Coffee adds rich, full-bodied flavor to this potluck-staple side. Once you have a taste of these Brown Sugar-Coffee Baked Beans, you’ll never reach for the canned version again.
Brown Sugar-Coffee Baked Beans
Makes about 2 quarts
Ingredients
- 1 pound dried navy beans,* rinsed and sorted
- 4 cups brewed medium-roast coffee
- 5 slices thick-cut bacon, chopped
- 1 cup chopped yellow onion
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 cup ketchup
- ¾ cup firmly packed light brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon tomato paste
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- 2 teaspoons yellow mustard
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
Instructions
- In a 4-to 6-quart enameled cast-iron Dutch oven, add beans and water to cover by 2 inches. Cover and let stand overnight. Drain and rinse beans.
- In same Dutch oven, bring beans and coffee to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer, stirring occasionally, until beans are tender, about 2 hours. Remove from heat.
- Preheat oven to 375°.
- In a large cast-iron skillet, cook bacon over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until browned and crisp, about 8 minutes. Remove bacon using a slotted spoon, and let drain on paper towels, reserving drippings in skillet. Reserve ⅓ cup bacon in a small bowl.
- Add onion to skillet; cook over medium heat, stirring frequently, until tender and translucent, 4 to 5 minutes. Stir in garlic; cook for 30 seconds. Stir bacon and onion into bean mixture until well combined.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together ketchup, brown sugar, tomato paste, Worcestershire, mustard, salt, and pepper; stir into bean mixture. Cover beans with lid.
- Bake, stirring occasionally, until sauce is bubbly and thickened, about 30 minutes. Uncover, stir, and bake until sauce has reduced and thickened to desired consistency, 25 to 30 minutes more. Sprinkle with reserved bacon before serving.
Notes
*We used Camellia Dried Navy (Pea) Beans.
