to a gentle simmer and cook until the skins are just tender but the centers are still firm, 45–60 minutes, skimming foam as needed. Drain the beans, reserving some of the cooking liquid.
3. Build the pot: Heat the oven to 300°F (150°C). In a 3–4 quart bean pot or Dutch oven, combine the drained beans, onion, molasses, brown sugar, dry mustard, kosher salt, and black pepper; stir to coat evenly. Nestle the salt pork in the center, rind side up. Pour in 2 cups of the hot water (for baking), reserving the remaining 1 cup to top up if needed. Cover the pot.
4. Bake low and slow: Bake until the beans are tender and the sauce is thick and glossy, 3–4 hours. Check once or twice; if the beans become exposed or look dry during the first half of baking, add some of the remaining hot water to keep them just barely submerged. Uncover for the last 45 minutes to brown the top and reduce the liquid.
5. Finish and serve: Remove from the oven and stir in the cider vinegar. Let rest for 10 minutes, then taste and adjust seasoning if needed. Serve warm.
Baked beans are a comforting, slow-cooked side dish featuring tender white beans suspended in a gently sweet, savory sauce enriched with pork and molasses. The texture should be creamy but intact, with a glossy sauce that clings to each bean rather than a thin broth. The flavor balances molasses depth, subtle smoke and salinity from salt pork, and a mild tang, making the dish ideal alongside grilled meats or simple brown bread.
The dish is closely associated with New England, particularly Boston, where molasses-based bean pots were a staple long before commercial canned versions. Its roots trace to Indigenous Northeastern cooking methods that slow-baked beans with maple and bear fat in earthenware, later adapted by colonial settlers using salt pork and molasses traded through Atlantic routes. Over time, baked beans spread across the United States with regional tweaks, but the New England molasses-and-salt-pork approach remains a defining, historical standard.