Southern Baked Beans

Big pan of Southern-style BBQ baked beans bulked with browned ground beef, sweet onion, green pepper, brown sugar, ketchup, and mustard. Optional bacon on top; bake at 325 F until bubbly.

By Brandon Carroll

Yield: 10 servings

Prep: 15 minutes

Cook: 45 minutes

Total: about 1 hour

Ingredients

• 4 (about 28-ounce) cans Southern-style BBQ baked beans (Busch's Southern Pit Barbecue or similar)
• 1 pound ground beef (80/20)
• 1 tablespoon olive oil or avocado oil, for the vegetables
• 1 small sweet onion, diced small
• 2 medium green bell peppers, diced small
• 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
• 1 cup packed dark brown sugar
• 1/2 cup ketchup
• 4 teaspoons prepared yellow mustard
• 4 slices bacon, halved (optional topping)
• Kosher salt and black pepper, to taste

Instructions

1. Heat the oven to 325 F. Soft-set a large skillet over medium heat.
2. Brown the ground beef, breaking it into small crumbles, until no pink remains, 6 to 8 minutes. Thermometer in the thickest crumble: 160 F. Drain excess grease if the pan is swimming. Tip the beef into a large mixing bowl or baking dish.
3. In the same skillet, warm the oil over medium heat. Cook the diced onion and green peppers until softened and sweet, 4 to 5 minutes. Season lightly with salt and pepper.
4. Add the cooked vegetables to the beef. Stir in the baked beans (with their sauce), Worcestershire, dark brown sugar, ketchup, and yellow mustard until everything is evenly combined. Taste; add a pinch of salt or black pepper if needed.
5. Spread the mixture in a medium baking dish (about 9×13 or similar). Lay the optional bacon halves over the top.
6. Bake 45 minutes, stirring once halfway through so the edges do not dry out. The beans should be thick, glossy, and bubbling at the edges.
7. Rest 5 minutes. Chop the bacon into the beans if you used it (or leave the strips on top). Serve hot as a side.