Vegetarian Baked Beans | Slow Cooker Recipe
This slow-cooker vegetarian baked beans recipe packs in all the flavor of old-fashioned New England baked beans, only without the meat.
By Yankee Magazine|May 23 2022|
Coffee By Design | Portland, Maine
Photo Credit : Katherine KeenanThis vegetarian baked beans recipe is easy to make in the slow cooker. See how easy it is to achieve all the flavor of old-fashioned New England baked beans, without the meat. We think these meatless baked beans, slow cooker style, might even make it onto your list of favorites. Don’t forget the baked Boston brown bread!
LEARN MORE: How to Make Vegetarian Baked Beans
Yield:
8-10 ServingsIngredients
1 lb. dried beans (such as Great Northern)
1 large onion, diced fine (around 1 3/4 cups) — save the end
1 cup water
1 6 oz. can tomato paste
1/4 cup maple syrup
1/4 cup molasses
4 Tbsp. brown sugar
1 Tbsp. vinegar
1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce (a vegetarian version)
1 1/2 Tbsp. kosher salt
1 tsp. ground mustard
1/4 tsp. pepper
1/8 tsp. cinnamon
1/8 tsp. nutmeg
8 whole cloves
Instructions
The night before, pick through the beans to remove any stones, then place in a bowl and cover with enough water to cover the beans by two inches. Soak overnight.
In the morning, mix together all ingredients except the beans, onion, and cloves in a large bowl.
In the bottom of minimum 4-quart slow cooker, layer the diced onion, then add the beans*.
Pour the liquid mixture over the beans, then add up to an additional 3 cups of water until the tops of the beans are just submerged.
For extra flavor, take the reserved onion end and press 8 cloves into it in a circle. I used a skewer to make the holes before inserting the cloves. (I also used more than 8 cloves, which I think overpowered the beans a bit, so in the future I will be using less!) Place the onion end into the center of the beans. Remove before eating.
Cook the beans on high for 6-8 hours, or on low for 8-10 hours. I left mine in the pot on low for around 12 hours (it was a long day), and as you might expect, they taste better the longer they sit.
I made these for a family reunion, and the pot was empty in no time flat! The flavors were wonderful! But, I would still parboil the beans,even if you are cooking them for more 10-12 hours. I cooked mine for 13 hours on low and the beans still had a certain firmness. Also, I made my own vegan worcestershire sauce using gluten-free tamari sauce to accommodate a celiac in the family. Thanks for the vegetarian recipe!
So glad you liked them, Steffanie, and thanks for sharing your tips!
How many servings does this make?
Lea & Perrins Original Worcestershire Sauce is gluten free. I have used it many times with no difficulty and I become ill immediately if there is gluten in a product. I doubled checked their website and they are gluten free as of July 2015.
How many servings would you say this recipe makes? I don’t see it listed anywhere.
Thanks!
Hi Susan. This recipe makes about 8-10 servings. Thanks!
Hi ElizaBeth. This recipe makes about 8-10 servings. Thanks!
What happened to all the old comments? They were super useful. Apparently most people preferred not to add tomato paste, and there were cooking tips.
Liz, try this post; a number of older comments are still there: https://newengland.com/today/food/side-dishes/baked-beans/vegetarian-baked-beans/
I’m not a baked bean connoisseur, but I found these beans to have an overwhelming taste and aroma of molasses and clove. The sauce was also very thin. Any tips for getting it thicker and keeping the sweetness without so much molasses? I’m thinking maybe I had too many onions and the water came out of them as they cooked and I should use a lighter molasses and a greater maple:molasses ratio.
In the oven I take the top off the pot for the last hour of, cooking to thicken the liquid. It might work in the crock pot.
These are the best baked beans I’ve ever made! I used a high-quality sea salt so should have cut the amount in half, since good salt is actually saltier, but I forgot. I used about 1/3 cup of diced sun-dried tomatoes instead of tomato paste and left out the cloves and cinnamon (yuck!) lol. Next time I think I’ll try steaming some brown bread in mason jars in with the beans during the last 3 hours of cooking.
Always use the crock pot myself and don’t use the salt pork Will try your recipe. Some spices u use have never tried. Looking forward to making them
Couldn’t wait to make these in my new 4.5 qt crockpot. They were amazing!!!! 10 hrs soaking overnight & 10 hrs on low were perfect for my beans. My sauce was perfect-be careful to not add too much water when you cover the beans. I only needed alittle under 2 cups & they were fantastic!! Thank you-great recipe.
If your slow cooker is a little too large put some aluminum foil over the beans
I tried cooking beans in a slow cooker once (not this recipe) and cooked them for 3 days and they were still like bb;s (ball bearings) this recipe makes me want to try again… many thanks
I like to substitute apple cider in place of the water,
It’s a time saver to soak the beans overnight then cook in either a pressure cooker or Instant Pot. The Instant Pot is easy because you don’t have to watch over them as much as a pressure cooker and at the end you can use the saute function to thicken them up for more of a slow cooked flavor.
I always use navy beans.The recipe is very close to a recipe from Vt.baked beans from Yankee magazine I have been using for years.Also Never soak or par boil the beans ,much better to let the beans absorb the prepared liquid.
Ginger is a spice that’s often in New England style recipes. I was surprised that wasn’t included. I usually have fresh ginger on hand so I added some, finely minced.
Where is the nutritional value?
Protein is in the beans, one of the purest sources of protein on the planet.
Having baked beans w/o salt pork is like having pancakes without pure maple syrup. Real New Englander’s would allow this in a kitchen.
I take issue! 🙂 I was born in New England and I am mostly vegetarian. This is a wonderful recipe and I retain my Real New Englander status. I do agree wth the real maple syrup comment, however.
4 bean recipe is the best. Bake in the oven–after all they are BAKED beans. I will try the cloves and maple syrup next time.
I love baked beans. I do use salt pork maple syrup & molasses. sometimes soak the navy beans then let them all nite cook slowly. French canadian recepeet?
When soaking the beans overnight, add some bicarbonate to reduce the time of cooking to minimum,.
After soaking the beans, should I drain them before adding to the crock pot?