Boston Baked Bean Recipe Classic

CLASSIC BOSTON BAKED BEANS

Steps:

• Soak beans in cold water to cover overnight in a large bowl. Drain in a colander.
• Heat oven to 300 degrees. Arrange onions in the bottom of a bean pot or Dutch oven. Top, working in order, beginning with tomatoes, and continuing with bay leaves, dry mustard, cloves, brown sugar, and salt and pepper. Add soaked beans and pour over molasses. Top evenly with salt pork. Add 5 cups water and cover.
• Transfer to oven and bake, without stirring, until the beans are tender and the liquid has thickened, about 6 hours. Check the beans every 45 minutes, adding hot water, if necessary, to keep beans slightly soupy at all times. Remove from oven, and adjust seasoning with salt and pepper, if necessary, before serving.

BOSTON BAKED BEANS

Steps:

• Soak beans overnight in cold water. Simmer the beans in the same water until tender, approximately 1 to 2 hours. Drain and reserve the liquid.
• Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C).
• Arrange the beans in a 2 quart bean pot or casserole dish by placing a portion of the beans in the bottom of dish, and layering them with bacon and onion.
• In a saucepan, combine molasses, salt, pepper, dry mustard, ketchup, Worcestershire sauce and brown sugar. Bring the mixture to a boil and pour over beans. Pour in just enough of the reserved bean water to cover the beans. Cover the dish with a lid or aluminum foil.
• Bake for 3 to 4 hours in the preheated oven, until beans are tender. Remove the lid about halfway through cooking, and add more liquid if necessary to prevent the beans from getting too dry.

HOMEMADE BAKED BEANS FROM DRIED BEANS

Steps:

• Soak beans in a large bowl over-night, covering with about 2 inches of cold water.
• In the morning, drain soaked beans and place in a large pot. Cover with several inches of water and bring just to a boil, then immediately reduce heat to somewhere between medium and medium-low or whatever level maintains a gentle simmer. Cook beans for 50-60 minutes, or until beans are tender (but not mushy). Taste test to be sure they are tender before you stop cooking. Drain beans and rinse under cold water to stop the cooking process.
• Preheat oven to 275F. Start 1 1/2 cups water to boil.
• In a large oven-safe casserole dish with a lid (or alternately, to be covered with aluminum foil), scatter 1/2 of the onion and 1/2 of the bacon over the bottom of the dish. Add 1/2 of the cooked beans. Scatter the remaining onion and bacon, then top with the remaining cooked beans.
• In a 4-cup measuring cup or similar sized bowl, stir together the sauce ingredients well. Add 1 1/2 cups of boiling water and stir. Pour over beans and mix gently with a fork. If necessary, add a bit more hot water so that the liquid just barely covers the beans. Cover the pot with a lid or doubled up aluminum foil and place in preheated 275F oven.
• Beans will cook in the oven for a total of 6 hours, but should be checked at intervals to ensure there is enough liquid in the pot.
• Cook beans for 4 hours, then remove from oven and gently stir with a fork. There should still be enough liquid in the pot to just barely cover the beans, but if not, add more as needed.
• Return pot to the oven, covered, checking beans every 30 minutes for the last 2 hours of cooking, first stirring, then adding a bit more water to the pot, if needed. You want to have some puddles of liquid showing on the top of the beans, but you don't want to add too much water to the pot.
• After 6 hours of cooking, remove from oven and stir gently with a fork. Let stand, uncovered for 5 minutes or covered for 10-15 minutes before serving.

BOSTON BAKED BEANS

Steps:

• Sort beans and rinse in cold water. Place beans in a 3- or 4-qt. slow cooker; add 4 cups water. Cover and let stand overnight., Drain and rinse beans, discarding liquid. Return beans to slow cooker; add salt pork., In a small bowl, combine the onion, brown sugar, molasses, sugar, mustard, salt, cloves, pepper and remaining water. Pour mixture over beans; stir to combine., Cover and cook on low for 10-12 hours or until beans are tender.

BOSTON BAKED BEANS IN BEAN POT - DURGIN-PARK

Steps:

• NOTE: Use navy beans, California pea beans, or small white beans.
• Soak beans overnight.
• In the morning, preheat oven to 325°F Place the baking soda in a Dutch oven and fill half way with water.
• Bring to a boil, add the beans & boil for 10 minutes.
• Drain beans in a colander and run cold water through them. Set aside.
• Dice the salt pork (available in the bacon section of the grocery store)into 1-inch squares.
• Put half of the salt pork on the bottom of the bean pot, along with the onion.
• Put beans in the pot.
• Put the remaining salt pork on top of the beans.
• Mix the sugar, molasses, mustard, salt and pepper with 3 cups of hot water and pour over the beans.
• Cover pot with lid and place the pot into the preheated oven.
• Bake for 6 hours.
• Check pot periodically to make sure the amount of liquid is okay.
• Add water to the beans slowly as needed to keep them moist; DO NOT FLOOD THEM. Just "top them up".
• Remove the pot from the oven and serve.
• NOTE: The Durgin-Park, a Boston restaurant whose origins date back to the American Revolution, is famous for its Boston baked beans, baked Indian pudding and apple pan dowdy. Durgin-Park cook Tommy Ryan has prepared this recipe at the restaurant for the past 37 years.
• Durgin-Park serves 1,000 diners on an average Saturday evening. The waitresses have a reputation for their long memories: the second time you come in, you get the same thing you ordered the first time--unless you speak fast.