I know, I know … calling a dish “the best” is a tough act to follow. But I am telling you, my mom’s Calico Beans are quite possibly the BEST baked beans I have ever had! Beans, bacon and ground beef in a savory sauce, baked until the top is caramelized and a little crispy … did I mention there is bacon?! 😉 Move over brats, burgers and dogs; this hearty Summer side dish is the next BBQ star!
Calico Beans {or the BEST Baked Beans!}
Just look at that thick, rick sticky sauce that the beans and meat are swimming in! Speaking of beans, there are 3 kinds of beans in this dish: big yellow butter beans, dark red kidney beans and a few cans of good ol’ pork and beans. Along with tender onions, ground beef and crispy bacon, all those beans bake to bubbly perfection while you man the grill!
You will need to do a little prep work – sautéing onions, crisping bacon and browning ground beef. But, once that is done, you simply stir all of the ingredients together and pop your baking dish in the oven. And then hope you have the patience to wait until the best baked beans you’ll ever make are done!
Print
Print
PinIngredients
- 1 pound ground beef
- 1/2 pound bacon
- 1/2 cup diced onions
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 3/4 cup brown sugar
- 2 teaspoons dry mustard
- 3 tablespoons vinegar
- 2 – 15 oz. cans pork and beans (undrained)
- 1 – 15 oz. can kidney beans (undrained)
- 1 – 15 oz. can butter beans (undrained)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 325*.
- In a large skillet, brown ground beef and bacon.
- Once meats are cooked, add onions and saute until tender.
- In a large bowl, stir together cooked meats and onions and remaining ingredients.
- Pour into a 9×13 baking dish and bake for about 1 1/2 hours or until top is a little caramelized.
I like to bake my Calico beans a little “well done” so the tops of the beans and edges of the bacon get crispy. If you prefer your bakes beans a little soupier, just reduce the baking time a bit.
If you need to feed a crowd, just double the recipe and sit back and watch your guests devour the best baked beans at the picnic or potluck! Blue ribbon, here we come!
More Summer Recipes!
Grilled Sweet Corn & Garlic Parmesan Butter
My Mom used to make delicious baked beans using only the butter (or lima) beans. No other meat or beans but all of other ingredients. It was always her go to recipe for pot luck. She was always a great cook and baker, guess I must have missed that gene along the way. She was one of 7 kids and all her sisters (4) were great cooks also.
Have never been great cook but ok. For years now hubs has done most of cooking. I’m just not that interested, never have been. My poor kids growing up, guess I did ok then. My boys complained they never got enuf to eat. They never told me that until years later. Trying to feed 4 kids and usually an extra kid at meals wasn’t easy, no Sam’s club or places like that in those days.
I had to print this out and will make these, (well most likely hubs will) sound so darned good. Just have a salad and you got dinner, my kind of food.
How is everything in Florida? Did you guys have wet Spring? We sure did, oldest boy (52)came up from San Diego just before end of April to put badly needed metal roof on our single wide. He used to put roofs on for one of his first jobs. Our youngest son (51) came over to help. Hubs not able to help as he was scheduled for partial knee replacement just days after roof installation. I hadn’t seen youngest son or talked to him for over 3 yrs. and he lives in Grand Junction, we have less than pleasant dil. Told him hoped it wouldn’t be another over 3 yrs. as I’m getting old, will be 75 in July, lol. They live in fancy 1/2 million $ house in ritzy part of G.J.
Hope all is very well at your house, great recipe, glad you shared. Happy week
This sounds like such a great slow cooker meal. With the heat I would not
turn my oven on for an 1 1/2 hrs. but it sounds yummy.
What size cans do you use ?? Looks yummy ! Thank you !
Hi Cynthia – Sorry about that! They are 15 oz. cans. I updated the recipe with that information and I’m so glad you stopped by!
I just want to be clear…you do not drain the kidney or butter beans? You use the liquid that they are in?
Right – use the beans and the liquid in the cans 🙂
Thank you so much for answering.
‘Looking forward to making them !
OMG! I have to make these! There were pool parties I went to as a kid where these were brought to and my mom never got the recipe! Only extra thing in yours is the ground beef! I am so excited to try these out this weekend!!
We decided to make your recipe for a family get together. The beans were a success, wow, amazingly yummy. Thank you for sharing this recipe.
A great picnic favorite. I have been making an almost identical recipe for years – never added the butter beans. They are a tasty addition. I also add sliced hot dogs. Thanks for sharing all your recipes. Fantastic website.
I made these last night and they’re delicious!
Great recipe! Nothing like the family passed down, perfect recipes. The days when you did not have to live up there to the “ratings” but just the triend and true. And sometimes, the homecooker might just put a spin on it ( missed an ingredient) and it is still exactly what perfect. Thank you.
About how many servings would you say this makes?
Hi Cathy – this recipe makes a full 9×13 pan of baked beans, so I would say at least 20 servings. Thanks!
Saw another recipe for this, which said to drain the beans. I did, and now am wondering what liquid I can use to make them less dry. Should I put in more untrained beans? Thank you.
Hi Adrienne – you could try some chicken stock or water to add a little liquid to the Calico Beans. Hope this helps!
Keri
Can these bean be done in a crockpot?
Hi Sharon! As long as the ground beef and bacon are cooked before you put everything in the crock pot, I think these Calico Beans would be just as delicious! I would keep the temperature on low so the sugars don’t burn. Let me know if you try it!
i make these same beans except I use Chorizo sausage instead of ground beef and I place the beans in my Traeger smoker at 225 degrees for 3 hours using hickory pellets! Best beans ever! Family gatherings always request I make these along with our church potlucks.
★★★★★