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You are here: Crunchy Creamy Sweet / Recipes / Side Dish

Slow Cooker Baked Beans

Published: May 21, 2019 · Modified: Mar 10, 2020 by Anna 45 Comments · This post may contain affiliate links. If you make a purchase through links on our site, we may earn a commission.

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Slow Cooker Baked Beans - comfort food classic made easy in the slow cooker with dried beans (no cans!). Use a leftover ham bone or bacon for best flavor. This recipe is a family favorite! 

We love serving these beans with grilled chicken, pulled pork and a side of coleslaw.

Baked beans in white bowl.

I can now officially say that I used every last bit of our Christmas ham. We enjoyed a hefty part of it for our holiday dinner, the leftovers got chopped and mixed in to make this delicious chowder and I even froze some for a breakfast casserole this weekend. The ham bone had a lot of meat on it and I knew I would use it to make something fantastic. What better dish than baked beans! In a slow cooker, because they are the best cooked slow.

If you are looking for real comfort food to warm up your soul - these baked beans are soft, rich in flavor thanks to the sweet and tangy sauce with chunks of meat or bacon. Pure comfort food!

Ingredients:

  • great Northern beans
  • ham bone with meat OR thick-cut bacon
  • onion
  • brown sugar
  • molasses
  • tomato sauce
  • ketchup
  • BBQ sauce
  • water
  • salt, pepper

What if I don't have a ham bone?

If you don't have a ham bone, no worries! You can use bacon slices (the thick cut would be great!) or leftover pork roast chunks would work great too! I haven't tried it with raw meat so I can't say how would that affect the final dish. You need enough liquid for the beans to soak up but not too much because we are not making soup here.

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How to make baked beans in a slow cooker?

  • Start by soaking beans (most packages have directions).
  • Add all ingredients to slow cooker, set timer to 4 hours (on HIGH setting) or 6 hours (on LOW setting).
  • Stir beans and let sit for 30 minutes.
  • Remove bone, take off the meat and stir it into beans.
Overhead shot of beans in sauce and meaty ham bone in slow cooker.

What beans are best to make this dish?

For this recipe, I used one pound of dry great northern beans that were soaked. You can do that two ways (most packages have the instructions on them): overnight soak or quick soak. I have used both methods and had great results each time. To rapid soak the beans, simply place them in a large pot with enough water. Bring to boil and let cook for 2 minutes. Turn off the heat and cover the pot. Let sit for 1 hr. Drain the beans and use in this recipe.

More slow cooker recipes:

  • Best Slow Cooker Pulled Pork
  • Slow Cooker Mashed Potatoes
  • Slow Cooker Green Bean Casserole

If you like this recipe and make it, snap a photo and share it on INSTAGRAM! Tag me @crunchycreamysweet so I can check it out!

Baked beans with ham bone in slow cooker.

Slow Cooker Baked Beans

Author: Anna
Comfort food classic made easy in the slow cooker with dried beans (no cans!). Use a leftover ham bone or bacon for best flavor. This recipe is a family favorite! 
4.75 from 39 votes
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 10 minutes mins
Cook Time 6 hours hrs
Total Time 6 hours hrs 10 minutes mins
Course Side Dish
Cuisine American
Servings 7 servings
Calories 225 kcal
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Ingredients
 
 

  • 1 lb dry great northern or navy beans
  • 1 medium onion chopped
  • ½ cup packed brown sugar
  • ⅓ cup molasses
  • 1 8 oz can tomato sauce
  • ¼ cup ketchup
  • ¼ cup BBQ sauce
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
  • 2.5 cups water
  • 2 lbs meaty ham bone

Instructions
 

  • Soak beans according to package directions.
  • In a slow cooker, place beans, chopped onion, brown sugar, molasses, tomato sauce, ketchup, BBQ sauce, salt and pepper. Stir well. Add water and stir again.
  • Add ham bone or bacon and stir.
  • Set slow cooker on low and cook for 6 hours or on high for 4 hours.
  • When done, stir the mixture and let sit for 20 to 30 minutes with lid slightly open.
  • To freeze, cool beans completely, then place in Ziploc bags.

Notes

The prep time does not include soaking the beans.

Nutrition

Calories: 225kcal | Carbohydrates: 51g | Protein: 6g | Sodium: 722mg | Potassium: 703mg | Fiber: 5g | Sugar: 34g | Vitamin A: 225IU | Vitamin C: 5mg | Calcium: 104mg | Iron: 2.8mg
Tried this recipe?Leave a comment with rating below!

This post was originally published on December 30th, 2015 and updated on May 21st, 2019.

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Comments

    4.75 from 39 votes (16 ratings without comment)

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    Recipe Rating




  1. Jane says

    July 02, 2025 at 10:31 am

    4 stars
    I made this recipe twice now and both times I followed the directions to a T, and both times, the beans came out somewhat hard. Both times, I soaked the beans overnight, for about 12 hours. Then this time, I cooked them on hi for 6 hours and they were still somewhat hard. Great flavor but a bit hard. After dinner, I put them back on for another two hours and they are better. So in the end, I recommend 8 hours on hi.

    Reply
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