Best Ever Cowboy Baked Beans are a delicious, hearty side dish with a western twist. Cowboy Baked Beans are a bit of spice, bit of sweet and a whole LOT of delicious…and BACON! The perfect side dish recipe for your next summer BBQ, picnic, Father’s Day, potluck or game day; you’ll be the talk of the party.
Everyone says theirs is the “best” and probably even the BEST EVER; I have come to learn that the best ever depends on our personal tastes. So for our family, these are truly, the Best Ever Cowboy Baked Beans.
I enjoy giving precise details in my recipe posts to lead my readers through any questions. If you’re just here for the printable recipe, you can Jump to Recipe to head straight there!
Why You Will Love this Recipe
- Savory fusion: Cowboy baked beans with bacon combine smoky bacon and hearty beans for a rich and delicious flavor experience.
- Ultimate comfort: This dish provides the warm and satisfying comfort of classic comfort food.
- Versatile: Enjoy it as a side or main course; these beans with bacon are versatile and always satisfying.
I’ve had an ancient recipe for baked beans floating around my kitchen for decades, but when my friend at Julia’s Simply Southern featured her Southern Style Baked Beans a few weeks back and I knew I had to dust off my recipe and introduce it to her recipe. Southern girl meet, Western girl!
Simple Ingredients
- Canned Pork & Beans | I chose B&M baked beans, because they are gluten-free and do not have high fructose corn syrup. But you choose whichever brand you love!
- Onion | gives it a lovely sweet bite!
- Bell Peppers | Use any color you like, I used yellow because it’s what I had, use green, red or orange too!
- Bacon | Would it be a Cowboy dish if it didn’t have crisp bacon on the top! Mmmmm!
- Tomato Sauce & Ketchup | These add depth, richness and definitely that rich tomato-y sauce flavor!
- Molasses | Again adds to the richness of the dish with a touch of sweet, helps balance out the acidity in the tomatoes.
- Apple Cider Vinegar | Gives it the perfect tang! You can certainly replace with another vinegar!
- Mustard | We used spicy brown AND yellow mustard!
- Worcestershire Sauce | I could seriously slather this on everything, well almost!
- Spices | Garlic powder, onion powder, cayenne pepper, salt and pepper! All-the-FLAVOR!
If you are looking some fabulous potluck or barbecue side dishes, try these fan faves: Corn Casserole (without Jiffy), keep the bacon going with this creamy Bacon Balsamic Macaroni Salad or my personal favorite; Asian Ramen Salad – this one’s all natural!
How to Make Cowboy Baked Beans
Step 1
In a large mixing bowl, I probably should have used larger than a 2 qt mixing bowl, but I managed somehow!
So combine all sauce ingredients in the larger mixing bowl and whisk well. Remember if making gluten-free make sure ketchup, vinegar, mustard, molasses and Worcestershire sauce are all gluten-free.
Open can(s) of beans (I still occasionally use an electric can opener) and pour beans over sauce, no draining, you want all those delectable juices.
Step 2
Toss in diced onion and bell pepper. I added about a half of a 15 oz can of tomato sauce. Stir to combine. Freeze the other half of the tomato sauce and use in Spanish Rice (or Mexican Rice), sometime when you are not making baked beans.
Step 3
Preheat oven to 350°F. Pour baked beans into a casserole dish, I used my trusty Pyrex casserole dish because it fits into my trusty Pyrex carrier and I was taking these beans to a BBQ at a friends house.
But roughly any 9 x 13 casserole dish would work just fine, if you have a 12″ or larger cast iron skillet try that or go one better and try a nice hefty cast iron dutch oven! I bet you could even cook these over a campfire!!
Step 4
Here is where it gets fun or good or AMAZING! Dice a ½ lb of bacon into small (bite-ish sized) pieces and toss onto the top of the beans.
No need to make it pretty, but spread it out so that bacon gets crispy…cause I don’t like limp bacon!
That’s it, bake (uncovered) for 1 ½ – 2 hours — until the beans are a bubblin‘ and the bacon is crispy.
Step 5
At the end of the baking process, placed mine under the broiler, on the middle rack, for about 3 minutes to really crisp the bacon!
