Texas-Style Baked Beans

Texas-style baked beans are a staple side dish of any big Lone Star State barbecue—it doesn't feel proper without this quintessential, meaty side. And for campfire cookouts, what could be more iconic than a steaming pot of saucy beans hanging over the open flames?

But while it's easy to heat up a can of generic store-bought sweet and tangy baked beans, it's actually a lot less work than you'd think to whip up your own from nearly scratch. After all, if you want your barbecue to stand out, go big. Texas big. With Texas-Style Baked Beans.

Learn how to make Texas-style baked beans, and watch them disappear at dinner.

What Are Texas-Style Baked Beans?

Texas-style baked beans aren't your typical store-bought, molasses-spiked white navy beans. Those are Boston baked beans. Nor are they maple-sweetened, a broader New England style, or saccharine with brown sugar and corn syrup. And the meatless ones in a thin, tomato-based sauce? That's British.

Rather, Texas beans are usually homemade, savory, smoky, hearty, a little bit (or a lotta bit, depending on the cook!) spicy and made with pinto beans. They incorporate salty pork and lace it with sweetness to take the edge off any heat.

And they're not like other more well-known styles of beans from that region. For example, the Texas beans in this recipe aren't to be confused with Ranch-style or cowboy/chuckwagon beans. The former is a distinct brand name and swims in a pool of chili gravy and doesn't usually include meat or sugars. The latter incorporates ground beef and a sweeter, thick base.

Ingredients for Texas-Style Baked Beans

Here's what you'll need to make these Texas-inspired baked beans:

• Bacon: The deep, salty flavors of good bacon provide the backbone of the recipe, its drippings adding body to the vegetables sautéed in it and deepening overall richness of the dish. Try thick-cut types for robust pieces in the beans, and nitrate-free varieties, which use celery juice as a preservative, if you already eat a lot of cured meats.
• Aromatics: Cooking onions, peppers, and garlic into the bacon fat helps to open up the flavors and fragrances of these seasoning veggies, and infuses the pork flavor into the chopped pieces. You'll want to use the red bell pepper for its natural sweetness, and fresh jalapeños give the dish heat.
• Beer: The addition of a dark lager beer, such as the Modelo Negra recommended in this recipe, also add more depth, contributing earthiness as a contrast from the snappy peppers.
• Pinto beans: This particular type of bean is the signature of baked bean dishes from the state of Texas. Dry, they're speckled and cute, shaped like kidney beans but smaller. Canned—like what's called for in this recipe—they're light brown, easy to work with, creamy, and on the nutty side. If you can't find canned pintos, feel free to use dry ones, but make sure to account for the extra time. You'll need to soak them for 6 to 12 hours, then cook them for 40 minutes to two and half hours before you can use them in this recipe. If you can't find pinto beans at all, you can use kidney beans, black beans, navy beans, or great northern beans if you must.
• Barbecue sauce: Using pre-made bottled or jarred barbecue sauce helps to significantly cut down on time, effort, and ingredient costs. The brand you choose sets the foundational flavor and balance of the dish, so go with your favorite!
• Light brown sugar: Barbecue sauce tends to be sweet already, but this addition gives you the opportunity to enhance that aspect more. Light brown sugar takes on its color from the remaining molasses in it, giving it a warmer, again earthier flavor that lends itself well to beans.
• Worcestershire sauce: This fermented English condiment contributes a nice kick of umami and slight tartness to any dish. It's a common addition to chili-flavored dishes, but those with allergies should be aware that it does contain fish (anchovies, typically) and alliums.
• Seasonings: Chili powder is one of the key ingredients that makes Texas-style baked beans so dramatically different from its northern counterparts. Two teaspoons of this spice blend across the five cans of beans is good for measured, smoky heat, but you can of course up the ante if you taste as you go. If you don't have chili powder or don't like a lot of spice, you can swap in sweeter, milder paprika with a little cumin. Add in cayenne if you don't want to give up the heat. For a little more smokiness, powdered chipotle pepper can be a fun way to turn it up. And you need salt because … well, we always need salt!

