Boston Baked Beans

About This Recipe

Boston baked beans are a defining dish of New England cuisine, navy beans slow-cooked for hours in a sweet, savory sauce built on molasses, salt pork or bacon, and a touch of mustard, resulting in beans that are tender, glossy, and deeply flavored. The dish's association with Boston runs so deep that the city itself earned the nickname 'Beantown,' and the recipe traces back to colonial-era New England, when molasses was abundant through the region's trade with the Caribbean. The technique that defines Boston baked beans is the long, slow bake: soaked beans are partially cooked, then combined with the molasses-based sauce and baked, traditionally in a bean pot, for several hours at low heat until the beans become tender and the sauce reduces into a thick, sticky glaze that coats every bean. Salt pork or bacon, embedded in the beans as they bake, renders its fat throughout the dish, adding richness that balances the sweetness of the molasses. Served as a hearty side, historically alongside brown bread on Saturday nights (a New England tradition tied to Puritan Sunday observance, when cooking was avoided), Boston baked beans remain a beloved regional specialty, found at potlucks and family gatherings across New England and beyond.

Ingredients

Serves 6

• 500 gdried navy beans(soaked overnight)
• 150 gsalt pork or bacon(cut into chunks)
• 1onion(diced)
• 0.5 cupmolasses
• 3 tbspbrown sugar
• 2 tbspdijon mustard
• 1 tbspketchup
• 1 tspsalt
• 0.5 tspblack pepper
• 3 cupswater(or as needed)

Instructions

1. 1

   Parboil the beans

   Drain soaked beans and combine with fresh water in a pot. Bring to a boil and simmer 10 minutes. Drain, reserving 2 cups of the cooking liquid.

2. 2

   Combine ingredients

   Preheat oven to 150C/300F. In a Dutch oven or bean pot, combine parboiled beans, salt pork or bacon, onion, molasses, brown sugar, mustard, ketchup, salt, and pepper.

3. 3

   Add liquid

   Add reserved cooking liquid and enough additional water to just cover the beans.

4. 4

   Bake covered

   Cover and bake 3 hours, checking occasionally and adding more water if the beans look dry.

5. 5

   Bake uncovered

   Uncover and bake 1 more hour until the sauce has thickened and reduced into a glossy glaze.

6. 6

   Serve

   Serve hot as a hearty side dish.

Variations

• •

  Use maple syrup instead of molasses for a different, though less traditional, New England flavor.

• •

  Make it vegetarian by omitting the salt pork and adding a splash of liquid smoke for depth.

• •

  Serve with New England brown bread for the traditional Saturday night pairing.

Storage

Refrigerate up to 5 days in an airtight container; the flavor deepens over time. Freezes well up to 3 months. Reheat gently on the stovetop or in the oven, adding water if needed.

Frequently Asked Questions