With just a few ingredients you may already have on hand, you can turn ordinary canned baked beans into extraordinary! Kicked-Up Canned Baked Beans is an easy and delicious way to make canned beans taste as though you made them from scratch!
Why This Recipe is a Keeper!
If you love the convenience of canned baked beans but find them lacking in homemade flavor, my Kicked-Up Canned Baked Beans are an easy way to dress them up and taste as though you made them from scratch! This is the best baked beans recipe from canned beans with hundreds of four and five-star reviews!
The flavor base in canned baked beans is already there but with a little help with simple ingredients you may already have on hand, no one will ever know you started with a store-bought convenience item!
Kicked-Up Canned Baked Beans are:
- Easy!
- Budget-friendly because not a lot of extra ingredients are needed–just good, flavorful mostly pantry ingredients.
- Completely make-ahead.
- A sure crowd-pleaser!
How to make Kicked-Up Canned Baked Beans:
- Start with four 16.5-ounce or two 28-ounce cans of original recipe canned baked beans such as Bush’s.
- Gather up the rest of the ingredients:
- Bacon
- Onion
- Molasses
- Spicy brown mustard (can substitute yellow mustard)
- Worcestershire
- Brown sugar
- Ketchup
- A teaspoon of apple cider vinegar for a touch of tanginess is optional and not shown.
- Cook the bacon until it’s crispy then transfer it to a paper towel-lined plate. Reserve the bacon drippings.
- Cook the onion in the reserved drippings until it’s softened.
- Combine everything in a 4-quart baking dish. Save a little bacon to sprinkle over the top.
- The beans can be assembled up to two days ahead of time. If making ahead, simply refrigerate covered until needed.
- Bake uncovered for one hour or until hot, bubbling and the top of the beans is caramelized. Yessssss…….like this!
- Garnish with the reserved bacon…
- And let everyone dig in! Don’t forget to be safe when getting together and STAY HEALTHY!
If you prefer slow cooking this baked bean recipe, the top won’t get caramelized. As suggested by a reader, place a tea towel over the top of the slow cooker to absorb the steam that is produced in a slow cooker so that doesn’t water down the beans.
Storing Leftovers:
First, make sure the beans didn’t sit out too long at your gathering. Two hours at room temperature is the max. Longer than that and you’re flirting with a food-borne illness.
Store any leftovers in the refrigerator or freeze them for later use in an airtight container for 2-3 months.
More great summery side dishes for your next get-together!
- Mediterranean Farro Salad
- Creamy Cucumber Salad with Yogurt
- Easy Fresh Tomato Salad
- Cool and Creamy Potato Salad
- Greek Orzo Pasta Salad
- Quinoa Tabbouleh with Grilled Vegetables
- Tuscan Cherry Tomato and White Bean Salad
Kicked-Up Canned Baked Beans
Ingredients
- Cooking spray - for pan
- 6 slices bacon - diced
- 1 small onion - finely chopped
- 4 cans (16.5-ounce) baked beans - or 2 (28-ounce) cans, preferably original recipe such as Bush's, undrained
- ¼ cup ketchup
- 2-3 tablespoons light brown sugar
- 2 tablespoons spicy brown mustard
- 2 tablespoons molasses
- 2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
- 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar - optional
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 4-quart casserole dish with cooking spray. Set aside.
- Place the bacon in a skillet or saute pan and cook for 4-5 minutes over medium heat until rendered and crispy. Transfer to a paper towel-lined plate.
- Place the onion in the skillet with the bacon drippings and cook for 5-6 minutes or until very soft. If the pan gets dry, add 1-2 tablespoons of water and continue cooking until the onions are cooked to a soft stage.
- Combine the beans, onions, ¾ of the bacon and the remaining ingredients using 2 tablespoons of brown sugar to start with in the prepared baking dish.
- Taste and adjust sweetness with more brown sugar as desired. Add the apple cider vinegar if using for a little tanginess.
- Sprinkle the remaining bacon over the top.
- Bake uncovered for 1 hour or until bubbling and the top is caramelized.
Notes
Nutrition
These are estimated values generated from a nutritional database using unbranded products. Please do your own research with the products you’re using if you have a serious health issue or are following a specific diet.
Pam says
This little bit of extra time is well worth it! Very good.
Albert says
Amazing recipe!!! Made it with 6 slices of thick-cut applewood bacon and stole the show. With the (2) 28oz cans. This was the side show to a 13 lb smoke brisket, sweet corn, and homemade mashed potatoes. It was a party of 9 and the beans were gone…. this recipe is a keeper!! Thank you!
Karen Hill says
Made these for a birthday cook out and everyone loved em!!! Now I am gonna attempt making for a bbq dinner sale- for 500!! Any tips- at least send me some luck!!
Carol says
Hi, Karen, Thanks so very much and glad everyone enjoyed! If you can find the food service-sized cans, that would be a great start. Often, there is an aisle at stores like Kroger and Wal-Mart that have the super-sized cans. A quick internet search shows they have 26 servings each. And most certainly, GOOD LUCK! That’s amazing! Thanks again!
Cathy Rule says
Hi Carol, I just ran across this recipe; these sound amazing.
