Name: Crockpot BBQ Baked Beans
Ingredients: 1 (20-oz) package dried Cajun 15-bean soup mix (like Hurst's HamBeen's Cajun 15-bean soup mix); 1 (12-oz) package diced cooked ham (like Hormel Diced Cooked Ham); 2 cups chicken broth; 1 cup chopped onion; 1 (18-oz) bottle of hickory smoke BBQ sauce (like KC Masterpiece Hickory BBQ sauce); ¼ cup firmly packed light brown sugar; ¼ cup molasses; ½ tsp salt; ¼ tsp red pepper (cayenne)

Why it works: Chicken and onion are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 8% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 17,814 recipes. Both carry gamma-nonanolactone, which smells coconut, sweet. The science ↓

Crockpot BBQ Baked Beans

Time12 hours

Ingredients

1 (20-oz) package dried Cajun 15-bean soup mix (like Hurst's HamBeen's Cajun 15-bean soup mix)
1 (12-oz) package diced cooked ham (like Hormel Diced Cooked Ham)
2 cups chicken broth
1 cup chopped onion
1 (18-oz) bottle of hickory smoke BBQ sauce (like KC Masterpiece Hickory BBQ sauce)
¼ cup firmly packed light brown sugar
¼ cup molasses
½ tsp salt
¼ tsp red pepper (cayenne)

Directions

Prepare the beans

Reserve the spice packet in the soup mix for other uses.
Place the beans in a large glass bowl and add water 2 inches above the beans.
Microwave on high for 15 minutes, cover, and let stand for 1 hour. Drain.

Slow cook

Combine the beans, ham, broth, and onion in a 4-quart slow cooker.
Combine the BBQ sauce with the remaining four ingredients (brown sugar, molasses, salt, red pepper) and stir into the bean mixture.
Cover and cook on low for 12 hours or until the beans are tender and the sauce is slightly thickened.

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)

572Calories

60 gProtein

18 gFat

40 gCarbs

Counts 8 of 12 ingredients. The other 4 aren't in our nutrition table and add nothing above, so the real totals are higher.

What these numbers assume: 8 portions

Ingredient	Portion assumed	kcal
Pork	100g cooked	242
Chicken	100g cooked	165
Molasses	1 tbsp (20g)	58
Sugar	1 tbsp (12.5g) granulated	49
Onion	1 medium (110g)	44
Chili	1 tsp (2.7g)	8
Cayenne	1 tsp (1.8g)	6
Salt	1 tsp (6g)	0
Bean	not in our table	0
Soup	not in our table	0
Smoke	not in our table	0
Sauce	not in our table	0

One typical portion per ingredient; the recipe's quantities are not counted. A rough guide only, not for medical or dietary planning.

Recipe from the Recipes Wiki (Fandom).

Steps grouped into stages for easier reading; the method is the source's own.

Explore the science

The flavor team

The pairs that carry this dish. Each one is judged two ways: how much their aromas overlap, and how often cooks already put them together.

Chicken + oniontop 8% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together17,814 recipes

Shared aroma: gamma-nonanolactone (coconut, sweet).
Onion + peppertop 11% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together68,474 recipes

Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
Sugar + molassestop 11% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together9,225 recipes

Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).
Sauce + sugartop 13% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together5,147 recipes

Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).
Ham + chickentop 14% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together1,497 recipes

Shared aroma: 1-octen-3-ol (mushroom, earthy).

Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs

What each ingredient does

Dried 15-bean soup mix: Provides the beans, which soften during long cooking to become tender and creamy.
Diced cooked ham: Adds smoky, savory flavor that seasons the beans as they simmer.
Chicken broth: Supplies liquid that cooks the beans and helps form the sauce.
Bbq sauce: Provides most of the sweet, tangy, smoky flavor and thickens slightly as it cooks.
Light brown sugar: Adds sweetness and helps the sauce caramelize and deepen in color.
Molasses: Adds depth, dark color, and a rich sweetness to the sauce.

The step that matters

Soaking and draining the beans. Dried beans must be fully hydrated before long cooking so they become evenly tender. Discarding the soaking water removes compounds that can cause digestive discomfort and keeps the sauce from tasting murky.

Swap the onion

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (ham, chicken, sauce, sugar, molasses, pepper):

Capsicumfits better
Mustardfits better
Tomatofits better
Onionthe original

Fit is the average pairing score against ham, chicken, sauce, sugar, molasses, pepper. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.

“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.

Chicken Broth257 recipes

Chicken Soup156 recipes

Creamed Chicken89 recipes

Chicken Panada75 recipes

Like knowing why a recipe works?

The free Flavor Lab newsletter: one surprising pairing a week and the molecular reason it works, in 60 seconds. No spam, unsubscribe anytime.

Prefer an account? Create a free account to save pairings and unlock the full chemistry.

Crockpot BBQ Baked Beans