Barbecue Baked Beans
Barbecue baked beans, sweet and smoky! This is a lower sugar recipe for baked beans. My recipe has 5 grams of sugar per serving, this same recipe made with a 1/2 cup of sugar instead of erythritol would have 15 grams of sugar per serving! By using sugar-free ketchup you could reduce the amount of sugar in this recipe even further to 3.5 grams. I wouldn't recommend leaving out the molasses in an attempt to make this totally sugar-free. They wouldn't be nearly as good because the molasses is a major contributor to the flavor, and I haven't found a good replacement for it so far. Considering that navy beans have almost 10 grams of fiber per half-cup and great northern beans have 6 grams, this is a pretty healthy side. Getting enough fiber in your diet from sources like legumes, whole grains, and produce can lower your cholesterol and reduce your risk of heart disease. You heard that right, these beans are going to save your life. Make 'em.
You can use either navy beans or great northern beans in this recipe, both work very well. It also doesn't matter whether you use canned beans or cook them yourself. When previously soaked, great northern beans take about 90 minutes to cook and navy beans take about 60 minutes. If you have some dried beans on hand here's a very general guide on how to cook them: https://food.unl.edu/cooking-dry-beans-scratch-can-be-quick#:~:text=Cooking%20Beans,need%20to%20add%20more%20water.
If your beans are precooked, this recipe only takes about an hour to make, including prep. This recipe is also gluten-free and can be made dairy-free by replacing the butter with a dairy-free buttery spread.
These barbecue baked beans are a great side dish for a grilled main dish. These beans would also pair well with some gluten-free dairy-free chicken nuggets: https://www.mapletaffyandlousytomatoes.com/recipes/gluten-free-dairy-free-chicken-nuggets-baked/Another side dish you could serve alongside these are gluten-free cornmeal breaded baked onion rings: https://www.mapletaffyandlousytomatoes.com/recipes/easy-gluten-free-onion-rings/
Ingredients
- 5 cup cooked navy or great northern beans (about 75% drained, you want to reserve a little liquid)
- 3 tbsp blackstrap molasses
- 1/2 cup erythritol
- 2 tsp beef stock concentrate (or two crumbled bullion cubes)
- 1 tbsp butter (or dairy-free margarine)
- 2 large onions
- 1 tbsp ancho chili powder
- 2 tsp paprika
- 1/4 cup ketchup
- 1 tsp coriander
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp celery seed (preferably ground)
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp apple cider vinegar
- 2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 2 tsp liquid smoke
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 425°F
Chop the two large onions and place them in a pan with the butter. Cook on medium for about 10 minutes or until lightly browned. - While the onions cook measure out the rest of the ingredients and put them in a large casserole dish. Keep in mind that you only want to mostly drain the beans, you need a little liquid left over.
Add the onions to the dish and mix thoroughly. - Place in the oven and bake uncovered for 40 minutes.
Enjoy!