Stir it all together or leave that showy, crisp bacon on top! Now get out there, and make up these amazing beans for Father’s Day, Memorial Day, July 4th or any BBQ, potluck, picnic or game day that calls for crazy good, Best Ever Cowboy Baked Beans.
Frequently Asked Questions
f you need to prep your beans the night before or morning of your event, simply prep your beans as directly, only hold off on putting the bacon on until just prior to baking. When ready to bake, remove from fridge and let sit on counter for 1 hour, add your diced bacon while preheating your oven and bake as directed.
Do not freeze unbaked beans, changes the texture and taste, but if you must freeze them; bake them first, cool them and then freeze them.
Allow them to cool completely, place them in a BPA Free freezer container. Careful to leave about ½ – ¾ inch of room at the top for expansion when frozen. Baked Beans are good up to 6 months frozen. Thaw overnight in fridge, transfer to oven safe baking dish and reheat in 250-300°F oven until bubbly (about 30-45 minutes) or toss in crockpot on low until warmed.
Favorite Bean Recipes
- Ham & Beans {by Mandy at South Your Mouth}
- Nana’s Epic Navy Bean Ham Bone Soup {by Sommer at A Spicy Perspective}
- Copycat Cafe Rio Pinto Beans {by my mentor and friend Norine at Norine’s Nest}
- Charro Beans {by my sweet friend Nikki at Soulfully Made}
I reheated these in this cast iron oval baking dish the next day for dinner. They were just.as.good!
This Cowboy Baked Beans recipe keep well as leftovers (if you have any), but unless you plan on eating them within a few days it’s best to freeze them in dinner sized portions!
What to Serve with Cowboy Baked Beans
These baked beans would be so great with these Smashburgers with grilled onions, and a side salad, like this Wedge Salad and finish with these Crumbl Chocolate Chip Cookies.
Great Barbecue and Potluck Dishes:
- Nana & Papa’s Famous Flank Steak Marinade
- Easy Asian Pork Tenderloin
- Tropical Fruit Salad
- Summertime Shish Kebabs {Beef or Chicken Marinade}
- Oven Baked Barbecue Beef Brisket
- Juicy Hamburger (using Bison, Beef, Chicken or Turkey) aka, best burgers ever!
- Coconut Lime Chicken
And for potluck or barbecue desserts…
- The BEST Key Lime Pie
- Easy Chocolate Loaf or Bundt Cake
- Chocolate Chocolate Chip Nothing Bundt Cake
- Old Fashioned Strawberry Shortcake or Chocolate Shortcake
- Best Chocolate Chip Cookies (EVER) or try these Gluten Free Chocolate Chip Cookies!
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Best Ever Cowboy Baked Beans
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Print Pin Save RateEquipment
- Pyrex Portables Glass Bakeware
- Lodge 5 Quart Cast Iron Dutch Oven.
Ingredients
For the Beans
- 2 28 oz cans baked beans I used B&M original baked beans
- ½ large sweet onion diced (Vidalia or other sweet onion is fine)
- 1 large bell pepper finely diced (I used yellow, use whatever color you like)
- ½ lb bacon uncooked chopped into pieces (I prefer uncured, nitrate, nitrite free)
- 8 oz tomato sauce 1 cup or ½ -15 oz can. I used organic
- 1 cup Ketchup I used organic
- ½ cup molasses unsulphured
- ¼ cup apple cider vinegar or replace with white vinegar
- â…› cup spicy brown mustard heaping
- â…› cup yellow mustard heaping (making with only yellow mustard increase to rounded â…“ cup)
- 2 Tablespoons Worcestershire Sauce
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- Dash Cayenne Pepper more if you like heat
- Pinch Kosher Salt
- Black Pepper a couple of grinds of fresh pepper
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F (175° C). Add all of the sauce ingredients in a large mixing bowl and stir to combine, whisking if needed.
- Add pork and beans (undrained), tomato sauce, and diced onion and bell pepper. Using a large spoon or spatula stir to combine beans with sauce.
- Pour into a casserole baking dish or cast iron skillet or dutch oven. Dice a ½ lb of bacon into small (bite-ish sized) pieces and toss onto the top of the beans. No need to make it pretty, but spread it out so that the bacon gets crispy.
