Baked Beans don’t have to be boring and from a can, Baked Beans in the Slow Cooker takes a classic recipe to a whole new level! The rich aroma, savory flavors, touch of sweetness and simplicity of using a crock pot make them irresistible. Perfect for all your summer cookouts!
PinTable of Contents
Why I Love This Recipe
- Effortless Cooking: Just toss all your ingredients in a slow cooker and let it do the work for you! Especially if you’re making these during the summer, it’s so convenient to not have to stand over a hot stovetop!
- Versatile: Perfect as a side dish for barbecues, potlucks, or even as a main course just like my Summer Pasta Salad recipe!
- Make-Ahead Friendly: Make your baked beans in advance and enjoy later! The flavors only get better with time.
- Full of Flavor: These baked beans are the perfect balance of sweet and saucy. My kids could eat beans for every meal. They’re obsessed. If yours are too, try these Pressure Cooker Pinto Beans or Slow Cooker Black Eyed Peas.
- Vegetarian: This baked beans recipe is a hearty, delicious vegetarian option that everyone will love!
The Ingredients
Pin- Small onion: You’ll sauté the onions before adding them to the slow cooker. They provide a savory base flavor for the beans.
- Small white beans: The main ingredient! We use dried beans for this recipe and cook them low and slow. Any white or Great Northern bean variety will work fabulously in this.
- Tomato paste: Instead of ketchup we use tomato paste to add that delicious tomatoey, tangy flavor.
- Maple syrup: This adds a touch of natural, rich sweetness to the beans without being overly sweet.
- Molasses: This ingredients adds a slightly smoky, complex sweetness.
- Dijon mustard: Adds more tanginess with a little spicy note.
- Vegetable broth and water: Cooking the beans in vegetable broth and water adds more flavor to the cooking liquid.
Variations and Substitutions
- For a meatier option: Cook 4 pieces of chopped bacon with the onions for a meaty, smokier version of this recipe. You could also add cut up hot dogs in the last few minutes to cook through.
- Sweeteners: Swap maple syrup for light brown sugar or coconut sugar if you need.
- More Heat: Add a pinch of cayenne pepper or a small diced jalapeño pepper (at your own risk!).
- Chicken Broth: If you don’t need this recipe to be vegetarian, you can use chicken broth instead of vegetable broth.
How to Make Baked Beans in the Slow Cooker
PinStep 1: Heat the olive oil in a saute pan, add the onions and cook until soft, about 3-4 minutes.
PinStep 2: Transfer the onions to a crock pot, add the remaining ingredients and stir to combine.
PinStep 3: Cook on low for 8-10 hours or 6-8 hours on high or until the beans are tender.
Storing Tips
- Refrigerate: You can store leftover baked beans in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
- Freeze: To freeze baked beans, place cooled beans in a freezer-safe container and freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw in the fridge overnight before reheating.
- Reheat: Reheat in the microwave or on the stovetop. Add a splash of water or broth if they need to be loosened up a bit.
Serving Suggestions
Looking for delicious ideas to serve with your next big batch of baked beans? Here are some of my favorites:
- Summer BBQs: Baked beans are the perfect side dish for summer BBQs. Serve them with juicy burgers, marinated chicken, DIY hot dogs, or southern-style pork tenderloin for a classic pairing.
- Baked Potato Topping: Add baked beans on top of a baked potato with some shredded cheese for an English-inspired “jacket potato.”
- Cornbread: Baked beans and basic cornbread are a match made in heaven, offering a comforting and hearty meal.
FAQs
Yes! This baked beans recipe can be made in a pressure cooker really easily. Here’s how: lock the lid of your pressure cooker and cook for 60 minutes at high pressure. Once the cook time is finished, allow the pressure to naturally release for at least 10 minutes. Then, release the remaining pressure, remove the lid and serve.
Absolutely! Store them in the refrigerator and reheat on the stovetop or in the microwave.
PinMore Slow Cooker Recipes
Baked Beans tend to fly under the radar a bit at a potluck or barbecue, but this crockpot baked beans recipe will be the star of the show wherever you take it. If you make these, let me know what you think by leaving a rating and comment below!
