Homemade Slow Cooker Pork and Beans: your childhood favorite pork n’ beans made at home in your slow cooker with dried beans and lots of crispy bacon and just a couple other pantry staples.
See the INSTANT POT homemade pork and beans here
Homemade Slow Cooker Pork and Beans
I must admit that as a child I really loved pork and beans. Loved them. Even now I still do. You know the kind that comes in a can? I love the tomato based sauce and the not too sweet flavor. I’m not a huge fan of my baked beans being super sweet. So I decided to create my own version at home. I wanted to make everything from scratch so I decided to use dried beans. The slow cooker is the perfect tool to cook dried beans. It’s soooo easy and they turn out well if you use a couple of suggestions.
- Soak the beans overnight. I know there are recipes that say you don’t need to but I find that the beans turn out much better if they are soaked overnight. I also suggest adding a tablespoon of salt to the beans and the water. This salty brine that the beans soak in will enable the tough skins to become tender the next day when you cook them in the slow cooker. Don’t worry about sodium content. You’ll rinse off the beans before you cook them.
- Don’t add any acidic ingredients until the beans are tender. The minute you add anything tomato- based those beans are going to firm up immediately. So if you’re making chili or soup with diced tomatoes wait until the beans are tender before you add them into the slow cooker.
For this homemade slow cooker pork and beans I ended up using dried pinto beans because that’s what I had on hand but you could easily use dried navy beans instead. I ended up using bacon as the pork instead of the traditional salt pork. I just prefer a crispy bacon over a limp piece of fatty pork. I also made a semi-small batch (it made 6 servings). If you’re bringing this to a potluck I recommend doubling the recipe. It should work perfectly in a 6 quart slow cooker.
More Slow Cooker Dried Bean Recipes
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Slow Cooker Shepherd’s Pie Chili
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Slow Cooker Chipotle White Bean Chicken Chowder
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Slow Cooker Totally Tasty Black Beans
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Homemade Slow Cooker Pork and Beans
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 6 hours
- Total Time: 6 hours 10 minutes
- Yield: 6 servings 1x
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Pin RecipeDescription
Your childhood favorite pork n’ beans made at home in your slow cooker with dried beans and lots of crispy bacon and just a couple other pantry staples.
Ingredients
- 12 oz of dried pinto beans (this is about 2 cups of dried beans)
- 1 Tbsp salt (for soaking)
- 2 (8 oz) can tomato sauce
- 1 Tbsp Dijon mustard
- 2 Tbsp molasses
- 1/2 tsp salt
- Fresh ground pepper, to taste
- 6 pieces of crispy cooked bacon, cut into quarter inch pieces
Instructions
- In a large bowl place the dried beans (sort out any dirt or rocks). Add enough water to cover the beans by 2 inches. Add in 1 Tbsp of salt. Let the beans soak overnight for at least 8 hours. The beans will expand so make sure you have enough water and a big enough bowl.
- After the beans have soaked, pour the beans into a colander and rinse off the beans. Place the rinsed beans into the slow cooker. Add in 4 cups of water.
- Cover the slow cooker and cook on LOW for 6-8 hours, or until beans are to the desired tenderness. Drain off any extra water.
- Add in 2 cans of tomato sauce, Dijon mustard, molasses, 1/2 tsp salt and pepper to taste. Gently stir. Add in the bacon and gently stir.
- Serve immediately or turn the slow cooker to warm and serve at your leisure. The beans will stay good on warm for up to 3 hours.
Notes
This recipe could easily be doubled for a potluck!
Does the pork and beans freeze well?
I bet it would. Personally I haven’t tried freezing it.
Can this recipe be made in the Insta Pot?
I haven’t made it yet but I know that it would be a perfect Instant pot recipe! You would just soak the beans overnight (or do a quick soak method) and then pressure cook the beans with water for 20 minutes. Drain off excess water and then follow the rest of the instructions as listed. Hope you like it!
If I leave out the bacon will that affect the recipe or cooking time? I have a friend who does not like bacon (I know right? who doesn’t like bacon!)
It won’t affect anything besides the taste. Maybe serve some bacon on the side with it??
I love pork & beans! This recipe sounds like a hit. Thank you so much for sharing.
I know I love them too! You’re welcome.