James Beard’s Boston Baked Beans
- Total Time
- About 7 hours, plus 6 hours' refrigeration
- Rating
- Comments
- Read comments
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Ingredients
- 2cups of white pea beans (navy beans)
- 1scant teaspoon salt, plus more to taste
- 1medium onion, peeled
- 4pork spareribs, or 8 baby-back ribs
- ⅓cup dark brown sugar or molasses
- 2teaspoons dry mustard
- 1teaspoon ground black pepper
Nutritional analysis per serving (6 servings)
466 calories; 18 grams fat; 6 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 6 grams monounsaturated fat; 3 grams polyunsaturated fat; 51 grams carbohydrates; 11 grams dietary fiber; 10 grams sugars; 27 grams protein; 388 milligrams sodium
Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
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Preparation
- Step 1
In a large bowl, soak the beans in 2 quarts of water for 6 hours. Drain the beans and put them in a large pot. Add the salt and enough cool water to cover 2 inches above the beans. Bring to a boil, then lower the heat and simmer gently, stirring occasionally, until the beans are just barely tender, 30 to 40 minutes. Drain well.
- Step 2
Bring another pot of water to a boil. Preheat the oven to 250 degrees. In the bottom of a large casserole with a tight-fitting lid, place the peeled onion -- yes, whole -- and spareribs (or baby-back ribs). Spread the beans on top. In a small bowl, mix together the brown sugar (or molasses), mustard and black pepper and add this to the beans and pork. Pour in just enough boiling water to cover the beans, put the lid on and bake, occasionally adding more boiling water to keep the beans covered, until they are tender but not falling apart, 4 to 5 hours.
- Step 3
Remove the casserole from the oven. Season the beans with salt. Pull the meat from the ribs. Discard the bones and excess fat and stir the meat back into the beans. With the lid off, return the casserole to the oven and let the beans finish cooking, uncovered and without additional water, until the sauce has thickened and is nicely caramelized on top, about 45 minutes more.
Private Notes
Comments
This is a very nice recipe, and the result was a quite delicious pot of baked beans. I used meaty baby-back ribs, so the result could better be described as pork and beans. My sauce never thickened and caramelized in the oven (perhaps because I used butter beans instead of navy beans), but it did thicken over time in the refrigerator.
Made it in the crockpot and it turned out great! I used some leftover chicken broth (1cup) with the water and just barely covered the beans with water. I sliced the onion. Used 1/2 cup of molasses and a dash of cayenne. I cooked it on High for 6 hours and added brown sugar to taste after that, about 1/3 cup. I am very pleased with how this turned out and will definitely make it again! This did thicken up nicely and I think that's due to being very frugal with the water.
An update: another hour and a half in the 250 oven, followed by about 40 minutes at 350 (I was preheating for another dish) and the beans are now beautifully caramelized.
This recipe is too simple and lacking in flavorful ingredients. I would not soak or precook the beans, just rinse and go! The cook time turned my beans into mush. And it has no flavor. Followed other’s tips to punch it up.
What becomes of the whole onion…?
Sorry. Maybe it’s me, but these beans seemed somewhat tasteless. I would not make the recipe again. It is not worth the time and effort.
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