Ahhhh baked beans. The often forgotten side dish at many a barbeque. Is it just me, or does it seem like baked beans are kind of…an afterthought? They certainly aren’t the star of the show. But that’s about to change, my friends. Baked beans have sat in the corner long enough. I can assure you of this—nobody puts these Slow Cooker Baked Beans in a corner. 🙂 Ahhhh, Dirty Dancing.
Gone are the days of being overshadowed by the burgers, hot dogs, chicken, pasta salad, or potato salad. Because these Slow Cooker Baked Beans are the shiz, my friends. They’re easy to throw together and because you make ’em in a slow cooker, you can relax and focus on menial things like meats and varied other things to throw on the grill. I cooked the bacon in the oven because I don’t like the mess of making it on the stove, but you can cook yours on the stove if you prefer.
These babies are chock full of not one, not two, but THREE types of hearty beans and crispy, yummy bacon. All in a sweet and savory sauce. Serve them as a side dish or put them on your burger or hot dog. Or both. Or just eat them straight out of the slow cooker with a spoon. I won’t judge. 😉
- 6 slices bacon
- 1 cup chopped onion (about 1 medium), chopped
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 16-oz can pinto beans, drained
- 1 28-oz can baked beans
- 2 16- oz cans red kidney beans, drained
- ¾ cup ketchup
- ½ cup molasses
- ¼ cup packed brown sugar
- 2 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce
- 1 Tbsp yellow mustard
- ½ teaspoon pepper
- Set oven to 400 degrees. Line a cookie sheet with aluminum foil and place bacon strips on it.
- Cook bacon in oven until crispy, about 15 minutes. Drain grease from sheet, reserving 1 Tbsp. Set bacon aside to cool.
- In a small skillet over medium-high heat, heat bacon grease. Add onion and garlic and saute until onion is translucent, about 3 minutes.
- Transfer to slow cooker. Chop bacon and add it to slow cooker.
- Add all remaining ingredients to slow cooker and stir well to combine.
- Set slow cooker to low and cook for two hours.
