These easy Vegan Baked Beans transform pantry staple ingredients into a sweet, smoky, and savory barbecue dish. Never settle for canned baked beans again!

For more vegan barbecue recipes, check out my Vegan Potato Salad, Best Veggie Burger, and Watermelon Feta Salad.

a spoon scooping up a bite of vegan baked beans from a casserole dish.

Is it really a summer barbecue without the baked beans? I certainly donโ€™t think so! Luckily, being vegan doesnโ€™t mean we have to skip this saucy, maple-smoked classic or (worse) settle for the canned baked beans.

If youโ€™ve been missing this potluck staple, then you need to try my Vegan Baked Beans. Theyโ€™re seriously the best and great any time of the year!

These oven-baked beans have the perfect blend of sweet, savory, and smoky flavors and are incredibly easy to make with only 10 minutes of hands-on prep time. Best of all, theyโ€™re an instant hit at any barbecue or family dinner (yes, even with the kids!).

Are baked beans vegan?

Baked beans are not usually vegan because theyโ€™re often made with pork, like bacon or ham. This is easy to omit, though, making it easy to make a just-as-tasty plant-based version.

My vegan baked bean recipe captures the same smoky, sweet, and maple flavors as a classic baked bean recipe. This is all thanks to canned beans and a sauce made up of mostly pantry staples! You can add crumbled tofu bacon or tempeh bacon in with the beans if youโ€™re missing the meaty qualities but I find that theyโ€™re just as good without it.

the red sauce for vegan baked beans in a skillet.

How to make the best vegan baked beans

Find the complete recipe with measurements in the recipe card below.

Sautรฉ the onion in a large oiled pot over medium heat until translucent.

Add the molasses, brown sugar, maple syrup, ketchup, salt, smoked paprika, apple cider vinegar, vegan Worcestershire sauce, mustard, Sriracha hot sauce, and water to the pot. Stir well to combine, then add in the drained and rinsed navy beans.

white beans and a baked bean sauce in a skillet.
using a wooden spoon to stir white beans into a baked bean sauce.

Transfer the bean mixture to a large casserole dish and cover it with foil or a lid. Alternatively, use an oven safe pan/Dutch oven for both sautรฉing and baking.

uncooked vegan baked beans in a casserole dish.

Bake the beans for 1 hour, then remove the foil and continue baking until the sauce has thickened and is beautifully caramelized on top (about 30 minutes). 

Serve your warm vegetarian baked bean casserole with your favorite BBQ sides and enjoy!

cooked vegan baked beans in a casserole dish.
a spoon scooping up a bite of vegan baked beans from a casserole dish.

Frequently asked questions

How do you serve vegan BBQ baked beans?

I canโ€™t think of a better way to serve baked beans than at a summer barbecue. Their smoky and sweet flavors make them the perfect partner for Vegan Macaroni Salad, BBQ Jackfruit Pulled Pork Sandwiches, Vegan Collard Greens, and Vegan Cheese Grits. Make sure you bake a batch of my Vegan Cornbread, too. Itโ€™s perfect for soaking up the sauce!ย 

You can also serve vegan baked beans as a side dish with any comforting dinner. Think Vegan Mac and Cheese, Roasted Potato Wedges, Veggie Burgers, etc.

Can I make vegetarian baked beans in a slow cooker?

I havenโ€™t personally tried cooking the baked beans in a crockpot; however, other readers tried it and had great results! Iโ€™d recommend sautรฉing the onions on the stove before combining them with the rest of the ingredients in your slow cooker and cooking the beans on Low for 5 to 6 hours.

What about the Instant Pot?

This recipe was originally published as an Instant Pot recipe but I changed it after readers were getting burn notices. This usually happened during the last part, when the sauce was added to the pot.

Hereโ€™s how I make vegan baked beans in the Instant Pot without getting a burn message: Add 1 pound of dried navy beans and 6 cups of water to the Instant Pot. Seal the lid, close the steam valve, and set to the bean setting for 25 minutes. Do a natural release, then drain the beans.

Next, whisk the sauce ingredients in a bowl (except for the onions) and sautรฉ the onion in the oiled pot using the sautรฉ setting. Turn off sautรฉ mode and stir in the sauce and beans. Cook on high pressure for 15 minutes, then do a natural release.

What kind of beans are best for baked beans?

Baked bean recipes are traditionally made with small navy beans, but other white beans work just as well, like cannellini, lima, or Great Northern beans. Pinto beans are also a delicious option!

Can I substitute dried navy beans for canned beans?

You can, but it will take longer. To make this with dry navy beans, soak 1 1/3 cups of navy beans in water overnight. Drain and rinse the next day, then add them to a large pot with just enough water to cover the beans. Gently boil the water for about 1 hour or until the beans are tender. Continue with the recipe as normal.

How do you store baked beans? Are they freezer-friendly?