- Bake uncovered for 1 ½ – 2 hours until bubbly and bacon is crispy. If crisper bacon is desired, with beans on middle rack, broil for 2-3 minutes until desired crispness is reached. Allow to rest for 10 minutes and serve warm.
Notes
Nutrition
These are so very tasty! I love making these in the fall and roasted hot dogs over the fire. The family loves it.
Thank you! Perfect with hot dogs!
Wow!!!!!!
Agreed!!
We made these baked beans for a cookout and every last bean got eaten! Haha that’s always a good sign. So yummy!
Haha!! Love it, Liz!
Baked beans are a summertime staple in our house and this recipe was no exception! Hearty, bold and delicious; easily, a new favorite dish!
Love reading this, Sara! Thank you!
I made these baked beans for a cookout over the weekend and everyone loved them! They were delicious!
Thanks so much, Tayler!
These baked cowboy beans will be perfect for our summer gatherings. My guests love anything with bacon and I’m sure they’ll devour this!
Absolutely!
Delicious baked bean dish with great flavors! Broiling the bacon to make it crispy brings this dish to the next level. Looking forward to trying it for the next cookout I have!
Glad you liked it, Elizabeth!
Oh I love beans and this looks like such a great recipe! I think the addition of pepper would be perfect here for us since we love it a little spicy in our home!
Spice it up, I love it!
Love these cowboy baked beans. The bacon— you spoke to my heart!
Haha, I understand!
These baked beans were so incredibly flavorful! They had everything you could want in a barbecue side dish.
Thank you so much!
These hearty cowboy-baked beans are the perfect addition to any cookout! So good.
YAY! Perfect for a cookout!
I’ve tried many cowboy baked beans, and this recipe is by far my favorite! Thanks so much for sharing!
Wow, so glad to hear that, thank you!
The most flavorful, delicious baked beans EVER. My family and I love the molasses-based sauce and all of that tasty bacon! Another brilliant recipe from The Fresh Cooky!
Aw, thank you my friend!
Looooove this recipe! The bigger chunks of bacon make all the difference. They don’t seem like an afterthought, they are there to be TASTED. Excellent dish.
Exactly! Thanks so much Dana!
I have made this several times for our summer BBQ’s and it always the first side dish to go! So tasty and easy to make!
So very tasty!! Thanks so much Gina!
We loved this recipe! Very tasty. I had hoped to have some leftover to pop in the freezer for a quick side later one, but nope! I’ll make these again, thanks!
Oh darn, they are great leftovver!
Delicious. This is a keeper. Shared at a potluck and everyone went for seconds. So full of flavor!
I have made a variation of this recipe for eons…well since I was young. 🙂 One suggestion for those of us getting up there in years. Dice the bacon and cook some of the fat out before you put it on top of the beans. It keeps the beans from swimming in fat and tastes just as good. It also means I can put the Tums away. Otherwise a great recipe
A great suggestion Sheila! I am just too lazy! LOL! Thank you for your kind words and hope you had a wonderful Memorial day weekend!
The perfect baked bean to enjoy with burgers! Thanks for the delicious recipe, we all liked it!
Thanks so much Summer, love hearing this! Appreciate the kind comment, have a great week!
Kathleen
The perfect thing to bring to a Labor Day cookout!
Great side for a bbq – everyone loved these beans!
This is a delicious recipe and worth trying! Thanks so much for sharing your awesome post with us at Full Plate Thursday,447 this week. Hope you have a great Labor Day Weekend and come back to see us real soon!
Miz Helen
Your Cowboy Baked Beans truly will be the best ever and the recipe is just in time for the season! Thank so much for sharing this awesome recipe with us at Full Plate Thursday!
Miz Helen
You are such a pleasure Miz Helen. Thank you!!
Hahaha Kathleen! You and I share so many “weirdnesses”, but not this one. I LOVE beans and this recipe looks INSANE!! I’m going to have to try it and see if I can lure the SugarBugs to eating beans too….
I love many beans too, guess just not so much a navy or white bean fan!! And thank you Tasia!!! This might be the recipe to try on your SugarBugs!
Baked beans aren’t always my favorite but these do look delicious!!
Haha!! I hear you only 3 of the 4 of us in our family like baked beans!!