Crockpot Bacon Bourbon Baked Beans.
Things you did this weekend? Tell me.
Things I did this weekend?
-watched some sort of disgusting insect build a nest/cocoon/filfthy mansion underneath my husband’s garage door and had a complete meltdown about it. I looooooathe bugs.
–dropped my iPhone in a vat of buttercream. Not as sweet as it sounds.
-drank a dark chocolate bourbon cherry soda float. I was forced, I tell you. FORCED.
-watched The Notebook and pretended it was real life. Like… my real life.
–met Mario Batali and watched him cook some sauseeeeeege.
-bought a million (more) pieces of neon clothing because I live for the 90s. Even though I have no style, this is one trend that I’ll never let go.
-reminisced about how I used to hairspray the front of my hair into this crazy wave thing while wearing hideous 4-inch raised platform flip flops. WHAT. I hope those stay out of style forever.
-and made baked beans from scratch!
I can’t even believe it. Up until like… a year ago maybe? I didn’t even like baked beans. I had a huge mental block against them. No clue why. But then I ate some good ones, and was hooked for life. I ate them everyday with eggs for about six months straight. I put them inside of sandwiches and ate them on top of potatoes. So the first time I made these, I threw a bunch of random ingredients in the pot and said a little prayer. The next time, I made a few tweaks (…more bourbon) and said another.
And I’ve totally decided that beans are one of my favorite foods. I am absolutely horrific at picking favorites of anything – and I do mean anything – I can’t pick a favorite song, TV show or movie to save my life. Except for right now when I tell you The Notebook is the greatest movie in all the land.
So beans it is. Any and all beans. I eat them every single day, sometimes twice a day. This is a monumental moment in my world, because I’m pretty sure the last time I declared a favorite food was at age twelve when I simply would say “potatoes.” And that’s only because I ate my mom’s potato chip potato casserole like it was going out of style (which it totally was, but don’t worry she still makes it), mashed potatoes, and “baked” potatoes – which in my world was the flesh of a baked potato scoop out on to my plate, covered in salt, pepper and butter then mashed with a fork. Anytime I was given a baked potato in a restaurant the proper way, like wrapped in foil or simply baked and sliced down the middle, I was like…. um, no. This is not a baked potato.
But anyway… bacon, avocados and chocolate would round out the list. Those are the top four, until I change my mind tomorrow.
And now I can easily say I won’t ever grab baked beans in a can again. So much flavor here, so much texture, so much bacon and so much booze. With just a hint of bourbon, these beans are definitely our new go-to recipe. They can be made in advance and with just an hour of prep work you can throw everything in the crockpot and leave them to their own devices.
Summer here we come!
Crockpot Bacon Bourbon Baked Beans
Ingredients
- 1 pound dry navy beans
- 10 slices thick-cut bacon, cut into pieces
- 1 medium sweet onion, chopped
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 2 cups water
- 3/4 cup of your favorite barbecue sauce
- 1 cup loosely packed brown sugar
- 1/4 cup ketchup
- 2 tablespoons molasses
- 1 cup bourbon
- 1 1/2 tablespoons ground mustard
- 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
- 2 tablespoons worcestershire sauce
Instructions
- The night before, add beans to a large pot and cover with water. Drain the next morning.
- Bring beans to a boil in a large pot of water, let simmer for 30-40 minutes, then drain. While beans are cooking, heat a large skillet over medium heat and add bacon. Cook until crispy and fat is rendered, then remove bacon with a slotted spoon and let drain on a paper towel. Reduce heat to medium-low and add onion, cooking for 8-10 minutes, until caramely and soft. Add in garlic, cook for 30 seconds, then turn off heat.
- Add water, bourbon, brown sugar, bbq sauce, ketchup, ground mustard, vinegar, molasses and worcestershire sauce to the crockpot and whisk well to combine. Add in beans, onions (and all of the bacon fat) and bacon to the crockpot. Cover and cook on low for 10-12 hours, stirring occasionally. After 10-12 hours, turn crockpot to “warm” setting or turn off completely and let sit anywhere from 30 minutes-2 hours, which will help the sauce for the beans thicken even more. These taste even better the next day!
- Note: after 10-12 hours the liquid may still seem “liquidy.” It is imperative to let the beans sit for a while on the lower setting (or on the off setting, still covered) so they become thick and syrupy like traditional baked beans.
Did you make this recipe?
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I appreciate you so much!
And later I’ll tell you about this bread. Because I love your guts. [/donotprint]
293 Comments on “Crockpot Bacon Bourbon Baked Beans.”
Made these yesterday, and they’re the perfect texture, look magazine perfect, but.. are they sopposed to be really, really boozy? I measured exactly 1 cup, but now I’m trying to figure out how to “burn off” a little of the alcohol- it’s even a little tingly in the nose when I breathe it in! Any suggestions? I used the cheapest bourbon I could find… maybe that’s it!
It possibly *could* have been the bourbon you used – you really should only cook with alcohol that you deem worthy of drinking. But did you make any other changes to the recipe or anything? Maybe your crockpot doesn’t get quite as hot as mine? My husband hates bourbon (bad college memories, ha) and could barely detect the taste!
what can be substituted for the bourbon? I don’t have any and don’t really want to buy any.
