I am sharing one of my favorite side dishes for this week’s Flashback Friday: Baked beans. Not the kind you get in a can (no pork and beans either). I really LOVE good, old fashioned, made from scratch baked beans.
However, sometimes, you just don’t have the time or the patience to make the completely from scratch version like my Molasses Baked Beans. I created this recipe for our July 4th Work Barbecue few years back because I really wanted homemade beans, but, I didn’t think about it until the morning of the barbecue. I didn’t have time to soak my beans and well I am not THAT prepared to have pre-cooked ones I can pull from the freezer.
As much as I LOVE Bacon, I don’t LOVE it in beans because it just gets soggy. I thought it would be fun to use “Smoked Turkey Sausage” because the beans would not only be sweet, but, they would be smoky too.
The result was AMAZING and nobody could tell I used canned beans. This is a recipe I will for sure make again and again.
You should definitely give these a try for your next BBQ, I guarantee everyone will love them as much as we did.
QUICK & EASY “SLOW” COOKER BAKED BEANS (print it!)
INGREDIENTS
- 1 lb Lite Kielbasa or Smoked Turkey Sausage, quartered then chopped
- 1 red onion, chopped
- 1 cup Ketchup (or make your own)
- 3/4 cup packed dark brown sugar
- 1/4 cup Agave Nectar (I used X-Agave), honey or sugar
- 2 Tbsp apple cider vinegar
- 2 Tbsp molasses
- 2 Tbsp deli mustard
- 1/4 cup Chipotle Barbeque sauce, if you want a little kick, optional
- 1 tsp sea salt
- 1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
- 3 cans (15-1/2 ounces each) pinto beans, drained and rinsed
INSTRUCTIONS
1. Add your Kielbasa sausage to a pan sprayed with nonstick spray over medium heat. Cook until lightly browned, 5-7 minutes, then, set aside.
2. Using the same pan, add your chopped onion and cook until slightly browned/caramelized.
3. While your sausage and onions cook, mix together ketchup through black pepper and set aside.
4. Spray your crock pot with nonstick spray or use a crock pot liner. Add your beans, sausage, onions and sauce mixture. Stir to combine and cook on high for 2 hours or low for 4 hours.
Serve straight from the crock pot and enjoy!
Makes about 20, 1/2 cup servings, 5 Smartpoints or 4 points+
Nutritional Information per 1/2 cup serving using Calorie Count:
STEP – BY – STEP:
Brown your smoked sausage for 5-7 minutes or until browned.
Remove your sausage and use the same pan to brown your onions for 5-7 minutes.
Spray your crock pot with nonstick spray and add beans.
Then, browned sausage
and browned onions.
While your sausage & onions cook, whip up your secret sauce. You can use any ketchup or vinegar, but, these are my two favorites.
While you don’t technically “need” to add Barbecue sauce since you’ve just made one up from scratch, I wanted to give my beans a little “kick” with some Gayle’s Chipotle Barbecue sauce. Totally optional, but, I highly recommend it.
Pour your secret sauce over your bean mixture and stir to combine.
Cook in your crock pot on low for 4 hours or high for 2 hours. You can easily leave these on all day and let people snack on them through your barbecue.
This is one of my favorite recipes from the archives that I make almost every summer.
Enjoy and have a great long weekend!
Yum, yum! I wonder if this would work with vegetarian sausage?
Hi Carolyn,
I bet you could totally use veggie sausage with this – but I would wait to add it until the end so that it doesn’t fall apart in the beans.
Let me know if you try it and it works 🙂
Danica
I made this recipe for a Biker Party this September, and let me tell you, EVERYONE asked who made these delicious beans!! It was a VERY proud moment for me. A week later, I went to another party where someone had gone to the biker party, and guess what their request that I bring? BEANS!!!!
I have since made this recipe about 5 times, and I’m about to make them again tonight!! DELICIOUS!!!!
Chantal
Chantal ~ that is AWESOME! Thanks for letting me know everyone loved them. I need to make these again, they are tasty!
Danica
WHERE DID YOU GET THAT CROCK POT?
Hi Lisa,
I bought it at a local Home and Garden Show. It is made by The Healthy Gourmet.
Danica
Danica,
Your site has been THE BEST EVER to happen to me. I am so glad you include your older recipes, like the slow cooker baked beans. I made then today for a potluck dinner I went to, and made it vegetarian because I wasn’t sure who was attending (good thing because there were a few vegetarians there). There was about 2 cups leftover, brought it home an the Husband ate it up. I could eat an entire meal of these beans alone, they are so good! My teen boys have already put in a repeat request with a meat addition. If you hadn’t re-posted it I may have missed a fabulous recipie. Thanks again! 🙂
Karen,
You are too sweet! Thanks for letting me know you enjoyed this recipe. It is definitely one of our favorites.
Danica
Danica,
Your site has been THE BEST EVER to happen to me. I am so glad you include your older recipes, like the slow cooker baked beans. I made then today for a potluck dinner I went to, and made it vegetarian because I wasn’t sure who was attending (good thing because there were a few vegetarians there). There was about 2 cups leftover, brought it home and the Husband ate it up. I could eat an entire meal of these beans alone, they are so good! My teen boys have already put in a repeat request with a meat addition. If you hadn’t re-posted it I may have missed a fabulous recipe! Thanks again. 🙂
Hi Danica,
I wondered if you’re familiar with a product called AlFresco Uncured Chicken Bacon ? It’s fully cooked and gets crispy when heated in the microwave. One of my complaints about turkey bacon was the rubbery quality. This is Gluten free. No nitrates or nitrites added so it’s lower sodium. I don’t eat red meat and this feeds my bacon cravings PLUS it’s only 15 calories a slice.
Diane
Hi Diane,
I’ll check it out as I love bacon 🙂
Thanks for the tip,
Danica
I love baked beans! Plus it’s a perfect potluck dish — thanks for sharing!