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Baked Beans in the Slow Cooker
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 small onion, chopped
- 1 pound small dried white beans
- 1 6 ounce can tomato paste
- 1/4 cup maple syrup
- 1/4 cup molasses
- 2 tablespoons dijon mustard
- 1 32-ounce box vegetable broth
- 2 cups water
- 2 teaspoons kosher salt
Instructions
- Heat the olive oil in a saute pan, add the onions and cook until soft, about 3-4 minutes.
- Transfer the onions to a crock pot, add the remaining ingredients and stir to combine.
- Cook on low for 8-10 hours or 6-8 hours on high or until the beans are tender. See notes for pressure cooker instructions.
I am making these right now for a BBQ tomorrow. I did soak them overnight and other than adding honey (didn’t have maple syrup) and spicy brown mustard (didnt have Dijon) I followed this recipe. Oh, and too lazy to saute onions so added them raw!I will report back when they are done, they smell amazing already!
I’m making these now, having soaked them overnight (10+ hrs). While they smell amazing, I can report like some of the other commenters that the beans are still very hard after 6 hours of cooking. I’ve changed my crockpot setting to High and am hoping for the best. 🙂
i made these (i let them soak overnight) and they were delicious!! making again this saturday for a
lil fam bbq =)
I made these with pinto beans and served them over brown rice. My kids surprised me by eating everything! We had no leftovers. The only thing I will do differently next time is double the recipe. 😉
I have made these twice! The first time I used small white beans and didn’t pre-soak at all. The second time I could only find larger white beans so I did soak them overnight. The sauce does look a little soupy in the slow cooker but it thickens up a little as it cools down. Both times the recipe was so easy and the beans were delicious!
I also doubled the recipe, but exactly doubled it. So that is why my cooking time is so much longer, but even still 19hrs for beans??
I made these last night and I am thankful I read the reviews!! I used dry organic navy beans and after 12hrs cooking on low the beans were still HARD. I even added 2 extra cups of water–just incase. This morning I added another 3-3 1/2 cups of water and cooked them on high for another 7hrs and they are almost done. I’m so glad I planned ahead and started these last night!!
I also added bacon and this morning some extra maple syrup. So dispite the crunchy beans the flavor is still really good!
I made these on memorial day & they were a hit with my 21 month old. They were, however, even tastier the next day! (btw – i soaked the beans overnight & the beans took a full 8 hours to cook to tenderness)
in case it helps anyone, navy beans (goya brand) worked perfectly for us. no soaking needed.
Okay, I made these last night and they turned out really tasty, but they took way longer than 8 hours on low. After 8 hours they were still very ‘soupy’. I put them on for another 3 hours on low and then they were in the crock pot on ‘warm’ all night and this morning they looked more like baked beans. I soaked the beans before.
You can serve this with corn on the cob, or even bbq chicken! This recipe can go with anything! Great for bbqs!
This might be a silly question, but what would you serve this with? I’m really looking forward to trying this recipe this week!
I’m so sorry, but your beans might have been bigger. I used small white beans. Next time, if your beans are on the medium to large size, you should cook them overnight. Also, tomato paste does not effect the cooking 🙂
I am cooking these right now and they are ocmpletely crunchy after cooking for 6 hours on low. I have turned up to high to see if that makes a difference. I have heard that cooking beans in tomato products will keep them from cooking properly. Wonder if that could be it?!? I thought about not adding the tomato paste until the end but decided to go ahead and follow the recipe.
I used small white beans and soaked them overnight after reading the other reviews. They were super soft after about 8 hrs in the crock pot. I served them over rice and my toddler devoured them. I did not have dijon mustard on hand, so didn’t add any, but it was still delicious.
I’ve read from several sources that pre-soaking beans is better for digestion. It decreases the phytic acid in the beans that prevents you from absorbing all the nutrients properly. It also helps with eliminating some of the stuff that causes gas when you eat beans. I haven’t made this recipe yet, but whenever I cook dried beans I always soak them overnight first.