Today I am sharing my family’s go-to baked beans recipe that has been in the family for decades – Anastasia’s Best-Ever Baked Beans! These are a must-have at family barbecues! Simple to make, so darn good.
Read rave reviews from people who tried this recipe on Pinterest!
Read even more great reviews.
Pork and beans with sauteed onions, molasses, brown sugar, ketchup, mustard, and bacon… a big ol’ dish of comfort.
Did I mention….bacon?!! These are the best stinkin’ baked beans!! My sister always gets asked for the recipe when she brings this side dish to parties and gatherings.
These make the perfect side dish for so many meals, potlucks, picnics and barbecues. Simple to make. So good. Sure to become a new favorite.
UPDATE: My friend, Marsha, aka The Better Baker, recently won PEOPLE’S CHOICE at her local Beans Day festival using this recipe! Head over to read her fun post!
Pinnable Image
Anastasia’s Best-Ever Baked Beans
Ingredients
- 5 cans of pork and beans (15 ounce cans – VanCamps’s Pork and Beans or similar)
- 2 medium or 1 large onion, chopped (yellow or sweet onion, not vidalia)
- 1 to 2 tablespoons butter (for sauteing onions)
- 3/4 cup ketchup
- 1/2 cup molasses
- 3 tablespoons yellow mustard
- 1/4 to 1/2 cup brown sugar (use less for less sweetness)
- 6 to 8 slices uncooked bacon, each cut in half or thirds
Directions
Preheat oven to 325 degrees f. Spray a 9×13 baking dish with non-stick cooking spray.
Mix beans, sauteed onions, ketchup, mustard, molasses and brown sugar until blended well. Pour in prepared baking dish. Top with uncooked bacon in single layer (see photo above). Bake on middle rack of oven uncovered for 2-3 hours. Beans are ready when the top is dark and caramelized. Serve warm. Enjoy!
TIP – Make in Slow Cooker
These can also be thrown together and cooked in the slow cooker set on low for 6 to 8 hours as well. It won’t get that nice caramelize top, but it will still be delicious if you’re in a pinch for time. Be sure to saute the onions first.
BEANS FROM SCRATCH – If you want to make baked beans from scratch, head here for a great recipe – Boston Baked Beans – “A wonderful old-fashioned baked bean flavor. This recipe has served by family for 29 years and originally came from my mother-in-law. It tastes great served with fresh cornbread or biscuits and honey. Although you need to allow time for soaking and simmering the beans, this recipe is still quite easy.”
TIP – Make in Slow Cooker
These can also be thrown together and cooked in the slow cooker set on low for 6 to 8 hours as well. It won’t get that nice caramelize top, but it will still be delicious if you’re in a pinch for time. Be sure to saute the onions first.
BEANS FROM SCRATCH – If you want to make baked beans from scratch, head here for a great recipe – Boston Baked Beans – “A wonderful old-fashioned baked bean flavor. This recipe has served by family for 29 years and originally came from my mother-in-law. It tastes great served with fresh cornbread or biscuits and honey. Although you need to allow time for soaking and simmering the beans, this recipe is still quite easy.”
Sharing this recipe at Weekend Potluck.
Thanks for stopping by!
Cheers!
This is recipe is the best. I added a lb of crumbled cooked bacon stirred in. Many raves from guests. Thank you.
Love it. Thanks for sharing
I made this recipe and followed the recipe to a T. After 3 hours in the oven the beans still have a lot of liquid in them. Should the beans be drained first?
I would also like to know if I should drain the beans? I cannot find VanCamps beans in my area – what would you suggest? One more question – can this be cut in half? Thank you!
You can cut this recipe in half, Cyndi. If there is a lot of liquid in your beans, you can drain some, but it should be gone during baking.
Vidalias are sweet onions…they’re just named for the place they’re grown in.
BEST EVER baked beans. These were absolutely delicious. Thank you so much for sharing. Will be my BB recipe forever.
I’ve used this recipe for years-so good! I’ve made for Bbq’s, church potlucks, friends’ meals, etc. and they are always a huge hit. Thanks for reminding me about this recipe!
This is basicallyhow I make mine, minus cooking the onions and using dark brown sugar I stead of molasses and light brown sugar. I also add chopped green pepper. They are really good and I get asked for my recipe all the time as well.
Dearest Donna…please stop changing the recipes on here. If you have your own recipe that is fine, we are taking about this recipe, not what you do to change it,v to be like yours!
These are amazing! My sister made these for a get together yesterday and everyone devoured them. My son ate 3 helpings and wanted more (but they were gone).
do you know how many this recipe serves? Thanks!
She doubled the recipe and it fed maybe 20-30 people. It was so long ago that I don’t honestly remember, but I know we ran out of them before everything else because they were that good!!
These are the best beans ever!! The whole family loved them and asked for them again.
These beans are amazing! I started making these a year or two ago and now they are made every time we have a cookout, the whole family loves them! My sister started making them and my mom is making them for church potlucks. Won’t use any other recipe, Thank You!
Confused-sweet onion is the same as Vidalia?
I was to make these for a family picnic that will have approximately 40 guests. How many people would you say this recipe feeds? Trying to figure out how many cans of beans I’d need to get in order to make enough of this.thanks!
Can I make the day ahead and heat in slow cooker?