I would like to take them camping next weekend. I don’t have a cast iron pot – but would these be okay in one of those blue enamelware camping pots?
If so, I may bake them the night before and reheat over campfire.
Questions:
If I don’t prebake, how long should I cook over fire, until the liquid starts to boil?
Or if I prebake then only reheat over fire – same question – heat until I see the liquid start to boil?
I’m also going to attempt to make your Yogurt Ranch Cucumber Salad too, that also looks yummy.
Thanks for these great recipes!!
Carol says
Hi, Cathy, Wow! Cooking the beans over a campfire sounds GREAT and I can almost taste the smoky flavor! Because the beans and everything in it are already cooked, you really just need to reheat. I think a camping pot would be fine and heated through to a good bubbling simmer. Have a great time and hope everyone enjoys!
Peggy Ugrich says
I am preparing the beans for our community block picnic tomorrow. Your photos of your beans looks awesome and hope mine turn out as well as yours. (I used maple syrup instead of molasses) I topped the casserole with the crumbled bacon as I didn’t see where you indicated to put any of it into the beans. It’s smelling so good and can hardly wait to sample it! Thank you for your recipe.
Carol says
Hi, Peggy, Thanks so much and hope you all enjoy! Yeah, that wasn’t clear and thanks so much for pointing that out. I’ve made an adjustment to the recipe that I hope will clarify. Thanks again!
Lora says
Am fixing this for tomorrow. I will not have time to bake in the oven for one hour. If I bake it tonight, what’s the best way to reheat it quickly? Can it be microwaved?
If I don’t bake tonight, can I stovetop cook it then reheat it tomorrow?
Carol says
Hi, Lora, Thanks so much for your question. I would cook the onion a bit more to really soften it up and get it done to the point of baking and then refrigerate overnight. When needed, put it in the microwave and cook in increments, stirring a couple of times until it’s good and hot. You won’t have the nice, caramelized top you’d get from baking. You could bake it tonight and then microwave it, too. However, when heating in the microwave, it’s a good idea to stir several times to get the item heated evenly so that caramelized top is going to go away. Hope this helps!
Ruth Rhodes says
Do I drain the beans?
Carol says
Hi, Ruth, Thanks so much for your question. No, don’t drain the beans. The sauce will thicken up when you bake the beans. Thanks again and hope you enjoy!
W A Herman III says
Instructions don’t mention molasses. Are both brown sugar and molasses used?
Carol says
Hi, Thanks so much for your question! I’ve clarified the recipe; I can see where that might be confusing. You would add the “remaining ingredients” which includes the molasses. Yes, both brown sugar and molasses are used. Hope it’s clear now! If not, just give me another shout. Thanks so much and hope you enjoy!
Marsha says
Been making these for years and everyone loves them. When there’s a potluck, my beans are always requested. In fact taking them tonight for a 20 person bbq.
Carol says
Thanks so much, Marsha! Glad you and everyone else enjoys! And definitely send them over to my site for the recipe! 🙂
Renee says
Carol…oh my freaking gosh, these were absolutely amazing! I made them for Easter and my very picky husband was blown away! The only thing I left out was the molasses because I didn’t have any and honestly don’t care for the flavor. Anyway, love this recipe! The search is finally over!
Thank you so much 😛😋
Carol says
Hi, Renee, Thank you so very, very much! You really made my day!
Carol jean says
Do you drain the canned beans?
Carol says
Hi, Carol Jean, First of all, my middle name is Jean! 🙂 Thanks so much for your question. I don’t drain the beans. I use what’s there and then add the ingredients to it per the recipe to jazz them up. Thanks again and hope you enjoy!
Louise Mattox says
How many people will the two large cans serve? I need to feed about 30 people.
Carol says
Hi, Louise, Thanks so much for your question. My recipe feeds about 10-12 people so you’d want to triple the recipe and use six of the 28-ounce cans. Thanks again and hope everyone enjoys!
Tracy Morin says
Love these beans! In our permanent rotation.
I make the recipe as is except for combining some steps to simplify the prep.
I use a cast iron skillet to render the bacon. When it has almost rendered, I add the onion in with the bacon and cook that. The rest of the ingredients are then added per the recipe and the skillet goes in the oven.I serve the beans at the table from the skillet.
They stay warm and there’s at least one less dish to wash!
Sharron says
C’est bon, c’est bon!
Ruth says
Making this tomorrow for Independence Day.
Carol says
Hi, Ruth, Hope you enjoy! Have a great holiday weekend!
Traci B says
I am hosting a few friends around our pool for 4th of July and plan to do my BBQ Pulled Pork in a crockpot and would like to do my Baked Beans in a crockpot, as well. Do you have any suggestions of how to do this so I can make the beans ahead of time and heat them in the crockpot until time for service. Thank you!
Carol says
Hi, Traci, Thanks so much for your question. You can get it all prepped today and just get it in your slow cooker tomorrow. If you have the room, you can even store it in the insert and refrigerate it. Before you start to heat the beans, let it sit out at room temperature a bit so you don’t crack your insert from any temperature change. When doing them in a slow cooker, you won’t get the nice, caramelized top and they’ll probably be a little more watery. Four hours on HIGH should heat them through. You can always hold them on the warm setting then. Thanks again and hope everyone enjoys!