Home » Side Dishes » Southern-Style Baked Beans with Bacon
A classic Southern-style baked beans recipe made with brown sugar topped with crispy bacon.
You know how you lay slices of bacon on top of baked beans and they cook up all glorious? Except that they shrink up so much that when the beans are done only the center of your dish has bacon? And you’ll have like 5 slices but it’s impossible to cut them with the serving spoon so only 5 people actually get the bacon.
And the other people are walking around mumbling under their breath like, That heifer just had to get that last slice of bacon.
There are recipes that call for cooking the bacon first and crumbling it on top. But, as I've said many, many times around here, ain't nobody got time for that. So here’s what I do! I mix up my very favorite baked beans then top them with a gozillion nuggets of bacon that crisp up and work their magic while the beans are cooking. End result? Bacon for everyone!
HOW TO COOK SOUTHERN-STYLE BAKED BEANS
- Mix together ketchup, barbeque sauce, brown sugar, mustard, worcestershire sauce, Liquid Smoke, garlic and pepper then set aside.
- Open each can of beans then pour off all the standing liquid in the top of the can then gently stir beans into the ketchup mixture. Pour into a shallow baking dish.
- Cut bacon into 1/2 inch pieces then place pieces evenly in a single layer on top of bean.
- Bake beans, uncovered, at 350 degrees for 1 to 1.5 hours or until bacon is cooked through and starting to crisp.
NOTES ABOUT MAKING SOUTHERN-STYLE BAKED BEANS
- In the recipe card, you’ll notice I call for canned “plain pork and beans”. What I mean by that is we just want plain jane pork and beans, not “baked beans” or “barbeque beans” or anything fancy like that as they’re already jazzed up. I usually buy Van Camp’s or Libby’s.
- We’re going to pour off the standing liquid in the cans to ensure our beans are rich and thick. Be sure to keep the cans upright until you’re ready to cook. You want all the liquid to settle on top so you can pour it off easily.
- Once the bacon is cut into small pieces, I like to kinda crumple each piece a bit when topping the beans instead of laying the bacon pieces flat over the beans – like little inchworms (the cute ride-on toys from the 80’s not actual worms). This is totally optional but it makes the finished dish look extra gorgeous!
DISHES THAT GO GREAT ALONGSIDE BAKED BEANS
SOUTHERN-STYLE MAC & CHEESE - My grandmama’s recipe for Southern Mac & Cheese made the traditional “custard-style” way using eggs and evaporated milk then baked to golden, cheesy perfection.
CREAMY CUCUMBER SALAD - A German-style cucumber salad recipe with red onions and dill and a cool and creamy dressing made with sour cream.
BETTER-THAN-BOJANGLES DIRTY RICE - A copycat recipe for Bojangles iconic Cajun dirty rice, made with sausage and a favorite throughout Southern states, especially the Carolinas!
ZUCCHINI PIE - A savory pie or tart recipe made with zucchini, mozzarella cheese and Italian herbs baked in a crescent roll crust.
THE BEST CREAMY MACARONI SALAD - A surprisingly flavorful recipe for creamy macaroni salad with a ton of flavor and one step that makes all the difference!
NO-PEEL BUTTERMILK POTATO SALAD - A recipe for potato salad with cool and creamy buttermilk and fresh herbs with stone-ground mustard and finely diced red onion.
Recipe for Southern Style Baked Beans with Bacon
Be sure to check out my recipe for COWBOY BEANS too! The recipe has a lot of the same ingredients plus ground beef and sausage!
Southern-Style Baked Beans with Bacon
A classic Southern-style baked beans recipe made with brown sugar topped with crispy bacon.
Ingredients
- 2 28-oz. cans plain pork n’ beans
- 1/2 cup ketchup
- 1/2 cup barbeque sauce
- 1/4 cup brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon yellow mustard
- 1 tablespoon worcestershire sauce
- A few drops Liquid Smoke (optional)
- 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/4 teaspoon pepper
- 5-6 slices thick, center-cut bacon
Instructions
- Combine ketchup, barbeque sauce, brown sugar, mustard, worcestershire sauce, Liquid Smoke, garlic and pepper in a medium-sized bowl then mix well; set aside.
- Open each can of beans and pour off all the standing liquid in the top of the can. Discard liquid then add beans to the ketchup mixture. Mix beans gently with the ketchup mixture until thoroughly combined then pour into a shallow 2-quart baking dish.
- Cut bacon into 1/2 inch pieces then place pieces evenly in a single layer on top of beans. I like to kinda crumple each piece a bit instead of laying them flat – like little inchworms (the cute ride-on toys from the 80’s not actual worms).
- Bake beans, uncovered, at 350 degrees for 1 to 1.5 hours or until bacon is cooked through and starting to crisp.
Notes
- When I say "plain" pork n’ beans, I mean not “baked beans” or “barbeque beans” or anything fancy like that as they’re already jazzed up. You just want plain jane, inexpensive "pork n' beans". I usually buy Van Camp’s or Libby’s.
- Be sure to keep the cans upright until you’re ready to cook. You want all the liquid to settle on top so you can pour it off.
- If you can't find thick center-cut bacon, just buy thick then trim off the fatty ends.
