Grandma's Old-Fashioned Baked Beans

Ingredients

Tick each one off as you go.

• 6 slices streaky bacon, chopped
• 1 large onion, finely chopped
• 3 x 400 g cans haricot/navy beans, drained
• 4 tbsp molasses (or molasses)
• ¼ cup packed (60 g) soft brown sugar
• 4 tbsp ketchup
• 1 tbsp mustard & 1 tbsp Worcestershire
• 1 tbsp cider vinegar
• ⅔ cup (150 ml) water or stock
• Salt & black pepper

Method

1. Bacon & onion. Oven to 325°F (160°C, fan 140°C). In an ovenproof pot, cook the bacon until the fat renders, then soften the onion in it for 5–6 minutes.
2. Sauce. Stir in the beans, molasses, brown sugar, ketchup, mustard, Worcestershire, vinegar and water. Pepper to taste — the bacon brings the salt.
3. Low, slow, uncovered. Bake uncovered about 1 hour, stirring once halfway, until thick, glossy, caramelized, and skinned on top. Never cover it.
4. Rest. Ten minutes — it thickens more as it cools. Serve hot with anything off the grill.