New England Baked Beans
Ingredients
Directions
Ingredients
2 c
(1 pound) dry yellow eye beans
½ c
molasses
⅓ c
maple syrup
2 tsp
kosher salt
2 tsp
dry mustard powder
½ tsp
freshly ground black pepper
1 sm
onion, diced
¼ lb
salt pork or pancetta, diced
New England Baked Beans
6-8 servings
- Put the beans in a bowl and add cold water, enough to cover them by a few inches. Soak at room temperature overnight, then drain and transfer to a large saucepan or Dutch oven and add fresh water to cover. Preheat the oven to 250°F. Bring the beans to a boil over high heat, then reduce the heat so the water is simmering and simmer until the beans are tender—when you blow on a spoonful, the skins should peel back. With a slotted spoon, transfer the beans to a bean pot or Dutch oven; reserve the cooking liquid.
- In a small bowl, stir together the molasses, maple syrup, ketchup, salt, mustard powder, and black pepper. Pour over the beans, then stir in the onion and salt pork. Add about 2 to 3 cups of the bean cooking liquid to the beans (the water should just cover the beans but not swamp them—they should look like they’re sitting in a bathtub), and stir well to mix.
- Cover the pot and transfer to the oven. Cook until the beans are very soft and creamy, about 3 to 4 hours. Uncover the pot, increase the oven temperature to 325°F and continue cooking about 45 minutes more, until the cooking liquid has reduced and a crust has formed on the surface of the beans.
- Stir the beans and season to taste with additional salt. Depending on the dimensions of the pot you use, your beans may be more soupy or less so. If you want to thicken the beans, remove 1 cup of the cooked beans and transfer to a bowl. Mash with a potato masher, then return the mashed beans to the pot and stir to combine.
- The beans can be eaten right away, or cooled to room temperature and refrigerated—eat them cold, sandwiched between two slices of white bread, or reheat in a low oven or in a saucepan on the stove top over low heat.
Jessica Battilana
Jessica Battilana is a San Francisco-based food writer. Her first solo cookbook, Repertoire, will be published by Little, Brown, in Spring 2018, and she writes a bimonthly column by the same name for The San Francisco Chronicle.