Why it works: Beans and tomato match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 2,713 recipes. Both carry 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine, which smells earthy, pea. The science ↓
Chicago Baked Beans
Ingredients
Directions
The book says “a slow oven”. The 300°F (150°C) in the steps is the modern equivalent, not the book's own figure.
Prepare the beans
Soak the navy beans in enough water to cover them for 12 hours.
Boil the beans in a pot with enough water to cover them and 1 tablespoon of baking soda until the skins curl up when you breathe on a spoonful.
Strain off the soda water and boil the beans in clear water until tender but not falling apart.
Layer and bake
In a baking dish, layer the beans, seasoning with coarse sea salt and granulated sugar between layers.
Place 1 pound of lean salt pork in the center and finish layering the beans and seasoning.
Pour the reserved boiling liquid over the beans until they are completely covered, replenishing as needed to keep them moist.
Bake in a slow oven at 300°F (150°C) for 5 to 6 hours.
If desired, mix in stewed tomatoes just before serving.
Transcribed from a scanned cookbook and modernised for today's kitchens. Where the book gave no heat or time, or said "a moderate oven", the temperatures and times here may be modern equivalents rather than the book's own figures.
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.
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Beans + tomatotop 1% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together2,713 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
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Pork + tomatotop 10% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together4,843 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
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Beans + porktop 11% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together2,000 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
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Beans + sugartop 26% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together2,587 recipes
Shared aroma: guaiacol (smoky, sweet).
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Sugar + tomatotop 33% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together4,667 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Navy beans
- Form the bulk of the dish, becoming tender and creamy during the long slow cook.
- Baking soda
- Softens the bean skins during the initial boil so the beans cook evenly.
- Lean salt pork
- Adds savory fat and flavor that seasons the beans as it renders.
- Granulated sugar
- Adds sweetness that balances the salt and deepens the baked flavor.
The step that matters
Keeping the beans covered with liquid while baking. Beans exposed to air dry out and toughen during the long bake, so the liquid must cover them throughout. Replenishing it keeps the beans moist and tender.
Swap the tomato
The recipe marks tomato as optional. How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (beans, sugar, pork):
- Sweet potatofits better
- Capsicumfits about as well
- Mustardfits about as well
- Tomatothe original
Fit is the average pairing score against beans, sugar, pork. 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.
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