Weber’s Grill-Cooked BBQ Baked Beans, Step by Step

Delicious breakfast plate featuring sunny side up eggs, bacon, toast, tomatoes, and baked beans.

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This article follows the Homemade BBQ Baked Beans recipe on weber.com, credited there to Jason Pruitt, which cooks dried navy beans in a Dutch oven on a covered grill instead of in the kitchen oven. All quantities and times below come from that page. Where Weber and AmazingRibs give different advice on preparing dried beans, both are laid out so you can compare them.

Ingredients (serves 10 to 12)

  • 1 pound dried navy beans
  • 1 tablespoon butter
  • 1 yellow sweet onion, chopped
  • 1 celery stalk, chopped
  • 1 red bell pepper, chopped
  • 2 slices thick-cut bacon, diced
  • 1/4 cup ketchup
  • 1/4 cup brown sugar
  • 1/4 cup bourbon (optional)
  • 2 tablespoons honey
  • 1 tablespoon each: Worcestershire sauce, yellow mustard, apple cider vinegar
  • 1 teaspoon each: chili powder, smoked paprika
  • Salt and pepper to taste

Weber lists a grill-proof Dutch oven as the special equipment.

Method

  1. The day before serving, put the beans in a pot and cover them with enough water that they can almost double in size.
  2. Set the grill up for indirect medium heat, 375-425°F (about 190-218°C, our conversion), and preheat for at least 15 minutes. Weber’s page also says to set the grill to 400°F (about 204°C).
  3. Melt the butter in the Dutch oven over medium heat on the stovetop or a side burner. Add the onion, celery, bell pepper and bacon and cook, stirring now and then, for 10-12 minutes, until the vegetables soften and the bacon fat has rendered.
  4. Drain the soaked beans, add them to the pot, and pour in fresh water to cover them by about 2 inches. Weber’s text adds “6-8 quarts” here; it does not say whether that is the water volume or the pot size, so pick a pot that holds the beans and water with room to spare.
  5. Put the pot on the grill, uncovered, with the grill lid closed. Cook until the beans are tender, 1 1/2 to 2 hours.
  6. Stir in the remaining ingredients, adding water if needed, and cook until the mixture starts to thicken, another 1 1/2 to 2 hours.
  7. Season with salt and pepper, take the pot off the grill, and let the beans cool for at least 15 minutes before serving.

The Canned-Bean Shortcut

Weber’s tip: if you cannot soak overnight, drain canned beans and add them to the cooked vegetables and bacon along with the water and remaining ingredients. They then need only 1 1/2 to 2 hours to thicken and blend.

AmazingRibs’ science-of-beans guide gives the conversion: one 15-ounce can is about 10 ounces once drained, and 1 pound of dried beans equals about 4 drained cans. It also notes that beans cook faster on a stovetop than in an oven, and slower still on a smoker at 225°F (about 107°C, our conversion), so allow extra time if you smoke them instead.

Dried Beans: Two Sets of Advice

AmazingRibs warns that raw or dried beans, red kidney beans especially, can carry a natural toxin called phytohaemagglutinin, and that proper cooking destroys it. Its own method for dried beans is to soak in salted water, discard the soaking liquid, then boil the beans for 30 minutes and discard that water before adding them to the recipe. Weber’s recipe, which uses navy beans, drains the soaking water and goes straight to the grill pot. If you prefer the extra boiling step, AmazingRibs lays it out in full; the canned option skips the question altogether.

Keeping Baked Beans Safe on the Buffet

The FDA’s outdoor-eating guidance says hot food should be kept hot, at or above 140°F (60°C, our conversion). Food should not sit out for more than 2 hours, or 1 hour when the outdoor temperature is above 90°F (about 32°C); if it does, throw it away. Time spent cooling on the counter counts toward that window, so keep the pot covered and hot while serving. The FDA also says to refrigerate perishables within 2 hours of cooking, or within 1 hour above 90°F.

Who Can Eat These

As published, this recipe is not vegetarian and not vegan: it contains bacon, plus butter and honey. Worcestershire sauce also needs checking, because traditional Worcestershire sauce contains anchovies, though some brands make anchovy-free versions. Read the label if you are cooking for a guest who avoids fish. The recipe page does not say whether the brown sugar is suitable for vegans, so that is not confirmed here.

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