These Homemade Baked Beans (Instant Pot) are packed with deep, rich flavour and take a third of the time as traditional cooking methods. They’re a perfect make-ahead side, buffet, BBQ or potluck dish.

I served them at a dinner party last week with ribs and got thumbs-up ratings. I made them the day before and reheated them on the stove. The consistency was perfect as the sauce thickened up overnight. The tender beans were coated in a slightly sweet savoury sauce, boosted with maple syrup, molasses, brown sugar and Worcestershire sauce. If you like baked beans from the can, I think you’ll like this recipe even better, especially knowing there are no added preservatives. Most recipes I found were quite similar.

The recipe comes from This Old Gal with a few minor tweaks such as using a quick-soak method for the beans to cut the prep time way down. I made the baked beans in my new Instant Pot (gift from Kook Jenna) on a high pressure setting, so technically these beans are not “baked”, but I couldn’t tell the difference.

From a nutrition standpoint, baked beans are super healthy – high in protein and fiber and low in fat. One cup of beans has 12 grams of fiber (huge!), but the trade-off is – um – a bit of stomach gas.

The recipe calls for bacon, but you can easily leave that out for a vegetarian version. Baked beans go really well with ribs, fresh rolls/toast for dipping, eggs, mac&cheese and hamburgers/hotdogs. My husband loves baked beans with almost anything.

Tailor To Your Taste

Play with the flavours you prefer – less molasses, more maple syrup, more dried mustard, more Worcestershire, etc.
Eliminate the bacon. Or add sausage instead.
Pressure cook longer for softer beans. Apparently older beans will take longer to cook.
Thicken the sauce more by cooking on Saute setting for several minutes (with the Instant Pot cover off) after the Pressure Cooking stage. Keep in mind, though, they thicken in the fridge if you’re making them ahead.

: Reheated next day. If too thick, add some water.

Homemade Baked Beans (Instant Pot) Recipe

Created by Cheryl on February 1, 2018

Homemade Baked Beans (Instant Pot) are packed with deep, rich flavour and take 1/3 the time as traditional cooking methods. A delicious side, buffet or potluck dish.

Prep Time:1h 5m
Cook Time:1h 10m
Total Time:2h 15m

Serves: 10
Category: make ahead, Recipes, sides, vegetarian

Ingredients

2 cups dry navy beans (1 pound)
1 tablespoon kosher salt for soaking beans
OPTIONAL: 5-6 slices thick cut bacon, chopped (omit for vegetarian version)
1 medium onion, chopped
2 teaspoons minced garlic (1/2 tsp garlic powder)
1/4 cup molasses
1/4 cup pure maple syrup
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/3 cup ketchup
1 tablespoon Worcestershire Sauce
1 1/4 teaspoons dried mustard
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon ground pepper
3 cups water

Instructions

PREPARE BEANS: Rinse beans and add to pot with salt. Add water to cover 2 inches above beans. For QUICK SOAK method: Bring to boil, then boil for two minutes. Remove from heat and let set covered for 1 hour. FOR SLOW SOAK method: Soak for 3 hours or overnight. Drain and rinse.
GATHER INGREDIENTS FOR INSTANT POT: Put all ingredients from 'molasses' to 'pepper' in a small bowl. Set aside.
SAUTE AROMATICS AND BACON (if using): Choose SAUTE function on Instant Pot (IP) or BROWNING on Pressure Cooker and let it heat up. Add onions and bacon (if using). Saute for about 5 minutes stirring occasionally until onions are translucent and bacon is beginning to brown. Add a few tablespoons water, then continue cooking until evaporated. Add garlic and saute another 30 seconds.
PRESSURE COOK: Add beans, all other ingredients in bowl, and water to Instant Pot. Stir. Lock lid and set spout to Sealing (or close pressure valve). Choose High Pressure for 50-55 minutes. When machine beeps, allow natural release for 15 minutes, then turn to Venting to allow release of remaining pressure. Open lid. Stir in salt. Taste for tenderness and sweetness. Add more molasses or maple syrup if desired. If beans are not soft enough, lock on lid and pressure cook on high pressure for another 10 minutes.
THICKEN SAUCE (if needed/desired): Keeping in mind that the sauce will thicken on standing and in fridge (if making ahead), if you still want to thicken sauce a bit more, choose SAUTE function and cook while stirring for 3-4 minutes or until desired consistency.