These bacon-filled, smoker-cooked baked beans are the Ultimate Smoky Baked Beans for all your summer barbecues. Smoked baked beans never tasted so good!
After Lars was born I returned to work part-time as a physical therapist. We’ve been lucky not to need daycare so far: on one workday Marc stays home with Lars and the other day Marc’s mom watches him. On the day I work and Marc is home, Marc takes over dinner. I don’t mind takeout, boxed mac and cheese, or even popcorn — I just don’t want to think about cooking.
Thankfully Marc has become an electric smoker master, so this summer we’ve enjoyed smoked pork, brisket, and ribs. Those meats are fantastic, but I’m equally passionate about the sides. Our staples are cornbread and baked beans. I don’t mind boxed cornbread, but canned baked beans often taste flat and too sweet, so I set out to create a smoked baked beans recipe that actually delivers.
Mission accomplished. These smoked baked beans have everything we want: they are deeply smoky, savory, and balanced with just the right sweetness. The smoke comes from both a generous amount of bacon and the bacon-fat–sautéed vegetables, and from finishing the dish in the smoker. If you don’t have a smoker, don’t worry — the oven method yields equally delicious results and I’ve included oven instructions.
The recipe begins by cooking bacon and using the reserved bacon fat to sauté onion, bell pepper, and jalapeño. To that you add canned baked beans, crushed pineapple, brown sugar, tomato sauce, mustard powder, and Worcestershire sauce. The crushed pineapple is a subtle, surprising ingredient that adds bright, tender pieces throughout the beans. The jalapeño contributes a gentle heat; increase to two if you prefer more spice.
This makes a generous amount, perfect for gatherings and excellent as leftovers (baked bean sandwiches are a favorite around here). You can halve the recipe if you want smaller portions. My recommendation: plan a backyard barbecue just so you have an excuse to make these — they’ll be a crowd pleaser.
The Ultimate Smoky Baked Beans
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Taylor Ellingson
Ingredients
- 6 slices bacon cut into ½” pieces
- 1 medium yellow onion diced
- 1 green bell pepper seeds removed and diced
- 1 jalapeño seeds removed and finely diced
- 2 28-ounce cans Bush’s baked beans
- 20 ounce can crushed pineapple
- ½ cup brown sugar
- 1 cup tomato sauce
- 1 tablespoon mustard powder
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
Instructions
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Preheat oven to 350°F or preheat smoker to 225–250°F.
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In a large skillet, cook the bacon until crispy. Remove the bacon and reserve the bacon grease in the skillet.
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Add the diced onion, bell pepper, and jalapeño to the skillet and sauté in the bacon grease until softened, about 7–8 minutes.
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Return the bacon to the skillet. Add the baked beans, crushed pineapple (drained slightly if desired), brown sugar, tomato sauce, mustard powder, and Worcestershire sauce. Stir well to combine.
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If baking in the oven, transfer the mixture to a 9×13-inch baking dish. If using a smoker, pour the mixture into a cast-iron or aluminum baking dish suitable for the smoker.
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Bake in the oven for 1 hour, or smoke in the smoker for about 3 hours, until the sauce is bubbly and flavors have melded.
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Remove from heat, let rest briefly, then serve and enjoy.
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