Start the night ahead by soaking beans or use the Quick Soak method in notes at the end. For a vegetarian or vegan version skip the bacon and saute in olive oil. Don’t be overwhelmed by the length of this recipe. It’s harder to explain than do!
Place beans in a colander, rinse well with cold water and remove any broken beans. Place beans in a large container and cover with double the amount of cold water. Add 1 tablespoon of kosher salt per quart of water (brining). Cover beans and refrigerate 12 hours or overnight. Before cooking, drain beans and rinse well. Discard soaking water. To quick soak, see notes below.
Pre-cook the beans
In a large heavy pot such as a 5 ½ quart Dutch Oven, add the soaked, drained beans and enough fresh filtered water to cover by several inches. Bring to a boil, boil 10 minutes, skimming any foam that develops. Turn the heat down to medium-low, add the aromatics and simmer until tender, approximately 1 hour. Check the beans occasionally to make sure they are covered with water. As needed, add hot filtered water from a tea kettle. When beans are tender, drain the beans, saving the bean broth, and continue with the recipe.
Bake the beans
Pre-heat the oven to 325°F degrees. Fry the chopped bacon in the same pot until crisp and browned. Remove bacon to paper towels reserving the bacon fat. Add 2 tablespoons fat back to the pan and cook the onion until soft and lightly golden, 8-10 minutes, over medium-low heat. Add garlic and cook another minute.
Add the brown sugar, vinegar, salt, pepper and paprika and stir until sugar is melted. Stir in the molasses, then the ketchup and mustard until smooth. Gently fold in the beans until coated. Add the bay leaf. Top the pot with the lid.Bake for approximately 3 hours, checking each hour and adding a little of the reserved bean broth as needed. At 2 ½ hours test beans for doneness. If they are not totally tender, bake for another 30 minutes. When beans are done, save and refrigerate 2 cups of extra bean broth for re-heating, to make the beans juicier if needed. Serve baked beans hot or warm and re-heat well if you have leftovers, and will keep up to 4 days in the refrigerator. Extra freezes well in an airtight container.
Notes
Beans that work for baked beans: Navy Beans, Great Northern Beans, Cranberry Beans, pinto beans and heirloom dried beans such as Ayocote Blanco, Alubia Blanca beans or Yellow Eye Beans.To quick soak beans, rinse dried beans with cold water in a colander and check for any broken beans or debris. Place beans in a large heavy pot such as a Dutch Oven and cover with fresh water by several inches. Bring beans to a boil and cook for 1-2 minutes. Turn off heat, cover the beans and let stand on the stove for 1 hour. Drain and proceed with the recipe.