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Boston baked beans
Slow-baked navy beans with molasses, mustard and salt pork
Boston earned the nickname Beantown from this pot: small white beans baked all day with salt pork, molasses and mustard, traditionally put in the oven on Saturday morning to be eaten that night with brown bread and kept warm for Sunday. The pork, cured belly with its rind, melts into the beans and gives a savoury richness against the dark, sweet sauce. Chef's tip: keep the beans just covered with water as they bake; if they dry out on top they turn hard and leathery.
- Total time
- 435 min
- Difficulty
- easy
- Serves
- 8
Ingredients
- 1 ⅛ lb dried haricot (navy) beanssoaked overnight
- 1 onionpeeled, left whole
- ½ cup molasses
- 1 ⅜ oz soft brown sugar
- 1 ½ tsp English mustard powder
- ½ tsp black pepper
- 1 tsp salt
- 3 ¾ cups boiling waterplus extra
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Method
0/6 doneStep 1: Drain the soaked 1 ⅛ lb dried haricot (navy) beans, cover with fresh water in a pan and simmer for 30–40 minutes until the skins split when you blow on a spoonful. Drain.
40 minStep 2: Heat the oven to 275°F (250°F fan). Put the whole 1 onion in the bottom of a lidded casserole or bean pot and tip the beans on top.
3 minStep 3: Cut the 7 oz salt pork or thick unsmoked streaky bacon in one piece in two, bury one piece in the beans and set the other on top, rind up.
2 minStep 4: Stir the ½ cup molasses, 1 ⅜ oz soft brown sugar, 1 ½ tsp English mustard powder, ½ tsp black pepper and 1 tsp salt into the 3 ¾ cups boiling water and pour over the beans; they should be just covered.
3 minStep 5: Cover and bake for 6 hours, checking every hour and topping up with boiling water so the beans stay just covered. A common mistake is letting the top dry out, which leaves hard beans.
360 minStep 6: Take off the lid for the last hour so the top turns dark and sticky. The beans are ready when they are soft and creamy and the sauce is thick. Check the pork is tender (it is fully cooked well past 160°F), slice it and serve with the beans.
60 min
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 330 kcal
- Protein
- 16 g
- Carbs
- 45 g
- Fat
- 9 g
- Fibre
- 12 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does boston baked beans take?
- About 435 minutes in total: 15 minutes to prepare and 420 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 8 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Can I make it ahead?
- Yes. It keeps well, so you can cook it earlier in the day or the day before and reheat it.
- What can I use instead of onion?
- 2 shallots per onion.
- What can I use instead of soft brown sugar?
- White sugar + 1 tbsp molasses or treacle per 200g.
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