Boston Baked Beans |
The best baked beans are meltingly soft but individually defined, with a rich sauce and true bean flavor. |
Solution: Keeping the structure of the individual beans looked to be a matter of soaking and cooking times, and we tried almost a dozen pots of beans with various methods and results before remembering the idea of using an acidic recipe. Many cookbooks say to never use acid ingredients with beans because the acid will prevent the beans from softening. Because we were willing to bake the beans for eight hours, and because we wanted some residual structure, it was the acidity in vinegar that proved helpful for this recipe. It also added some tang and reinforced the sweetness. Another surprise was that we preferred corned beef to salt pork. It added more juiciness and meat flavor to the pot of beans, and the cooked meat was easier to remove from the fat.
For Good Measure: Much is made of the classic Boston or "Mesopotamian" round bean pot. In our tests, the efficient shape and narrow mouth of this casserole saved about one-half cup of water and rendered more fat and juices out of the meat than other pots. Like an expensive brandy snifter, this classic pot is an enhancement but not a necessity.
BOSTON BAKED BEANS
Serves 4 to 6 as a main dish, or 8 to 10 as a side dish
This recipe yields a moderately sweet, meaty-flavored pot of beans. You can add familiar flavorings like onion or bacon or change the sweeteners without affecting the texture of the beans. Like many stews and soups, these beans improve in flavor the day after cooking.
1 pound any size white beans (or a mixture), washed and picked clean of any debris or discolored beans
1 pound fatty corned beef such as point-cut corned beef brisket or 1/2 pound meaty salt pork
1/4 cup molasses
3 tablespoons sugar or 6 tablespoons maple syrup
1 tablespoon vinegar
1 1/4 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon ground mustard
1. Bring 10 cups hot water and beans to boil in large pot; continue to boil 2 minutes. Remove from heat, cover, and soak until rehydrated, at least 1 hour and up to 8 hours to improve digestibility.
2. Heat oven to 225 degrees. Place meat in bottom of bean pot or other lidded ovenproof casserole. Drain and rinse beans; add them and remaining ingredients to pot. Cover with boiling water (about 2 3/4 cups for a bean pot or 3 to 3 1/4 cups for a wider-mouthed casserole).
3. Reduce oven temperature to 200 degrees; place pot or covered casserole in oven; cook until beans are tender, 7 to 9 hours. Skim rendered fat if you like. For creamier sauce, mash with a fork or puree 3/4 cup of the cooked beans, stirring them back into pot. Serve or cool to room temperature and refrigerate. (Can be covered and refrigerated up to 1 week.)
September, 1996
Original article and recipes by Mark Zanger
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