BBQ Baked Beans

Who does not like  good baked beans with anything BBQ?  Or as a side dish? This is a recipe from my cookbook that I think you will love. The recipe use a technique that I find very helpful for long baking times with any food that you do not want to dry out.  You first cover the top of the pan with plastic wrap and then cover the plastic with foil.  It may sound crazy but it works great.

(BTW - sorry for the break in posting - busy week and several power outages payed havoc with my time and the computers!)

BBQ BEANS

The best beans I ever made!  It takes time but the wait is worth it!

INGREDIENTS

1          #10 can pork and beans

1          cup dark brown sugar

1          large onion – diced small

½         cup of maple syrup

2          cups of ketchup

1          cup of yellow mustard

1          teaspoon chili paste

½         pound of bacon.

Preheat your oven to 275

Mix all the ingredients except the bacon and put in a large pan for baking.  Separate the bacon and lay the pieces on top of the bean mixture.  Cover the pan with plastic wrap and then with foil.  Place in the oven and cook for five hours or until the mixture is thick and the bacon is cooked.  Remove bacon, chop and return to beans. 

Using dry beans – if you wish you can start from scratch.  Use a pound of navy beans.  Rinse and sort to make sure you get all the stones, dirt and bad beans out.  Cover with water and soak over night.  If you have hard water, the beans will not absorb the moisture needed as quickly.  So plan on a long soak or longer cooking time.  When you are ready to cook, drain the beans and add fresh water.  Do NOT cook the beans in the soaking water.  Allow at least 2 – 3 hours for the beans to cook before you start this recipe.  You will want to add celery and onions to the beans while they cook.  Once they are tender proceed with the above recipe.  Taste for seasoning after about one hour in the oven and adjust to your liking.