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Beef and Boston Baked Beans

Deborah
Tender beef and beans, the flavour is a mix of sweet and savoury, balanced perfectly!
Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 4 hours 30 minutes
Total Time 4 hours 50 minutes
Course Lunch, Main
Cuisine American
Servings 4 to 6 people

Ingredients
  

  • 300g dried cannellini beans see Notes
  • 1 fresh bay leaf
  • 1 tbsp vegetable oil
  • 500g beef shin cut into 4cm chunks
  • 120g smoked lardons see Notes
  • 1 large onion cut into wedges
  • 2 large garlic cloves thinly sliced
  • 100g treacle
  • 2 tbsp tomato puree
  • 1 tbsp mustard powder
  • pinch of ground cloves
  • salt and freshly ground black pepper
  • baked potatoes or bread, and coleslaw to serve

Instructions
 

  • Tip the beans into a large pan, then pour in enough water to cover the beans by 5cm. Add the bay and leave to soak overnight (see Notes). The next day, drain the beans, return to the pan and pour in enough fresh water to cover the beans by 3cm. Bring to the boil, reduce the heat to a simmer and cook for 20 minutes until the beans are tender (you may need to top up the water slightly as they cook).
  • Heat the oven to 140C/120C fan/gas 2. Heat the oil in a large casserole or ovenproof saucepan, and fry the beef for 5 minutes over a high heat until evenly browned (you’ll need to do this in a couple of batches). Transfer to a plate using a slotted spoon. Add the lardons and onion to the pan, and cook over a medium to high heat for 5 to 7 minutes until the onions are turning golden and the lardons are starting to crisp.
  • Stir the beef back into the pan. Add the beans along with the cooking liquid, and stir in the garlic, treacle, tomato purée, mustard powder and cloves. Season with salt and freshly ground black pepper, then top up with some water so the beans are covered by 2 to 3cm. Cover and bring to a simmer, then transfer to the oven for 2 hours 30 minutes. Remove the lid, stir and return to the oven for 1 hour 30 minutes until the meat is tender and the sauce rich. Once cooled, the beans can be frozen for up to three months (see Notes).  1.     Serve with baked potatoes or bread, and coleslaw.

Notes

  • I used tinned cannellini beans – 2 x 400g tins drained, so didn’t need to soak them overnight.  Instead, I drained and rinsed the tinned beans and then put them in a pan and covered them with fresh cold water as per step 1.   Once the water was boiling, I reduced the heat to a simmer and cooked them for 8 minutes.   I then followed the rest of the instructions as per the original recipe.
  • I thought I had smoked bacon lardons…turns out I didn’t, so I used smoked streaky bacon instead.  I just chopped it up before adding it at step 2.   It turned out to be a good substitute.
  • The recipe is easily halved, or you can freeze any leftovers if you make the full recipe.  Either defrost in the fridge overnight and take out of the fridge 2 hours before cooking, or, leave at room temperature for 6 hours.   Reheat in a saucepan, covered with a lid, on a medium heat, for 20 to 25 minutes until hot – stir frequently.
 
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Keyword baked beans, baked potatoes, beef, beef shin, boston baked beans, Bread, cannellini beans, coleslaw, slow cooked, treacle