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    Home Β» Entrees Β» Bourbon Baked Beans

    Mar 8, 2012 Β· Modified: Nov 3, 2017 by Sues Β· This post may contain affiliate links, uses cookies, and generates income via ads Β· View privacy policy + disclosure statement linked in footer Β· 12 Comments

    Bourbon Baked Beans

    Bourbon-Baked-Beans-5.jpg

    It seems that this is the year of me making all the dishes I've seriously been needing to add to my repertoire, but have never taken the time to learn. Chimichangas, the perfect chicken salad, a million different cocktails, and much more. Of course, pain au chocolat was the one thing on my list of New Year's resolutions... But it's March and so far, I've been avoiding that one like the plague. All in due time, when I build up enough courage.Let's start with something a bit easier... Like baked beans.

    I headed to my parents' house this past weekend to celebrate my fabulous dad's birthday. His big birthday gift was... to make us dinner. Well, my mom got him a brand new Weber grill as a gift. And, so, I'm pretty sure he was actually quite thrilled to make us dinner. We fixed the sides and I decided to tackle baked beans. My dad has a mean baked bean recipe, but I designed my own pulling from a variety of methods. Most importantly, I used bourbon. I was also laughed at quite a bit that evening because the bourbon I used happened to be Maker's Mark. I wanted to put bourbon in the beans and that was what we had on hand and I had no idea you don't use quality bourbon like Maker's Mark in baked beans. Lesson learned. But man they were good. I'd totally do it again. And I wouldn't blame you if you did, too. I also took a few notes from my dad and added bacon to the beans. And cheap yellow mustard. It's gotta be the cheap yellow kind. Just trust me on that.

    Bourbon Baked Beans (serves about 8):
    Print this recipe!

    • 1 lb. dried navy beans
    • ΒΎ C ketchup
    • Β½ C brown sugar
    • 2 T cheap yellow mustard
    • 2 T molasses
    • 1 T paprika
    • ΒΎ C chopped vidalia onion
    • ΒΌ C bourbon
    • 6 slices bacon, chopped
    (pre-heat oven to 250 degrees)
    Bourbon-Baked-Beans-Ingredients.jpg

    I had no idea there were such varying schools of thought on whether or not to soak dried beans and for how long to soak them. I did tons of research and decided to do a quicker soaking method. I put the beans in a pot and covered with about an inch of cold water. I brought the water to a simmer, took the pot off the heat, and let the beans soak for an hour.

    Bourbon-Baked-Beans-Beans-Soak.jpg

    In a dutch oven,I combined all the other ingredients: ketchup, brown sugar, cheap yellow mustard, molasses, paprika, onion, bourbon, and bacon and cooked over medium heat for about 3 minutes.

    Bourbon-Baked-Beans-Sauce.jpg

    Now, I added the beans to the pot, stir, and put in the oven at 250 degrees.

    Bourbon-Baked-Beans-Baking.jpg

    I kept my beans in the oven for about 5 hours total. But I checked them every hour or so to make sure they weren't drying out. If they were, I added a bit more water and stirred.

    Bourbon-Baked-Beans-Pot.jpg

    The beans ended up being wonderfully flavorful and, I think, nicely cooked. They reminded me a bit of my dad's recipe, which made me pretty happy.I would definitely make this recipe again.

    Bourbon-Baked-Beans-1.jpg

    We enjoyed the baked beans with baby back ribs my dad made on his brand new grill!

    Bourbon-Baked-Beans-Ribs.jpg

    And a whole bunch of vegetables my mom roasted (including amazing roasted garlic!).

    Bourbon-Baked-Beans-Roasted-Vegetables.jpg

    The perfect well-rounded birthday meal.

    Bourbon-Baked-Beans-2.jpg

    And, no, you couldn't really taste the Maker's Mark bourbon in the beans. Le sigh. But I'm pretty positive it was responsible for some of delicious full flavor. Just let me believe that, OK?

    Bourbon-Baked-Beans-4.jpg

    And tomorrow's Cocktail Friday, so you can always enjoy a dish of baked beans with a glass of bourbon on the rocks. If you have any bourbon left. Which I did not.

    Do you have a secret ingredient for baked beans?

    [Sues]

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    Comments

    1. Michelle says

      March 09, 2012 at 9:51 am

      These baked beans look seriously AWESOME!

    2. Bianca @ Confessions of a Chocoholic says

      March 09, 2012 at 11:21 am

      This looks delicious! (and so does the rest of the meal). I've never made baked beans myself, but my mom makes a mean batch. Adding bourbon is a great idea.

    3. Gia Grossman says

      March 09, 2012 at 1:01 pm

      Nothing better than a big bowl of GOOD baked beans. I think the bourbon qualifies them as GOOD. Don't even have to eat to know!!

    4. Shannon says

      March 09, 2012 at 2:52 pm

      oh boy, i'm loving that whole meal!!

    5. sweeter salt says

      March 09, 2012 at 4:08 pm

      love baked beans! i make a big batch for my dad for father's day every year. I might try this recipe out, looks delicious.

      laura

    6. Emily @ A Cambridge Story says

      March 09, 2012 at 8:13 pm

      Oooh those ribs look KILLER. As do the beans. Why do I always rely on the canned variety?! So silly when you can make versions like this!

    7. Cathy says

      March 11, 2012 at 9:43 am

      I am making these baked beans today! One question - do you cook the bacon first, or just add the uncooked bacon? Thanks, can't wait to try them in another 6 hours!

    8. Sues says

      March 11, 2012 at 9:52 am

      @Cathy- Awesome! I hope you love them πŸ™‚ I left the bacon uncooked- just chopped it before I added it in... It will definitely get cooked during all that oven time πŸ™‚

    9. Cathy says

      March 11, 2012 at 8:59 pm

      Hi Sue. loved the taste of them, but the beans were not soft/cooked enought. I never used dried beans in my baked beans before (always used canned kidney beans), and followed your recipe. I even let them cook an extra hour in the oven, hoping they would soften. Next time, I will make sure the beans are soft before I bake them. I did read on the bean package that they can be soaked overnight, though that takes more organization on my part! The bourbon was a great touch to them. Thanks for the info on the bacon.

    10. Sues says

      March 12, 2012 at 1:09 am

      @Cathy- Aww I wonder why they weren't soft enough! Mine were VERY soft and I was glad I didn't keep them in any longer... Like I said, there's a lot of dispute over whether or not to soak before using (I just did the quick boil and hour soak), but try an overnight soak (or at last a few hours) next time for really soft beans!

    11. Daisy says

      March 14, 2012 at 12:06 pm

      I would have used makers too. because that is also what I have on hand. who keeps the cheap stuff around? πŸ˜‰

    12. Greatwert says

      March 19, 2012 at 7:47 am

      These baked beans look seriously AWESOME!

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