Looking for a side dish to take along to cookouts and get-togethers this season? Look no further than these baked beans! Your company will be so impressed you’ve made them from scratch, and you’ll barely have to lift a finger with this easy recipe! Plus, they’re gluten free and easy to customize to whatever dietary restrictions you may have.

Recipe

Serves 6-8

Beans:

1 lb dried pinto beans (roughly 2 1/4 cups)

5 cups water

1 Tbsp salt

1 tsp paprika

1 tsp garlic powder

“Sauce”:

1 large onion, diced

1 Tbsp apple cider vinegar

1 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce

1/3 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup molasses

2 Tbsp honey

1/2 tsp garlic powder

2 Tbsp tomato paste

1 1/2 Tbsp BBQ sauce

Combine first 5 “bean” ingredients in an Instant Pot and cook on BEAN setting (high pressure for 43 minutes). Allow to naturally release.

Drain off liquid (save for taco soup base! Or to start a future batch of beans!). Add remaining ingredients. Cook on high pressure for 30 minutes.

Serve with smoked meat and/or cornbread, or with your favorite cookout foods.

Notes

To make chopping easier, consider buying frozen chopped onions. Or, substitute with 1-2 tsp onion powder.

For a sugar-free recipe, consider subbing brown sugar for additional honey or another similar sweetener.

For vegan, simply omit the honey and increase quantity of sugar or molasses.

While I’ve only ever made this recipe using an Instant Pot, I would imagine it could work just as well with a traditional pressure cooker. You could also try it in a slow cooker, although I would recommend soaking the beans overnight first and lengthening your cook time significantly.

Enjoy!