These crock pot baked beans are a combination of tender beans, bacon and a sweet and savory sauce, all simmered together in the slow cooker. A super quick and easy side dish that’s perfect for any barbecue or summer gathering.
I do a lot of entertaining during the warmer weather months, and some of the recipes that are always on my menu include grilled corn on the cob, creamy broccoli slaw, and these delicious baked beans. They’re great for feeding a crowd, and the slow cooker does all the work!
Baked beans are a classic dish for good reason – that combination of smoky beans, bacon and savory sauce just can’t be beat. My version of crock pot baked beans can be prepared in just minutes, the hardest part is waiting for the slow cooker to do its magic!
How do you make crock pot baked beans?
To make crock pot baked beans, you want to first cook up some bacon on the stove. Remove the bacon from the pan and most of the bacon fat and cook some onions with salt and pepper in that same pan. Get out a slow cooker and place beans, onions, mustard, brown sugar, molasses, ketchup and apple cider vinegar in that cooker. You want to add most of the bacon to that slow cooker, reserving a little for garnish. After the beans are done, serve them garnished with bacon and a little chopped parsley.
Tips for crock pot baked beans
- For this recipe, you want to use canned beans like canned pork and beans. I use pork and beans because they’re packed in tomato sauce which forms the flavor base for the recipe.
- The best way to cut bacon into the small pieces needed for baked beans is to use kitchen shears. It is easier to cut bacon with kitchen shears than a knife.
- Once your bacon and onions are cooked, you can assemble all your ingredients and keep them in the refrigerator for up to 8 hours before you plan to plan to cook them in the slow cooker. You can assemble your ingredients in the morning and cook them in the afternoon.
Can you freeze slow cooker baked beans?
You can freeze baked beans for up to 3 months. To reheat the beans allow them to thaw in the refrigerator and pan cook them on the stove over low heat.
Baked Bean Flavor Variations
While I love the sweet and savory flavor of traditional baked beans, you can also include other fun flavors to suit your tastes.
- Spicy: Add hot sauce to the beans for some extra heat. You can use your favorite hot sauce. Even a simple pepper sauce like Tabasco will add a nice flavor.
- Maple: If you don’t like the unique flavor of molasses or you want your beans to be a little sweeter, use maple syrup instead of molasses.
- Beans: You can use different types of canned beans for different flavors and textures. For a bean with a creamy texture and less sweetness, use navy beans. If you want a larger bean with a nuttier flavor that stays intact during cooking, try great northern beans. You can also use cannellini beans with great results.
- Meat: You can use different types of pork to flavor the beans such as salt pork or diced ham. If you don’t want pork, you can try ground beef for a cowboy style baked beans.
Oven Baked Beans
If you want to make these beans in an oven, simply preheat an oven to 350 degrees F. Cook up the bacon and onions in a pan the same way as in this recipe. Stir together the beans, onions, mustard, brown sugar, molasses, ketchup and apple cider vinegar and most of the bacon in the pan and when combined place the mixture into a baking dish. Bake the beans for 2 hours until they are thickened. Take the beans out of the oven. Garnish them with the remaining bacon and a little chopped parsley.
You will love making these beans in the slow cooker – it’s a hassle free way to get delicious results with minimal effort.
More great side dishes
- Fried Corn with Bacon
- Broccoli Slaw
- Sauteed Mushrooms in Garlic Butter
- Tomato Salad
- Roasted Green Beans
Crock Pot Baked Beans
Ingredients
- 8 slices bacon coarsely chopped
- 1/2 cup onion finely diced
- 3 15 ounce cans pork and beans partially drained
- 3 tablespoons yellow mustard
- 1/4 cup brown sugar
- 1/4 cup molasses
- 1/4 cup ketchup
- 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
- 1 tablespoon chopped parsley
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Cook the bacon in a skillet over medium heat until crispy. Remove the bacon from the pan.
- Pour some of the bacon fat out of the pan, leaving about 1 tablespoon of fat in the pan.
- Add the onions to the pan and cook for 3-5 minutes or until translucent. Season the onions with salt and pepper to taste.
- Add the beans, onions, mustard, brown sugar, molasses, ketchup and apple cider vinegar to a crock pot. Add 3/4 of the cooked bacon, reserving the rest of bacon for garnish. Stir to combine.
- Cook for 2 hours on HIGH or 4 hours on LOW.
- Sprinkle with reserved bacon and chopped parsley, then serve immediately.
Nutrition
Personally I use Navy beans from my instapot with half of the bean juice and everyone gobbles them up👍
I used what I had at home which was beanie weenies. It was delicious!
One of our favorite recipes for beans so now I double the recipe! Thanks
I bought several cans of beans like, great northern, pinto beans, dark red kidney beans and black beans. Can I make these beans with those beans?
That should be fine!
I’ve done this and it definitely works! We call them calico beans.
Great recipe. Very tasty! Thanks!
If I use 6-8 or more cans to feed more people, how much of each ingredient should I use?
You can change the number of servings to 16 or 20 and the ingredient amounts will automatically update!
The ingredient amounts update but what about the cook times?
Cook time should not change!
I’m going to try this tomorrow. I usually cook my baked beans in oven for 4 hours, but not able too this time. I use my kitchen shears to cut meat all the time in the kitchen.
We love cooking baked beans in the slow cooker. They always come out perfect.
I am always on the lookout for slow cooker recipes. These flavored baked beans sound delicious and easy to make. Bookmarking for later.
Looks so delicious and comforting! I love baked beans!
This dish looks like a creamy, delicious and healthy meal option. Sure to enjoy every bite of it.
Super easy and great flavor! Thanks!
Such a great easy side! I never thought to use kitchen shears on the bacon!
Baked beans are a cookout MUST! I love that these can be made in the crockpot!
Yum. That’s what I have to say about these beans. So easy, so delicious – everyone loved them! I’ll definitely make these again, thank you!
Not only do these look heavenly but they sound so flavorful.
What a delicious looking side dish! Baked beans always go down well in my house.