Cowboy baked beans are hearty, flavorful and loaded with ground beef, sweet sausage, onions and topped with crispy bacon. They slow cook in the oven or on the grill in a Dutch oven.
Bacon is baked in the oven on a half sheet pan. Sprinkled with pure maple sugar, bacon caramelizes, giving it sweet and salty flavors. Baked beans are perfect for potlucks, summer cookouts and served as holiday side dishes.
They are the perfect side dish for brown sugar glazed ham, sausage and peppers, cheeseburgers, hotdogs and barbecue chicken.
We love easy summer recipes like homemade barbecue sauce, bacon cheeseburgers, BBQ Pulled Pork, Mom’s classic coleslaw, Southern potato salad, and BBQ ribs on the grill.
Why this recipe works
- Ease and budget friendly – Easy to make with canned pork & beans along with everyday ingredients. A budget friendly side dish for all occasions.
- Simple ingredients – Uses ingredients readily available at your local grocery store.
- Make ahead – Can be prepped ahead of time and slow cooked in the oven.
- Perfect side dish (crowd pleaser) – Great side dish for a BBQ, potluck, backyard cookout or holiday meal.
What you’ll need
- Bacon – Be sure to cook it partially, as it will never crisp up properly if you just put raw bacon on top of the baked beans. We sprinkle bacon slices with maple sugar before baking it in the oven.
- Ground beef – 80% lean ground beef or ground chuck works great.
- Sausage – Sweet sausage or breakfast sausage with no casings.
- Canned pork & beans – Choose whatever brand you prefer. We love the store-brand of our local grocery store.
- Ketchup – Adds some great tomato flavor to this dish. BBQ sauce is a great addition.
- Brown sugar – Adds some sweetness to these baked beans.
- Molasses – An old-fashioned sweetener that adds a great depth of flavor. We also love molasses in molasses cookies and homemade BBQ Sauce.
How to make cowboy baked beans
- Cook the bacon – Place the sheet pan with bacon into the preheated oven and cook for 20-25 minutes, or until crispy. Drain on paper towels.
- Brown the meat – Brown the ground beef and sausage in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and let cook 4-6 minutes until softened.
- Preheat the oven – Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
- Prepare ingredients in baking pan – In a 9 x 13-inch baking dish, add the brown sugar, ketchup, molasses, mustard, onion powder, garlic powder, salt, and black pepper. Use a large spoon or rubber spatula to stir everything together.
- Pour in canned beans – Pour in the pork and beans into the baking dish and combine with a spoon or rubber spatula.
- Add the browned meat – Spoon in the browned meat and onion, stir to combine. Lay the cooked bacon on the top of the beans.
- Top with bacon and bake – Bake for about 2 hours or until bubbly up around edges.
Add different canned beans if desired – great options are Navy beans, red kidney beans and black beans. (Don’t drain the beans!)
Cowboy baked beans traditionally have barbecue sauce in them. You can add a few tablespoons of your favorite brand of barbecue sauce if desired – or try making homemade barbecue sauce.
Cowboy beans are a heart dish that are great as a side with barbecue or as their own meal served with a slice of cornbread or buttermilk biscuits. You can mix up the variety of beans; pinto, kidney, Navy or black beans. Brining different flavors and textures to Cowboy baked beans.
Package any leftovers in quart deli containers for easy storage in the fridge. They’re for storing leftover vegetable beef soup, sausage soup, baked mac and cheese and potato salad.
What to serve with baked beans
- Brown sugar glazed ham
- BBQ pulled pork
- Classic Coleslaw
- Southern potato salad
- Sweet chili chicken
- Fried buttermilk chicken
- Fried buffalo chicken
- Sausage and peppers
Did you make one of my recipes? Please take a moment to leave a star rating. Also, if you are on Pinterest, please feel free to leave a comment there! Follow A Farmgirl’s Kitchen on FACEBOOK, PINTEREST and YouTube and subscribe my mailing list for ALL the latest recipes!
Cowboy Baked Beans
Ingredients
- 1 pound (16-ounces) bacon
- 1-2 tablespoons granulated maple sugar
- 3 (28-ounce) cans pork and beans whatever brand you prefer
- ¾ cup ketchup
- ⅔ cup brown sugar
- ½ cup pure maple syrup
- ½ cup molasses
- 2-3 tablespoons prepared mustard (stone ground or yellow mustard)
- ½ teaspoon onion powder
- ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
- salt and black pepper to taste
- 1 pound ground sweet sausage
- 1 pound ground beef
- 1 large yellow or white onion chopped
Instructions
- Line a half sheet pan lined with parchment paper or heavy-duty aluminum foil. Place the bacon slices closely together, overlapping slightly on the sheet pan. Sprinkle the uncooked bacon evenly with granulated maple sugar.
- Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.
- Place the sheet pan with bacon into the preheated oven and cook for about 20-25 minutes, or until crispy. Using tongs, remove the bacon and let drain on a plate lined with paper towels.
- Brown the meat in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and let cook 4-6 minutes until softened. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
- In a 9 x 13-inch baking dish, add the brown sugar, ketchup, molasses, mustard, onion powder, garlic powder, salt, and black pepper. Use a large spoon or rubber spatula to stir everything together.
- Pour the pork and beans into the baking dish and stir everything together to combine. Spoon in the browned meat and onion, stir to combine. Lay the cooked bacon on the top of the beans. Lay it whole or cut into pieces if you desire.
- Bake in the preheated oven, uncovered, for 2 hours, or until thick. Let the beans cool slightly before serving.
Recipe Notes
Nutrition
Disclosure: As an Affiliate Marketer, I earn from qualifying purchases. If you click a product affiliate link on A Farmgirl’s Kitchen and make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no additional cost to you! I own every cooking product I recommend and love how they perform.
Leave a Reply