The cooled baked beans can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for 4 to 5 days or in the freezer for up to 3 months. Let the frozen leftovers thaw in the refrigerator overnight, then reheat the beans on the stovetop or in the microwave.

close up on a spoon scooping up a bite of vegan baked beans from a casserole dish.
close up on a spoon scooping up a bite of vegan baked beans from a casserole dish.
4.63 stars (54 ratings)

The Best Vegan Baked Beans

These easy Vegan Baked Beans transform pantry staple ingredients into a sweet, smoky, and savory summer barbecue dish. Never settle for canned baked beans again! Oven, slow cooker, and Instant Pot instructions included.
Prep: 10 minutes
Cook: 1 hour
Total: 1 hour 10 minutes
Servings: 8 servings

Ingredients 
 

  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 1 small yellow onion chopped small
  • 1/4 cup blackstrap molasses
  • 1/4 cup brown sugar
  • 1/4 cup pure maple syrup
  • 1/2 cup ketchup or tomato sauce
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
  • 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
  • 1 tablespoon vegan Worcestershire sauce
  • 1 tablespoon yellow mustard
  • 1-2 teaspoons Sriracha hot sauce to taste
  • 1/2 cup water
  • (2) 15-ounce cans small navy beans drained and rinsed, see Notes

Instructions 

  • Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
  • In a large pot, warm the olive oil over medium heat. Add the chopped onion and stir for about 5 minutes, until translucent.
  • To the pot, add the molasses, brown sugar, maple syrup, ketchup, salt, smoked paprika, apple cider vinegar, vegan Worcestershire sauce, mustard, Sriracha hot sauce and water. Stir well, then add the drained and rinsed beans.
  • Transfer to a 2-quart casserole dish (or use a dutch oven or other oven-safe pot) and cover with foil or an oven-safe lid. Bake for 1 hour, then remove the foil/lid and cook for 30 more minutes.
  • Keep warm until ready to serve.

Notes

  1. If you like your baked beans less sweet, omit or reduce the brown sugar, and use canned tomato sauce in place of the ketchup.
  2. Baked beans will keep in the refrigerator for 4-5 days, and can also be frozen.
  3. May use dried and cooked small navy beans from scratch instead. I keep it easy by using canned beans.

Nutrition

Serving: 1of 8 servings | Calories: 214kcal | Carbohydrates: 41g | Protein: 5g | Fat: 4g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 3g | Sodium: 500mg | Potassium: 573mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 25g | Vitamin A: 204IU | Vitamin C: 2mg | Calcium: 96mg | Iron: 3mg
Course: Main Course, Side Dish
Cuisine: American
Author: Nora Taylor
Did you make this recipe?Mention @nora_cooks_vegan_ or tag #noracooks!

 

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Comments

  1. I want to make this for a BBQ this weekend. If I make it in the morning and put it in the fridge, how long would I need to put it back in the oven and at what temp? Do you think it would still taste good?

    1. I recommend reheating them on the stovetop or in the microwave instead of the oven. Warm them in a skillet or microwave them in 30-second increments until warmed through. They’ll be just as delicious as fresh!

  2. So yummy. I cooked the beans in an instapot and used your recipe in the crockpot and cooked on low for several hours. These turned out great. Will make again

    1. Hi Traci. Thank you for sharing your wonderful feedback! I’m so glad you loved the baked beans! Wishing you happy cooking!

  3. I went to get a can of vegetarian baked beans only to see that it was nearly $4 a can! I decided to make my own! I made $12 worth of vegetarian baked beans for about $4.60! (It would have been $2.70 if I used dry beans that I had..but I didn’t want to do the overnight soak.)

    Thank you for providing this recipe and you now have a loyal follower!!

    Julia

    ps, my beans came out DELiCIOUS too!

    1. Hi Julia. You are welcome! I’m glad you’ll be journeying though my recipes, and I hope you enjoy them all! Thank you for sharing your wonderful feedback!

    1. Hi Jen. This recipe can be made without oil. You can use water or vegetable broth for the saute process if desired. Happy cooking!

  4. Hello Nora:

    Is it possible to can this excellent recipe once it has been prepared? I made this recipe last year, and shared with a vegan granddaughter. Just wondered if I made more than a “batch” if I could put the beans in jars and do a water bath? Your thoughts please.
    I’m a frequent flyer to your website. I love all the variety!
    Val Cameron

    1. I’m sorry, I have zero experience with canning so I wouldn’t know how to guide you here. ๐Ÿ™‚ But it sounds like a great idea! Thank you so much.

  5. These were a big hit, thanks! I reduced the molasses to 1/2 cup since I didn’t have as much as I thought, they were still plenty sweet.ย 

  6. These beans are great. I accidentally added too much Sriracha for my family’s taste, but I just put in more of all the other ingredients and it turned out well. Next time I may try sautรฉing some carrots and celery with the onions. Delicious!

  7. The flavor was delicious and I omitted Worcestershire as well to keep it vegetarian. I skipped brown sugar and added maple syrup.ย 

    I decided to try this with dried beans for the first time. I soaked them overnight then boiled for 2 hours. I then proceeded with the recipe and had it in the oven for several hours before serving and the beans were still so firm- too firm. Any thoughts on what I did wrong?ย 

    1. I use vegan friendly Worcestershire sauce – there are several brands available now at most stores. There are a couple of things that could have happened. I think the beans got too firm because you had them in the oven for several hours. If you over bake the beans in the sauce, they will become hard. As long as you tested the beans after the first cook and they were soft then, I think you simply left them in the oven for far too long.

