pat's Recipe

Slow-Cooker Barbecued Beans

Category: CROCKPOT

Bull’s-Eye Barbecue Sauce is our favorite brand, but any supermarket or homemade barbecue sauce will work (see related recipe). Serve with a bottle of Tabasco for extra heat.

Serves 10 to 12
2 teaspoons vegetable oil
3 onions , chopped medium
Table salt
8 cloves garlic , minced
1 1/4 cup barbecue sauce (see note above)
2 pounds dried small white beans (4 cups), picked over, rinsed, and soaked overnight
8 ounces bacon (8 slices), chopped fine
1/2 cup packed dark brown sugar
6 cups boiling water
1 tablespoon spicy brown mustard
1/2 cup strong black coffee (optional)
Ground black pepper


1. Heat the oil in a 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat until shimmering. Add the onions and 1/4 teaspoon salt and cook until softened, about 5 minutes. Stir in the garlic and cook for 15 seconds. Stir in 1 cup of the barbecue sauce, scraping up any browned bits. Bring to a simmer, then pour into the slow cooker.

2. Drain the beans. Add the beans, bacon, brown sugar, and then the boiling water to the slow cooker. Cover and cook, on either low or high, until the beans are quite soft, 9 to 10 hours on low or 7 to 8 hours on high. Before serving, stir in the mustard, coffee (if using), and remaining 1/4 cup barbecue sauce and season with salt and pepper to taste.