Baked Beans and Ground Beef

Baked beans with ground beef are our go-to baked bean casserole recipe! Ground beef bacon, and beans dressed to impress with onions, peppers, and more. Make these baked beans in the oven for a satisfying dinner or hearty side dish. This is an easy recipe that all you need are a handful of ingredients and a baking dish.

Whether you serve it as a main course or a side dish it is a crowd-pleaser. We love to make this casserole dish for family gatherings or even take to your next cookout. This is our favorite way to eat beans with a tangy barbecue sauce base, crispy bacon, and a hint of sweetness.

These beans are also a great side next to breaded pork chops! Don’t sleep on this great recipe, you will thank us later.

Our dad was the man who always made baked beans at family events. Baked beans with hamburger or ham were his go-to beans. They were a show stopper.

We always wanted to make a baked bean that stood out and had people rave like him. We loaded this up with red bell pepper, green bell pepper, yellow onion, lean ground beef, and the sauce that is loaded with savory flavor.

Well, this baked beans with bacon and ground beef are it. This baked bean casserole is rather easy to whip up, and boy is it flavorful! A classic side dish that will become a house favorite all year round. Or of course, a main meal, whichever you decide.

Why Make This Baked Beans With Ground Beef…

• Best baked beans recipe we have made to date. Sweet, and savory, and the beef mixture makes it filling.
• Great flavor and a dish that young and old will enjoy.
• Serve as an easy side dish recipe or main dish for a family dinner or take to your next potluck.
• Simple ingredients you might already have on hand in your kitchen.
• A recipe that starts with a can of beans and gets transformed into the combination of savory and sweet.
• This sweet baked beans recipe will fill your home with an aroma that will leave you drooling and waiting for dinner to be ready.

Ingredients Needed

Here is all you need for this baked bean casserole with ground beef! The full measurements are below in the printable recipe card at the bottom of the post.

• Pork and Beans
• Ground Beef
• Bacon
• Ketchup
• Worcestershire Sauce
• Brown Sugar
• BBQ Sauce
• Spicy Mustard
• Bell Pepper
• Onion

How To Make

1. In a skillet on the stove, you will add your ground beef and peppers and onions. Cook until the beef is no longer pink. Drain off the excess oil.
2. Then you will add in all the ingredients but the bacon, and stir until well combined.

1. Next, you will pour the beans into the greased pan. Then top with the diced bacon.
2. Bake for 1 1/2-2 hours or until the bacon is fully cooked on top.
3. Serve and enjoy this bbq baked beans with ground beef and bacon.

Storage

Your beans need to be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-4 days. Or you will want to freeze any beans you don’t eat right away.

The beans can freeze for 3 months when stored in a proper freezer container. Then just thaw in the fridge the night before, and reheat in the microwave.

Expert Tips And Variations

• Leave out the bacon or the ground beef if you don’t want the baked beans to be as hearty.
• You can use sugar-free ingredients to help lessen the sugar content.
• Use classic yellow mustard in replace of spicy mustard.
• Add salt and pepper to taste at the end.
• If you don’t want to use brown sugar swap it with maple syrup for a sweet twist.
• Dark brown sugar can be used in replace to light brown sugar.
• Low-sodium soy sauce can be used to limit your sodium.
• You can swap the pork and beans with your usual beans: butter beans, pinto beans, etc.
• If you are using dry beans soak first as directed so you end up with tender beans.
• Make sure to use a large skillet as this recipe makes quite a bit.

Practical notes

What beans are baked beans?

Baked beans are generally made with white navy beans, sometimes pinto beans. We used canned pork and beans which are a navy bean that is in a tomato-based sauce.

Are baked beans a vegetable?

Baked beans are a vegetable. Beans are a great source of dietary fiber and protein to incorporate into your daily diet.

How long to cook baked beans in the oven?

This baked bean casserole takes around an hour and a half to two hours to cook. Allowing your beans to cook low and slow helps to incorporate all the flavors.