How To Make Texas-Style Baked Beans

As promised, making Texas-style baked beans is easy. For this recipe, all you need is your oven and stovetop; one very large skillet (preferably with higher rims to contain the beer and beans) or wide Dutch oven; a two-quart baking dish and a piece of aluminum foil big enough to cover it; and some paper towels to absorb excess drippings from the bacon.

• Step 1. Cook the bacon: After preheating the oven, you'll first cook the bacon to render the fat so that you can use those drippings for cooking the vegetables.
• Step 2. Cook vegetables and beans: Then in goes the beer, the beans, the barbecue sauce, and all of the other ingredients on the list.
• Step 3. Simmer and bake: It only needs to get to a simmer before you transfer it to a baking dish to bake for a total of 35 to 40 minutes.

How To Serve Texas-Style Baked Beans

Texas-style baked beans are a great dish to par-cook. One option is to precook the bacon only and simply assemble the rest of the ingredients. You can also follow the recipe up until the baking portion and have it ready in your casserole dish to toss in the oven the day of your barbecue. This way, it'll be served hot, bubbly, and fresh off a first cook.

You can also make the whole thing in advance and reheat it in the oven, fully covered with foil to protect the sugar in the Texas beans from scorching. However, microwaving a bean bake of this size is not recommended; it won't heat evenly and will inevitably spatter stickily.

Texas-style baked beans are most commonly served as a barbecue side dish, so pair it with the cuts of meat the Lone Star State is best known for: It goes exceedingly well with brisket, and its bacon elements make it a good accompaniment to pork dishes like ribs, sausage, and grilled chops. And of course, grilled chicken goes with anything, and burgers and hot dogs are best friends with saucy baked beans of any kind.

A big hunk of fresh cornbread turns this into a nice meat-free meal option if you omit the bacon crumbles and are not a strict vegetarian, as the drippings are still a meat product. Alternatively, you can just use oil to cook the vegetables—just be aware that you'll be sacrificing a significant characteristic flavor.

And if you have any left over, don't be afraid to riff off the British tradition of having baked beans on toast or with eggs. This recipe just gives it a Texas spin.

How To Store Texas-Style Baked Beans

Storing Texas-style baked beans is just like storing any other kind of baked beans. You'll want to wait for them to come to room temperature after baking, then put them in an airtight container (as opposed to a covered bowl) for further chilling in the refrigerator. They'll keep for 3 to 5 days like that.

You can reheat individual portions (not the whole baking dish!) in a microwave, loosely covered to absorb spatters, in short intervals to allow for stirring breaks and avoid explosions. You can also reheat them in a saucepan at low heat, stirring regularly to prevent burning.

In both cases, adding a little water to the sauce wouldn't come amiss, as Texas-style and other kinds of baked beans have a tendency to dry out.

Can you freeze baked beans?

If you want to freeze them, do it right away. They store best the day they cook. To do so, wait for them to cool down, and scoop them into a freezer-safe bag or airtight, oven-safe container for a bigger batch you intend on using the oven to reheat. In either case, don't pack it tight. They need room to expand.

To reheat frozen Texas-style baked beans, defrost them first. The best method is to put the freezer bag in a bowl in the refrigerator to allow it to gradually warm up. If time is tight, you can use the microwave to defrost them, making sure to add that sprinkle of water to avoid dry-out.

For that larger casserole, after letting it defrost to avoid damage to your bakeware, preheat your oven to 275°F. Cover the dish with foil and bake for 5 to 10 minutes.

Our Best Tips for Great Baked Beans

• If you don't like your beans too sweet, adjust the light brown sugar to taste or omit if the sauce you're starting with has enough.
• The recipe recommends Sweet Baby Ray's Original Barbecue Sauce, but there are plenty of brands you can use if you're trying to cut back on high fructose corn syrup. Brands like Woodstock Foods and Annie's or recipes like Bone Suckin' Sauce Thicker Style might change the flavor a bit, but the general profile will still stand.
• While Modelo Negra—a Munich Dunkel- or Vienna-style lager—is suggested, you can also use any other type of dark Mexican beer, like Dos Equis Dark Lager or Bohemia.
• Prefer non-alcoholic beans? You can swap it for beef broth, mushroom stock, apple juice, apple cider, root beer, or cola measure for measure. You'll lose some depth and earthiness, but that's the unavoidable trade-off.

Editorial contributions by Su-Jit Lin.