Thanks
I could eat the whole pot, seriously. I always make my baked beans with bacon, but the bourbon? Oh yes, it’s happening this summer.
Bacon and bourbon? Oh, heck yes!
I thought you were coming to my house to make some of these? but i guess not, since you’re not here :( these look absolutely divine! cant wait to try, maybe a bourbon and ice as the side dish :)))
These sound pretty fabulous… I know my hubby would absolutely love them!
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Made these overnight last night and they are fabulous! I am having a hard time keeping out of them until our BBQ later this afternoon. Thanks for the recipe, it’s a keeper.
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Hmm… how terrible would it be, do you think, to leave out the bacon? I LOVE bacon, but one of the three adults in our house is vegetarian – while I don’t make everything veggie, filling my house with the smell of baked beans all day and then telling him he can’t have any sounds excessively cruel. Would the flavor be good without it, do you think? Is there anything that ought to be substituted?
Leave it out they are just fine with out the bacon.
I could never do w/o the bacon. However, in this case, I would try some Liquid Smoke. While the bacon (and that glorious fat) is wonderful, it also provides a bit of smokey flavor. Give that a shot when you mix in the other liquids and see if it doesn’t help a bit.
Being a New Englander we never make any sort of baked be4an without smoked ham hock, bacon, salt pork and more recently smoked turkey wing. I would make these but add some liquid smoke. Begin with a teaspoon and taste sauce over the hours. It truly would be more tasty with that smoky flavor.
My apologies. Also add 2-3 tablespoons of vegan butter or flavorless oil to the sauce in the beginning. I guess bean is spelled with a 4 this month! I need to cut my nails and install my Dragon Software. LOL
I made these for my hubby this weekend. He LOVED them! I added slightly less bourbon and subbed with some maple syrup. They smelled so bacon-y, bourbon-y, maple-y delicious! We ate a bit and froze the rest, so I’m hoping they taste just as good defrosted and nuked.
By the way, I’m a huge fan of your blog! I went to Pitt (class of ’03!) and lived in the ‘burgh for 9 years and miss that city terribly.
My god man! I have these in the slow cooker right now, and the smell alone…..! I can’t wait to make cornbread and eat an unlady-like amount of these.
I’m planning on making these tomorrow, I can’t wait! But I had a quick question. I went to the liquor store for a flask of bourbon, and they didn’t have any. The lady working there told me that Jack Daniels is basically the same. Will it make a difference?
Not after the first 3 shots
Priceless Russ & absolutely hilarious :) Got me giggling good !!!
I have them in the crockpot as we “speak”. I’m excited to get home from work and taste them!!
Wow, these are going to go perfectly with this bourbon barbecue chicken I’m making for Memorial Day! A whole bourbon-themed menu! I love that I can just put these in the crock pot and go — super easy.
http://www.tipsonlifeandlove.com/recipes-2/rachael-ray-book-of-burger-recipe-bourbon-bbq-pulled-chicken-sandwiches-and-green-apple-slaw
Gotta tell you these were great! I made this weekend as written with the exception of cutting the bourbon down to 3/4 cup. The beans were perfectly tender (not mushy) and letting them sit after they cooked definitely resulted in a thicker sauce. Flavors were fabulous. Because I like the heat I added some sriracha sauce to my serving. All of my other guests liked these as is however. Thanks for another wonderful recipe.
Girl… these beans rock. Seriously, the flavor is PERFECT. Who doesn’t love booze and beans? Boozy beans? That sounds dirty.. but the POINT is they killed it at the BBQ I brought them to. The only thing is I ended up reducing them in the crockpot for a while on high after the initial 11 hours to reduce the sauce to what it looked like in your picture. Maybe my air tight “stay and go” slow cooker lid is too intense? Amazing result, though.
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I’m making these for a Memorial Day cookout on Monday, & I had 1 question: since you said they taste better the second day, I was going to soak the beans tonight (Saturday night), cook in the crockpot on Sunday, & then serve them on Monday. I was wondering I need to refrigerate them Sunday night before reheating & eating on Monday, or should I leave them in the crockpot on the lowest heat setting? I was afraid they may dry out if they cook all day tomorrow, then stay in there overnight as well. Thanks so much! :)
I think that is a great idea – it’s not like they taste SO much better the next day, but it’s one of those dishes (like some casseroles) they just tastes more delicious as the days go on and the flavors marry. I would definitely put them in the fridge. You are right – they might dry out (can’t say for sure) but I also am not sure if the warm setting is considered hot enough for that long – I almost feel like they could “spoil” if that’s possible.
After the fridge, if they seem too stuck together or not liquidy enough, just reheat them with some more liquid: a broth or stock, maybe even some bourbon mixed with water or just water itself. Let me know how they are. :)
Jess, thanks so much for getting back to me on Saturday! These turned out great! I soaked them Saturday night, cooked them all day Sunday, then put them in the fridge late Sunday night, after letting them sit on “warm” for 2 hours. I took them out about 2 hours before the cookout & reheated them on low for a bit – I didn’t end up adding any more liquid, as they were perfect as is. They were the highlight of the evening! Everyone loved the bourbon taste, & kept saying they’d never had anything like them. I may have added a tad bit more than the 1 cup of bourbon that it called for. After all, we do live in Kentucky. :)
Thanks again!
