This post is sponsored by Stubb’s Legendary Bar-B-Q

Baked beans with bacon are about the best things out there and these quick baked beans take advantage of convenience foods you’ve probably already got in the pantry.  These barbecue baked beans will be a hit at your next picnic or potluck.

Little known fact — I grew up on hot dogs and baked beans.  As a kid, there was always a package of Oscar Meyer weiners in the meat drawer as well as a can of B&M baked beans in the pantry along with that ubiquitous blue box of macaroni and cheese. Pretty standard kid-stuff, right? Nowadays we don’t do as many hot dogs, I make my own macaroni and cheese and these are my go-to barbecue baked beans.

These quick baked beans start with BACON.  Do I have your attention? Baked beans with bacon?  HELLO? Not some flabby piece of salt pork, NO.  Diced, crisped and rendered bacon. Remove the bacon from the pan and reserve it for later…

Then sauté the vegetables in — what else — BACON FAT. This layering of flavors is what makes these barbecue baked beans stand out. Cook the vegetables until they’re tender, but not browned. Then add canned white beans, tomato sauce, mustard, water and my secret ingredient…

Stubb’s Sweet Heat barbecue sauce. This sauce has it all — sweet barbecue flavor balanced with a fun tingly heat that we love.  I’m betting you will too!

The canned white beans along with tomato sauce and the multi-faceted flavors of Stubb’s Sweet Heat barbecue sauce give you the head start you need for quick baked beans but with a homemade flavor that everyone craves… and the bacon doesn’t hurt either.

Cover the beans and put them in the oven for an hour to bake. While they’re baking, ice down the drinks, lube up the kids with suntan lotion and fire up the grill for the hot dogs and burgers. Thats what I’d do!

When you take the beans from the oven they’ll be thick and richly flavored.  If you like your beans a little more saucy, add a few tablespoons of H20 and a bit more Sweet Heat barbecue sauce and give them a stir.

Combined with a little tomato sauce and yellow mustard, these barbecue baked beans are a winner!  You can doctor it more to your tastes with a shake or two of worstershire and/or a little molasses or maple syrup for additional sweetness.  Personally, I think the combination in Sweet Heat is spot on and doesn’t need much embellishment. Stir in the crisped bacon just before serving for crispy smoky bits of pork in every bite.

I bake the beans in my dutch oven to really infuse that barbecue flavor into the beans, but if you’re rushed, you could skip the bake and serve it right from the stovetop.   Don’t forget the hot dogs.

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Barbecue Baked Beans

Course: Side Dish

Cuisine: American

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 1 hour 15 minutes

Total Time: 1 hour 30 minutes

Servings: 6

Calories: 307 kcal

This is a cheater's version of baked beans because it uses store bought barbecue sauce.  It's so good!

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Ingredients

• 2 slices thick cut bacon or 4 slices thin sliced bacon 1/2" dice
• 1 medium yellow onion chopped
• 1 green bell pepper chopped
• 1 clove garlic minced
• 2 cans small white beans 15 ounces each
• 1 cup Stubbs Sweet Heat Barbecue Sauce
• 1/2 cup tomato sauce
• 1 tablespoon yellow mustard
• 1/4 cup water
• a few shakes worcestershire optional
• 1-2 tablespoons molasses or maple syrup optional

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
2. Place a dutch oven or heavy pot on medium high heat. Add the bacon and cook, stirring occasionally, until golden and crisp. Transfer the bacon to a paper towel to drain. Discard all but one tablespoon of the bacon grease.
3. Heat the remaining bacon grease over medium high heat and add the onion, bell pepper and garlic. Saute until slightly softened and translucent about 4-5 minutes.
4. Remove from heat and add beans, barbecue sauce, tomato sauce, mustard and water. Stir to combine.
5. Place the lid on the pot and transfer the pot to the oven. Bake for 1 hour, check for consistency - according to your tastes. If you prefer thinner, more saucy beans, an hour should be enough time. If you like them thicker, cook longer.
6. Serve.

Recipe Notes

You can adjust the sauciness by adding a few additional tablespoons of barbecue sauce and water after baking.

Nutrition Facts

Barbecue Baked Beans

Amount Per Serving

Calories 307 Calories from Fat 27

% Daily Value*

Total Fat 3g 5%

Saturated Fat 1g 5%

Cholesterol 4mg 1%

Sodium 683mg 28%

Potassium 967mg 28%

Total Carbohydrates 57g 19%

Dietary Fiber 8g 32%

Sugars 20g

Protein 12g 24%

Vitamin A 5.4%

Vitamin C 23.2%

Calcium 13.8%

Iron 28.8%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

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