  8. Great recipe! I love to use a big can of vegetarian baked beans (Bush’s) and add black beans, chickpeas and red kidney beans to the mix.

  9. Can I use BBQ sauce instead of ketchup? I actually despise ketchup and can’t/won’t cook with it…lol.

  10. LOL literally every time I’m looking for a recipe, yours are the ones I end up clicking on – they always look the best every time! I’ll be making these this weekend!

  11. Thanks Nora! This was a super easy and VERY tasty addition to my birthday dinner of pulled pork and pulled jackfruit.

  12. easy to make with always in my pantry items, except for the molasses! i substituted that item with real maple syrup, also used tomato paste instead of ketchup. being a New Mexican i added a generous sprinkling of Chimayo red chile powder that added a wonderful smokiness …super easy, super tasty!

  13. Original worcestershire sauce has anchovies in it. The local grocery store chain has a steak sauce without the anchovies but it’s not worcestershire . I can’t imagine it will make a great deal of difference, but is there a vegan worcestershire?
    ย 6 months vegan and your website has been a great find.
    ย Thanks, Craig

    1. Yes, Annie’s brand has a vegan Worcestershire sauce, and there are a few other brands as well. One is a generic store brand, Kroger I think, that I happened to find recently. You just need to check the ingredients list. If you can’t find it in your store, you can always order it online. I love keeping it around. Glad my website has been a help!

    2. You can also use vegetarian/vegan fish sauce as a Worcester sauce replacement. They are typically pineapple juice, soya or mushroom based and are my go too as a replacement.

  14. These beans are amazing and yummy. Per my nieces suggestion, I added some crushed pineapple. Wow!!! Best baked beans ever!!ย 

  15. These beans are amazing and yummy. Per my nieces suggestion, I added some crushed pineapple. Wow!!! Best baked bean ever!!ย 

  16. HOLY. CRAP. Okay, I normally donโ€™t write reviews (though I probably should), but I felt compelled to review this one. A-MA-ZING. I chose to go the Instant pot route with soaked dried beans.ย 
    How I made mine:
    1. Soaked beans overnight (2cups/1lb)
    2. ย Cooked in instant pot with apx 6-8 cups water, 1/4 tsp salt, 1 tbsp oil, and a bay leaf. – HIGH for 15 min, natural release.ย 
    Then I followed the Instant Pot recipe to a T, aside from cooking on low pressure for 10 min after adding the beans and sauce, as my beans were a bit more done after their pressure cook than I intended and I wanted to avoid a burn signal.ย 

    I didnโ€™t include the sriracha because…I forgot. But it was still SO. GOOD. Will be my go to for years to come! Thank you!ย 

    1. Hi Mariah! I’m thrilled you LOVE the baked beans! Thank you a lot for taking time to share your wonderful review! It means a lot to me. Happy cooking!

  17. In order to avoid all salt I always cook my own beans. Itโ€™s not that hard! This time I just popped them into the crock pot over night (after soaking) and I save the liquid for soup stock. I donโ€™t like any heat so I left out the Worcester, ย sriracha ย (and salt) and I didnโ€™t have enough catsup so I added some chili sauce and. orange marinade/ cooking sauce. ย Iโ€™m pretty spontaneous when I cook and improvise using whatever is at hand. ย Then I decided it wasnโ€™t tomatoey enough so I added 8 oz of tomato sauce and a 4 oz shot of maple syrup. I also had some jackfruit Iโ€™ve been wanting to use up so I threw that in at the beginning and let it cook for a while with the onions and garlic before I added everything else. I used a combination of peruana and pinto beans and baked it for an hour. It came out great ! Thanks!

    1. You literally did not make this recipe. You made your own concoction. Why bother reviewing Nora’s recipe? Every time I read the reviews for a recipe it’s someone who has gone totally off script and then left a 4 star review.

    1. Canned beans, but if you are concerned use either salt free canned beans or homemade dried beans. Also, you can leave out the 3/4 teaspoon added salt if you need to.

      1. Thanks Nora,

        Looking forward to trying the baked beans with dried instead of canned beans.

        Your Best Vegan Meatloaf is a family favorite and I also share your link frequently because it is the best! I do add 1/2 cup chopped bell pepper to the recipe.

  18. Your recipes have been my go-to since I became a vegan last year. My family and I love them all. Tonightโ€™s meal of baked beans and your cornbread recipe are some of our favorites.ย 

  19. In the oven right now! I haven’t had good baked beans since i was a meat eater but i can tell this recipe will be a keeper! I made butternut squash mac n cheese and ckn tempeh for an all day meal!
    I used sweet onions, 1 tsp sriracha, added 1/2 tbsp liquid smoke and 1 tbsp vegan Worcestershire, and great northern beans all i had on hand. Happy Fall everyone!

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