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Make your barbecue complete by putting these Vegan Baked Beans on the table! This smoky and flavorful side dish is easy to prepare and it's all made in one pot. It’s also a freezer-friendly recipe and perfect for family dinners or Sunday meal prep.
Push the store-bought version aside and fill up on these rich and tasty Vegan Baked Beans! This easy side dish will bring depths of flavor to all of your favorite meals. My family loves them alongside my vegan mac n' cheese and skillet cornbread.
This recipe is simple, flexible, and only takes about 1 hour to come together. It'll be worth the wait! The leftover beans are freezer-friendly so you can enjoy them for family meals or even weekday lunches. Using canned beans keeps this recipe as easy as possible. No soaking required!
Ingredients you’ll need
The ingredients are fairly simple, but if you don't have some of them, they can easily be substituted with something you have on hand. See below for alternatives.
(full amounts and instructions in the recipe card below)
- Dry Mustard: You can replace it with 1 tablespoon of dijon mustard. This adds more zing so you may want to reduce the vinegar.
- Smoked Paprika: Chipotle powder works well. It has some heat, so you may want to reduce or omit the red pepper flakes. You can use regular paprika but it won't have the smoky flavor.
- Vegan Worcestershire: 2-3 teaspoons hoisin sauce or you can omit it altogether.
- Maple Syrup: Brown sugar is a great alternative.
- Tamari: Soy sauce is the perfect replacement (note: soy sauce contains gluten)
- Liquid Smoke: This is optional, so you can skip it. If you want a little more smoky flavor, you can add another teaspoon of smoked paprika.
- Tomato Paste: ½ cup ketchup will work. The flavor isn't as deep but it's still delicious.
- Molasses: Reduce the maple syrup to ¼ cup and add 3 tablespoons of dark brown sugar.
- Great Northern Beans: You can use cannellini, pinto, kidney beans, or a blend of them.
- Apple Cider Vinegar: You can use white or red wine vinegar, but you may want to reduce the amount in the recipe.
Can I substitute canned beans for dried beans?
Dried beans will work in this recipe, but they do take some preparation. Use 1 lb of dried navy beans and soak them overnight. Drain and rinse them the next morning. Add the beans to a pot with water and bring to a boil on the stovetop. Remove from the heat as soon as the water begins to boil, cover with a lid, and let them rest for 45 minutes before using them in this recipe.
Various ways to make Baked Beans
My favorite way to cook these beans is in the oven. The flavors really shine through and I love the caramelized sauce. Follow my easy instructions in the recipe card below to bake your beans in the oven. Here are other ways to cook them:
Stovetop: Instead of transferring to the oven, cover the pot and simmer on low for 40-50 minutes. Then uncover for an additional 10-15 minutes to thicken.
Slow Cooker: Sauté the onions, garlic, tomato paste, and spices before adding them to your slow cooker. Reduce the broth by ¼ cup. Stir everything together, cover with a lid, and cook on Low for 6 to 8 hours. Make sure to give the mixture a stir once or twice while it’s cooking.
How to Store
Leftovers will stay fresh when kept in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 4 to 5 days. They also freeze well when sealed tightly. Simply thaw in the fridge overnight then reheat the batch in the oven or on the stovetop until warmed through. Keep covered so they don't dry out and add a few splashes of broth if needed.
How to Serve
Grill up some portobello mushroom steaks at your next barbecue and serve the beans as a side dish along with vegan potato salad or vegan macaroni salad. You can also top them on nachos, baked potatoes, salads, and more!
More bean recipes to try
I love to hear from you
If you make these vegan baked beans, I’d love to hear what you think in the comment section below. It would really make my day. You can also follow me on Instagram and share your creation with me. Just tag me @veganhuggs and hashtag #veganhuggs so I don’t miss it.
