Jeff’s Maryland
Baked Beans
Bacon and molasses from the North; peach and ancho chile from the South. Kidney beans throughout — the whole point.
Boston's bacon, onion, and molasses meet a Southern BBQ sauce of peach, ancho, and slow-cooked rib meat — with kidney beans standing in for the pea beans that never once agreed with me. Firm where canned pork and beans are mealy, substantial where they're slimy. This is the baked bean dish I can actually eat.
Read the full story — The Bean ProblemRibs
- 3–4 ribs country-cut pork ribs
- 1 cup low-sodium beef broth
- ½ cup low-sodium chicken stock
Broth and stock go in the Instant Pot with the ribs; the cooking liquid is reserved and split between the sauce and the deglaze later.
Jeff’s Rib Rub
- 1 cup light brown sugar
- 2 tbsp chipotle chili powder
- 1 tbsp cayenne pepper
- 2 tbsp paprika (non-smoked)
- 2 tbsp berbere*
- 2 tbsp black pepper
- 2 tbsp dry mustard
- 2 tbsp kosher salt
- 2 tbsp ground coriander
- 1 tbsp dried oregano
- 1 tbsp ground cumin
- 1 tbsp cinnamon
*Ethiopian spice blend — sold pre-blended at most grocery stores or on Amazon.
Beans & Aromatics
- ¼ lb bacon
- 42 oz canned red kidney beans, drained and rinsed
- 1 medium yellow onion, diced
- 4–6 cloves garlic, minced
- 3 fresh peaches, peeled and chopped
- 1 tsp smoked paprika (not regular)
- ½ cup apple cider vinegar, to taste
- to taste salt and pepper
Sauce
- 6 oz can tomato puree
- 14 oz can diced tomatoes, pureed smooth
- ⅓ cup molasses
- 1 tbsp brown sugar
- 1 tbsp Dijon mustard
- 2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
- ½ tsp cayenne pepper
- 1 tsp ancho chile
- ½ tsp liquid smoke (hickory)
Thinned with ¾ cup of the reserved rib cooking liquid; the remaining ¼ cup is used later to deglaze.
Season the Ribs
Coat the rib rack generously with Jeff’s rib rub.
Pressure-Cook the Ribs 20 min
Add the beef broth and chicken stock to the Instant Pot along with the ribs. Cook on pressure-cooker mode for 20 minutes, then give it a 10-minute natural release before bleeding off the rest of the pressure.
Pull the Ribs
Remove the ribs from the pot and reserve the cooking liquid in a small bowl. Cut the rib meat from the bones in chunks, discarding any large pieces of fat.
Prep the Beans & Tomatoes
While the ribs cook, drain and rinse the canned kidney beans well and set aside. Puree the diced tomatoes until smooth.
Build the Sauce
In a medium bowl, combine the tomato puree, pureed diced tomatoes, molasses, brown sugar, ¾ cup of the reserved cooking liquid, Dijon, cayenne, ancho chile, Worcestershire, cinnamon, and ¼ tsp of the liquid smoke. Stir until well combined and set aside.
Render the Bacon
Cook the bacon in a sauté pan over medium-high heat. Remove, chop into small bits, and set aside — leave the rendered fat in the pan.
Toast the Beans
Add the drained kidney beans to the bacon fat and cook 2–3 minutes. Remove and reserve.
Caramelize the Onion & Peach
Reduce heat to medium and cook the onion in the bacon fat until it starts to caramelize, 8–10 minutes — watch the temperature so it doesn’t burn. Add the chopped peaches and continue to sauté, smashing them in the pan to break down any chunks and release their sugar.
Add Garlic & Bacon watch closely
Stir in the garlic, smoked paprika, and reserved bacon bits. Sauté 30 seconds to a minute, just until the garlic is aromatic — it burns fast from here.
Deglaze
Raise the heat to high and deglaze the pan with the remaining ¼ cup of reserved cooking liquid, scraping up the fond.
Combine & Slow-Cook 4 hours
Set the Instant Pot to slow-cooker low. Pour in the onion, peach, garlic, and bacon mixture, then add the reserved sauce, rib meat, and beans. Stir gently to combine and cook for 4 hours.
Adjust & Finish 1 hour
At the 4-hour mark, stir in ½ cup of the vinegar. Taste and adjust with more vinegar or cinnamon as needed — the rib rub already carries plenty of salt, so go easy there. Adjust smoke with another ¼ tsp liquid smoke, or heat with ¼ tsp cayenne, if you want more of either. If the sauce tastes too heavy or salty, stir in ½ cup water, cook 15 minutes, and taste again, repeating if needed. Cook for one more hour.
Rest Overnight worth the wait
Refrigerate. This dish is at its best after a full day of resting before reheating and serving — and keeps well in the fridge for up to 5 days.