These easy Baked Beans with Ground Beef are thick and stewy, sort of like a saucy BBQ chili. They are the most flavorful side dish, or make them as the main dish!
214-ozcans kidney beans(dark red or light red kidney beans), drained but not rinsed
214-ozcans pinto beansdrained but not rinsed
Optional veggie add-ins: bell pepper and/or celeryfinely diced
Instructions
Preheat oven to 375F.
Heat a large casserole pan over medium-high heat. Add the olive oil and ground beef. Cook over medium-high heat for 5-8 minutes or until the ground beef is cooked through, using a spatula to break up the ground beef and stir frequently. Drain most of the grease off (you can use tongs and a paper towel to absorb the excess grease).
Add the onion and minced garlic (if adding optional veggies, add them here too—see notes below), and sauté for 5 minutes, or until the onion starts to soften.
Add the smoked paprika, chili powder, salt, and pepper. Sauté for 2-3 minutes, stirring to combine all the seasonings.
Either transfer the ground beef mixture to your baking dish, or leave it in the pan if you're using a large oven-safe pan. Add the rest of the ingredients (apple cider vinegar through the beans). Stir well. REALLY well. Taste the mixture and adjust to taste with salt and/or sweetener, if needed.
Bake in a preheated oven for 30-40 minutes, or until the baked beans are heated through and bubbly. The longer you bake, the thicker the sauce will be. Remove from oven and let cool for a few minutes before serving.
Notes
Recipe variation ideas
→ Switch up the beans! Traditional baked beans are made with white beans, such as navy beans. Try using navy beans or butter beans. If cooking beans from scratch, you'll need about 5-6 cups of cooked beans for this recipe.→ Add bacon if you like. Just cook 4-6 strips of bacon in a pan before getting started. Remove the crispy bacon, let it cool on a paper towel, and crumble it. Use tongs and a paper towel to absorb some of the excess grease, then cook the ground beef in the bacon drippings. Add half the bacon to the bean mixture before baking, then sprinkle the other half on top before serving.→ Make it spicy: Add a diced jalapeño, or add powdered cayenne pepper to taste.→ Add more veggies: This recipe works well with a few hidden veggies. Try adding a bell pepper and/or adding a few stalks of celery along with the onions. If adding the veggies, make sure to finely diced them (discard the pepper seeds and pith). The veggies will add a nice texture to the baked beans without really being noticeable because there's so much flavor and sauce going on in this dish!→ Switch up the meat: Instead of ground beef, try ground chorizo or ground pork with these baked beans!