Vegan Baked Beans
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons avocado oil or preferred cooking oil
- 1 large onion , diced
- 4 cloves garlic , minced
- 2 teaspoons smoked paprika
- 2 teaspoons dry mustard (sub with dijon mustard)
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- ½ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
- ⅓ cup tomato paste
- ¾ cup vegetable broth , low sodium
- ⅓ cup maple syrup (sub with brown sugar)
- 2-3 tablespoons blackstrap molasses
- 2 tablespoons tamari , low sodium (sub soy sauce)
- 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
- 2 tablespoons vegan Worcestershire sauce
- 1.5 teaspoons liquid smoke (*optional)
- 3 15-ounce cans (425g) great northern beans or navy beans (rinsed and drained)
- ¾ teaspoon sea salt , more to taste
- Fresh cracked pepper , to taste
Recommended Equipment
- Dutch Oven or Oven-Safe Skillet
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 ° F (177 ° C).
- Heat oil over medium heat in a 6-quart Dutch Oven or large oven-safe skillet (*see note). Once the oil is shimmering, add onion and sauté until softened and lightly golden. About 4-6 minutes.
- Lower heat one notch and add the garlic. Sauté for 30-60 seconds until fragrant.
- Now stir in the tomato paste and cook for 30-60 seconds.
- Add the dry mustard, cumin, smoked paprika, and crushed red pepper. Sauté for 30 seconds until fragrant.
- Add the broth and bring to a mild simmer. Cook for 1-2 minutes to slightly thicken.
- Now add the maple syrup, molasses, tamari, vinegar, Worcestershire, liquid smoke, salt, and pepper. Stir to combine.
- Add the beans and stir to combine well. Taste and add more seasoning if needed. Cover with lid or tin foil and place it in the oven for 45 minutes, stirring midway through. Now uncover the pot and let it bake for 10-15 minutes more or until the sauce is thickened and caramelized on top. Note: If you don't have oven-safe cookware, you can transfer the beans to a casserole dish and cover with a lid or tin foil and cook the same.
Recipe Equipment
- Dutch Oven or Oven-Safe Skillet
Notes
- Vegan Worcestershire: 2-3 teaspoons hoisin sauce (or omit)
- Tomato Paste: ½ cup ketchup
- Molasses: Reduce the maple syrup to ¼ cup and add 3 tablespoons dark brown sugar.
- Sweetness: for a subtle sweetness, reduce the maple syrup to ¼ cup or increase to ½ cup for more sweetness.
- Heat: for less heat, you can reduce the red chili flakes to ¼ teaspoon or omit them altogether.
- Tang: for more tang, increase the vinegar to 3 tablespoons and decrease to 1 tablespoon for less.
Josephine
I’m going to make these beans for Mother’s Day lunch. Do you think I can do all prep the day before, then cook before serving?
Melissa Huggins
Hi Josephine, yes, I think that should work fine and will probably be even more flavorful. You may need to add a few splashes of broth the next day, so have that handy. Have a wonderful Mother's Day! 🙂
Vicky
Made these for my picky brother-in-law (an omni) and he loved them so much he asked for the recipe! Love the depth of flavor in these beans. I cooked them stove-top because it was fairly hot and they turned out perfect.
Support @ Vegan Huggs
Hi Vicky! We are so happy to hear that these were a hit with the omnis and that you all loved them! Thanks for stopping by 🙂
Nancy Wainer
This baked bean recipe was WONDErFUL!! I use no oil and all it didn't need any. Yummy, yummy. yummy.
Support @ Vegan Huggs
Hi Nancy! We're so glad to hear that you loved the recipe! Thanks for trying it out 🙂
Hilaree
Really delicious! I used dry beans and even though I prepared them as directed, I needed to bake it much longer and added more broth to keep the beans from drying out.
Melissa Huggins
I'm so glad you liked them. Thank you for sharing your feedback 🙂
Alec Marra
can you make this using canned beans
If so how do you go about this
Melissa Huggins
Hi Alec, yes, the recipe calls for 3 15-ounce cans of beans. Just drain and rinse first. Thanks for stopping by. 😀
Kathy
These look great! Do you think I could make them in a crockpot - cook on low or high? And how long?
Melissa Huggins
Hi Kathy, yes, you can make them in a crockpot. Sauté the onions, garlic, tomato paste, and spices before adding them into the cooker. Reduce the broth by 1/4 cup. Stir everything together, cover with a lid, and cook on Low for 6 to 8 hours. Make sure to give the mixture a stir once or twice while it’s cooking. Thanks for stopping by. 🙂