Dr Pepper Baked Beans

5 from 2 votes

😋❤️ Not just any baked beans, these EASY baked beans with bacon, onions, and peppers also have Dr Pepper to give them FANTASTIC depth of flavor! Sweet-and-tangy, savory, hearty, and your NEW favorite baked beans recipe! Great side dish to serve at backyard barbecues, summer holidays, tailgating and game day parties, or anytime you need a comfort food recipe!

Prep Time10

Cook Time1 30

Total Time1 40

Course: Sides, Salads & Vegetables

Cuisine: American

Keyword: Dr. Pepper baked beans

Servings:

Calories: 286cal

Author: Averie Sunshine

Ingredients

4 slices thick-cut bacon diced into bite-sized pieces
1 medium/large yellow onion diced small
1 medium/large red or green bell pepper diced small
1 teaspoon salt or to taste
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper or to taste
three 15-ounce cans baked beans drained*
½ cup ketchup
⅓ cup unsulphured molasses
¼ cup light or dark brown sugar packed; optional and to taste**
2 tablespoons prepared yellow mustard
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
one 12-ounce can Dr Pepper soda

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350F.
To a large cast iron skillet or an oven-safe skillet, add the bacon and cook over medium heat until crispy; stir intermittently. Remove with a slotted spoon and place on paper towels and set aside. Tips - I recommend a 12-inch cast iron skillet, although a 9-inch skillet will work, although it'll be fuller. I do not recommend using a nonstick skillet or Teflon-coated skillets because these beans will bake for 75-90 minutes and a heavy duty cast iron skillet is ideal, although use what you have that's oven-safe.
Drain all but 2 to 3 tablespoons of the bacon grease.
Add the onions, bell peppers, and saute over medium-high heat for about 5 minutes; stir intermittently.
Add the cooked bacon, the canned baked beans, ketchup, molasses (use unsulphured and not blackstrap), optional brown sugar to taste, mustard, apple cider vinegar, Dr Pepper, and stir to combine. Tip - If you wanted to turn this into a slow cooker baked beans recipes, transfer it into your Crock-Pot right now, and cook on low for about 4-5 hours on low OR about 3-4 hours on high, or until desired consistency has been reached. All slow cookers vary so keep an eye on yours and cook as needed.
Bake for 75 to 90 minutes, uncovered, or until the sauce has thickened and desired consistency has been reached. Stir every 30 minutes or so and check on how they look as they're baking.
Serve immediately. Extra beans will keep airtight in the fridge for up to 5 days or in the freezer for up to 3 months. Reheat gently in the microwave.

Notes

*Bean Options

Canned Baked Beans - I used Bush's Original Canned Baked Beans that I drain. Quick, easy, no planning!
Canned Beans - We are taking the "baked" element out and simply used prepared canned beans. Drain and rinse them. I suggest using navy beans like Bush's Navy Beans, pinto beans, or cannellini beans. Again, quick, easy, no planning, and you may already have 3 cans of beans in your pantry.
Dry Beans - You can make beans from scratch and then use those beans in the baked beans recipe. If you want a guide for how to make beans from scratch, my Instant Pot Black Beans recipe is great. Don't make black beans for this recipe. Use dry "white beans" such as navy beans, cannellini beans, or pinto beans. This is a more labor intensive and longer process but certainly is an option.

**Brown Sugar - Dark brown sugar will create beans that have a slightly more caramelized flavor than light brown sugar, but either are fine.

If you do not want your beans as sweet you can either omit the brown sugar entirely, or use only 1 or 2 tablespoons.

Nutrition