How to thicken baked beans?

The key to baked beans thickening is allowing the beans time to cook in the oven. If the top of the beans and bacon get a little dark, tent with aluminum foil to prevent the top from overcooking?

What goes well with baked beans?

Cornbread, dinner rolls, and other items similar are with baked beans. Or you can serve baked beans as a side dish and pair them with steak, pork chops, or even your usual chicken.

Can we make baked beans in the crockpot?

You can make this casserole in the slow cooker. Prep the dish as directed below in the recipe card. Instead, pour into a larger slow cooker. Now, if you don’t have a large slow cooker, then 1/2 the recipe or it will not fit. Then for the bacon portion, cut it up and then cook it in a skillet, until it is done. Then top the beans, cover, and cook for 3-4 hours. Stir at that time, and then enjoy. Making in the crockpot can free up your oven and give you a hands-off approach. u003cbru003eIf you opt to cook in the oven any baking dishu003cimg width=u00220u0022 height=u00220u0022 src=u0022 alt=u0022u0022u003e works 9×13, or feel free to use a dutch oven u003cimg width=u00220u0022 height=u00220u0022 src=u0022 alt=u0022u0022u003eif you have one. Just make sure the dish you use can hold the number of beans this makes.

Is This Baked Bean Recipe Sweet

It offers a slightly sweet flavor due to the brown sugar and sweet peppers in the recipe. The brown sugar adds a nice touch, but we use a lesser amount than other recipes we have seen, cause we don’t love a sweet baked bean. If you want it sweeter add 1/2 cup of brown sugar total to the recipe.

Our Slow Cooker Cowboy Beans are a sweeter bean recipe, that you might enjoy if you like a sweeter bean mixture.

Can we 1/2 This Baked Beans Recipe

Yes! If you are not going to serve a handful of people, therefore you can 1/2 all the ingredients. Or if you plan to serve a ton, double the recipe and cook in multiple pans. Such a version and easy bean recipe.

What To Serve With Baked Beans with Bacon

• Dinner Rolls | our cloverleaf rolls are for soaking up all the sauce from these beans! Such comfort food for sure.
• Chopped Salad | Lighten up your meal with this chopped salad. It will pair nicely with the beans!
• Jalapeno Cheddar Cornbread | Cornbread is another fantastic side to consider. Whip up your usual recipe and pair next to your dish. This is a cheesy jalapeno cornbread recipe!

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Ingredients

Makes 12 servings

• 4 cans of pork and beans, 15 oz cans
• 1 lb ground beef
• 6 pieces of bacon
• 1/3 cup brown sugar
• 1 cup ketchup
• 1/2 cup bbq sauce
• 1 tablespoon soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon Worcestershire
• 1 tablespoons spicy brown mustard
• 1 Onion diced
• 6-7 mini sweet peppers or 1 bell pepper

Equipment

• OXO Good Grips Ground Meat Chopper
• Chef Knife
• 9×13 Casserole Dish

Method

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Dice up the pepper and onions and then mix it in with the ground beef and cook over medium heat until the beef is done. Drain off any excess grease.
2. Once the beef is done add all the ingredients BUT the bacon in and stir really well.
3. Pour the baked bean mixture into a greased 9×13 baking dish or another large pan. Then top the casserole with chopped raw bacon.
4. Bake for 1 1/2 hours to 2 hours. You want to ensure the bacon is fully cooked.
5. Then allow to cool a few minutes and dish up this thick and delicious baked beans with ground beef recipe.

Kitchen notes

You can leave off the bacon if you would like. The same goes for the ground beef. The sauce creates like a homemade bbq sauce, so you get a slight sweetness with a lot of savory. We have used mini sweet peppers in replace of bell peppers and it was really delicious as well. If you have leftovers store the beans in the fridge for 3-4 days. Or you can freeze any leftover beans in the freezer for 2-3 months. For this recipe it makes a larger pan, you can half the recipe if you don’t want to make as much.