BBQ Baked "Beans"
Smoky, sticky, sweet-and-tangy baked beans with bacon — made with black soybeans and a brown-sugar-style sweetener, so the cookout classic fits keto.
Nutrition per serving
½ cup- Net carbs
- 3.6g
- Calories
- 141kcal
- Protein
- 11g
- Fat
- 7.2g
- Total carbs
- 16 g
- Fiber
- 6 g
Calculated from USDA FoodData Central values for each ingredient (optional ingredients excluded). Brands vary — check your labels if you track closely.
Ingredients
Vegan (smoky): Olive oil and extra smoked paprika replace the bacon, and tamari stands in for the Worcestershire, which contains anchovies.
- Soften the onion in the olive oil instead of bacon fat, use tamari in place of the Worcestershire and add the extra smoked paprika with the sauce ingredients.
Cowboy beans (with beef): Browned ground beef and a little chili powder make the hearty, ranch-style pot that can stand in as a main.
- After the bacon, brown the beef with the onion for 7–8 minutes, breaking it up, until no pink remains (160°F/71°C). Spoon off excess fat, then add the garlic and carry on, stirring the chili powder in with the sauce ingredients.
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6 slices baconleave out - Also add
- Also add
Estimated cost $6.95 for 8 servings ($0.87 each) · how we estimate
Instructions
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Heat the oven to 325°F (165°C) with a rack in the lower middle.
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In a Dutch oven or other oven-safe pot over medium heat, cook the bacon for 6–8 minutes, until the fat has rendered and the bacon is browned but not yet hard. Lift out about a third of it for the top.
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Add the onion to the bacon fat and cook 5 minutes, until soft and golden at the edges. Stir in the garlic for 30 seconds.
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Add the tomato sauce, tomato paste, sweetener, vinegar, mustard, Worcestershire, smoked paprika, salt, pepper and water. Simmer 2–3 minutes, stirring, until the sweetener dissolves and the sauce is glossy.
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Stir in the black soybeans, smooth the top and scatter over the reserved bacon. Cover and bake 45 minutes.
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Uncover and bake 15–20 minutes more, until the sauce has thickened, darkened at the edges and clings to the beans. Let stand 10 minutes before serving — it thickens further as it cools.
Tips for success
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Black soybeans stay a little firmer than navy beans and never turn mushy, but they soak up the smoky-sweet sauce beautifully. Most of their carbohydrate is fiber, which is why a cookout-size scoop has so few net carbs. - Allulose browns and turns syrupy like brown sugar; erythritol works but can recrystallize as leftovers cool. For a deeper molasses note, add 1 teaspoon of blackstrap molasses — about 0.6 g more net carbs per serving.
- Short on time? Simmer on the stove, covered, over low heat for 30 minutes, then uncovered for 10–15 minutes, stirring often. Serve with pulled pork, coleslaw and keto "cornbread".
Nice to have, not needed
- A Dutch oven goes from stovetop to oven in one pot — otherwise make the sauce in a skillet and bake in a covered baking dish.
Storage & meal prepMeal-prep friendly
- Keeps 4 days in the fridge
- Freezes up to 3 months
Reheat: Reheat covered in a saucepan or the microwave with a splash of water, stirring halfway.
Prep tip: They taste even better the next day, so make them ahead for a cookout and rewarm in a 325°F (165°C) oven.
Refrigerate up to 4 days or freeze up to 3 months. Reheat with a splash of water.
Variations
2 variations, each with its own ingredients and macrosVegan (smoky)
DietOlive oil and extra smoked paprika replace the bacon, and tamari stands in for the Worcestershire, which contains anchovies.
- Worcestershire sauce → tamari or soy sauce
- + 2 tbsp olive oil
- + 1 tsp extra smoked paprika
- no bacon
3.4 g net · 137 kcal · 8.9 g protein · 7.9 g fat · ≈$0.85 per serving (−0.2 g net carbs vs the original)
Cowboy beans (with beef)
ProteinBrowned ground beef and a little chili powder make the hearty, ranch-style pot that can stand in as a main.
- + 1 lb ground beef (80/20)
- + 1 tsp chili powder
3.6 g net · 286 kcal · 21 g protein · 19 g fat · ≈$1.74 per serving (same net carbs as the original)
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