Summer is officially here! Bring on brat burgers, pasta salad, potato salad, fruit salad (ALL THE SALADS!) corn on the cob, Dirt Cake, and Crock Pot Baked Beans. No summer get together is complete without baked beans and cooking them in the crock pot has been a total revelation for me!
There is no way I’m turning the oven on to bake my standard baked bean recipe for 2 hours in this weather – not when I can contain the heat in a crock pot and let it do the cooking for me.
This baked bean recipe is basically the crock pot version of my Mom famous Baked Beans, aka Judy’s Baked Beans. (Although her name is Shirley. Right.) It’s extra meaty, calling for both Polish Kielbasa (one of my love languages,) and bacon, and lightly sweetened with brown sugar. The mix of savory and sweet is SO good!
This recipe is also great for a crowd because it makes a ton of baked beans and is portable. Slow cook then take to a friend’s house for a BBQ, or transfer straight from the base to the table at your own get-together. No matter what, you’ll love the rich and sassy, perfectly sweet and tangy taste of these delicious and summery baked beans!
How to Make This Recipe
Start by adding 14oz gluten-free Polish Kielbasa (I like Johnsonville brand which is GF,) and 4 slices bacon that have been chopped to a large skillet with 1 large shallot or 1 small onion that’s been chopped. Turn the heat to medium then saute until the bacon is cooked through but not super crisp, 10-12 minutes.
Pour everything (bacon fat and all – hello, flavor!) into the bottom of a 6-quart crock pot then add two 28oz cans baked beans, 1/4 cup ketchup, 2 Tablespoons brown sugar (or more if you like your baked beans super sweet,) and 1 Tablespoon Worcestershire sauce then stir everything to combine. You can do this a day ahead of time so all you have to do is place the crock into the base and turn it on the day you’re going to eat. Great time saver!
I’ve liked Bush’s Best Vegetarian Baked Beans for years and years. Obviously, I’m not vegetarian, but this particular brand/variety is gluten-free and not tooth-achingly sweet. That said, you can use whatever you like.
Place a lid on top of the crock pot then cook on low for six hours. Remove the lid to let the liquid thicken up for 10 minutes or so then scoop and serve with all your cookout favorites. Hope you enjoy this easy summer side dish!
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Crock Pot Baked Beans
Description
Crock Pot Baked Beans is a rich, sassy, and super simple crock pot recipe that's sure to become a summertime side dish staple at your house!
Ingredients
- 14oz Polish Kielbasa, quartered then chopped
- 4 slices bacon, chopped
- 1 large shallot or 1 small onion, chopped
- 2, 28oz cans Bush’s Best Vegetarian Baked Beans (or your favorite brand/variety)
- 1/4 cup ketchup
- 2 Tablespoons brown sugar (or more if you like your baked beans super sweet)
- 1 Tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
Directions
- Add kielbasa, bacon, and shallot (or onion) to an unheated, large skillet then place over medium heat. Saute until bacon is cooked through but not too crispy, 10-12 minutes, then transfer mixture to a 6 quart crock pot. Add remaining ingredients then stir to combine.
- Cook on low for 6 hours then remove crock pot lid to allow liquid to thicken up for 10 minutes, and then serve.
Notes
- I recommend this 6-quart crock pot >
This recipe is courtesy of Iowa Girl Eats, http://iowagirleats.com.
Diana 05.23.2023
I don’t have a working crockpot at the moment and would like to make these for the upcoming holiday weekend. What would you think about making them on the stovetop, and what instructions would you suggest? Thanks :)
Kristin 05.24.2023
I actually have a baked version of this recipe – it’s incredible! https://iowagirleats.com/the-best-baked-beans-ever/
Diana 05.24.2023
Thank you! I’ll give those a try!
Cheryl 07.06.2019
Could you cook it on high for half the time or is it better on low for six hours?
Kristin 07.08.2019
I’m sure cooking on high is fine!
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daniel benzon 05.24.2018
do you think a double batch would fit in a 6 quart crock pot ?
Kristin 06.05.2018
It would be full, but I think it could fit!
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Alexander 11.23.2016
Love this great side dish recipe! I am with you, I didn’t like baked beans much when I was a kid but now it is a whole different story. These look delicious and I love that you can make them early in the day and let them cook in the crock pot. Pinning!
Valerie 07.05.2016
Thank you very much for sharing this recipe! I compared the original to this slow cooker version and decided to give this one a go. A definite hit with my family! I used an Oscar Meyer Select uncured beef sausage instead of kielbasa because I had it on hand. And I really liked the vegetarian Bush’s for the base — will be using those again for sure. Delicious all around!
Kristin 07.05.2016
So glad to hear it, Valerie! Thanks so much for the feedback!
Julie Farris 06.22.2016
I put the same ingredients in my baked beans, even the same Bush’s! My secret ingredient? Black strap molasses!
Brittany | Words Like Honeycomb 06.21.2016
oh my gosh! I am so excited about these!!! We made Judys baked beans a holiday staple since….well since the original post haha! and I know these will be a hit as well :D woohoo! just in time <3
Tiffany 06.20.2016
I LOVE this recipe. I’ve never added Worcestershire Sauce before, but the other thing I do differently is that I add Brown Sugar (Dark or Light) and Light Maple Syrup. I am going to use this one as my base….. I’m all about the base ha!
Shelley 06.20.2016
I’ve been making your recipe for Judy’s Baked Beans for a couple of years now. I noticed this version omits the crushed pineapple. Is that just to make them less sweet?
Kristin 06.22.2016
I omitted them because the oven caramelizes the pineapple and I didn’t think the crock pot would give the same effect. If you really love the pinneapple though, definitely throw some in. You can’t really mess up baked beans! :)
Brad Nierenberg 06.20.2016
Kielbasa is a great ingredient for baked beans! Nice!!
Hil 06.20.2016
Do you think you could freeze the extras? This looks amazing but it’s only 2 of us so I would love to freeze in smaller portions for later!
Kristin 06.20.2016
Definitely! This recipe would also be extremely easy to halve then cook for 2-3 hours.
Julia @ Sprinkles & Saturdays 06.20.2016
Yum! Looks delicious. I would love to try a veggie version of this! So fun for summer :)
http://www.sprinklesandsaturdays.com
Vivian | stayaliveandcooking 06.20.2016
Sounds like a great weekend! That would’ve been me, getting soaked… Haha! My weekend was pretty productive too: got some cleaning done and on Sunday we went out for Brunch. Love this recipe btw! We eat baked beans so often, so this one we’d definitely love too.
Kristin 06.20.2016
Yeah! I need a deep cleaning session too. Sounds like a great weekend – have an even better week, Vivian!
Ginny 06.20.2016
Thank you so much!!!! Having 50 -75 people over for a party on the 2nd. I wanted to make Judy’s Baked Beans but really didn’t want to have to commit to all of that oven time. This is the perfect solution! You’re the best!
Kristin 06.20.2016
Totally!! Get two or three crock pots going and you should be set!