Very disappointed. I followed the recipe exactly. Let them cook for 12 hours and sit for two hours. They never got syrupy and they’re very boozy.
ok, it’s 6:55am and i’m consuming bourbon!! i let these cook all night for our picnic today, and cannot stop tasting them for breakfast. i’m eating spoonfuls of beans with bourbon for brekfast! these actually may be the best beans i’ve ever had. i can’t wait to share them today!
i am laughing so hard cause my husbnad and i are doing the same thing as sherri and i just came to tell you?? we made these overnight and keep eating sponnfuls of them!! we dont think there will be enough left for the big cookout today if we dont stop?? oh well at least we are eating great beans for breakfast! thanks you so much for this recipe god bless
Made these yesterday for the family… oh my god, so good. Everyone loved them. Thank you!! Made me look like a star with my mother in law. :)
Made these today, truly amazing. Everyone loved them. Thanks!
I’m making these for our Memorial Day BBQ at 6 pm, but I didn’t get to wake up at 5 am to start them so that they could cook all day in the Crockpot. So my question is this: can I cook them in the crockpot on hi for 5-6 hours instead of low for 10-12 hours, before letting them sit for the 1/2-2 hrs?
Thanks! I really can’t wait to try these!
You can try, but I honestly can’t say if that will work. I think they still may need a little longer than that even on the high setting, but it is totally dependent on your crockpot!
I made the crockpot bacon bourbon baked beans for Sunday. They were a HIT. Great reviews from all family members. I was surprised I even liked them. I’m not a baked bean fan. These were amazing! Thank you for sharing your recipes. I am going to try the feta cheese dip now – you never know I just might find another dish I like.
Thank you so much! I made these for Memorial Day BBQ and they were an absolute hit! Used Cannellini beans instead of navy (it’s what they had at my local grocery store). I also added a pound of sauteed ground beef and 1 tsp of salt about 10 hours in, and let it cook together on low for an additional 4 hours after that. DELICIOUS! It was the hit of the BBQ :)
Can I sub in another liquor instead of bourbon?
I subbed Jameson because if I used the only (good) bourbon in the house my BF wouldn’t have been happy! It turned out delicious! And, I used powdered mustard AND navy beans.
Cant wait to try this recipe! I’m totally in love with my crock pot and love homemade baked beans but hate babysitting them in the oven for so long. This fixes that.
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totally making these for my housewarming party this weekend!!! i’ve never made homemade baked beans before, so i’m pretty excited
Let me know how they turn out Ali! :)
Can you use Northern white beans instead of Navy beans?
I think you probably can, but I haven’t tried it personally so I can’t say for sure.
Great Northern and Navy Beans are exactly the same bean! ;-)
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HOLY CRAP! So good…best baked beans ever! They totally get better the longer they sit in that crockpot…they were such a big hit, thanks!
don’t know how i missed this on your blog. i read daily even if the recipe doesn’t interest me. i love reading all your shananigans. (SP?) anyway, i found an adapted version of steph’s bite by bite. i made her version minus the alcohol and now i’m clicking your version. she only put 5 strips of bacon. wtcrap??? she denied me bacon!!! i already cleaned the kitchen, but i am totally considering cooking up some more bacon to stir in there!!! we will see how they turn out in about 5 more hrs. i’m planned to fridge them overnight and serve them for father’s day tomorrow. can NOT wait! YUMMY!
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I just made these, and holy cow, they are unbelievable good! I did however spend about 30 minutes and went through 2 steel wool pads trying to clean the slow cooker. Totally worth it!!! Yum!
Hi Jessica,
Ive been looking forward to making this for a while and Im getting my chance on the 4th. I have a question: is ground mustard the same as dry mustard in the spice aisle or is it the ground mustard in a jar with the condiments? Thanks!
Great recipe. I like green chilies and use them in all my BB batches so I added one 4 ounce can of chopped verity. Personal taste. If you like the flavor of chilies, give it a try.
This looks like a great recipe and I’m making it later tonight for the forth. But I have tons of guests coming and need to make a larger pot! What would the recipe be for 3 pounds of beans?
Maybe I’ll just make 2 batches cause I have two crock pots! Thanks and I know (fingers crossed) it will be great!
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I don’t have a slow cooker but I do have two large ceramic dutch ovens. If I cook these in the oven – does anyone have an idea as to the temp and length of time?
I just finished putting everything in the crockpot and sat down. I can’t wait to taste these beans in the morning, since they have to cook so long I’m doing it overnight so that I can take them to a cookout tomorrow, followed the directions except I only had a little over 1/2 cup of burbon left in the house, I’m hoping that won’t make to much of a difference, I’m not a burbon fan anyways. I can’t wait to try these out tomorrow, and will let you know how they turned out and if they were a hit at the party :)
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