Easy BBQ Bacon Baked Beans

I have been thinking about competition BBQ. Not casually — I think about it casually all the time — but seriously. Like, "what would it take to actually win" seriously. The fifth-place finish at the Glendale Smoke-Off lit something in me. I'm competitive by nature — football did that, or maybe football attracted that, who knows — and now that I've tasted competition, I want more.

There's a circuit in Arizona. Monthly competitions, regionals, and the state championship in Scottsdale every October. To compete at the state level you need to have placed in at least two sanctioned events. I've done one. If I enter two more this summer — there's one in Chandler in July and one in Tucson in August — and place in either, I could qualify for state in October. This is the kind of math I do when I should be sleeping.

Jessica is supportive but practical. "How much does it cost?" she asked, which is the question accountants ask about everything, including, once, our daughter's baptism. Entry fees are fifty to a hundred bucks per competition. Wood and meat run another hundred. Gas to drive the smoker to the location. Time away from home on weekends. She ran the numbers in her head — I could see her doing it, her eyes going slightly unfocused the way they do when she's calculating — and said "okay, but you're also fixing the bathroom faucet this month." Deal.

My dad thinks I should go for it. "You're better than fifth, mijo," he said on Sunday, standing at his grill like always. "Your brisket is better than mine." This is the first time Roberto Rivera has ever admitted that anything I cook is better than his, and I nearly choked on my Tecate. He immediately walked it back — "I said your brisket, not your carne asada, don't get excited" — but the damage was done. My father said I was better. I have witnesses.

This week's project: developing a competition brisket recipe. Competition judging is different from backyard cooking — you need consistent tenderness across the entire flat and point, a clean smoke ring, bark that's flavorful but not bitter, and a balance of salt, pepper, and smoke that hits every note. I'm going to buy a whole packer brisket from Costco this weekend and do a practice run. Fourteen hours. Two hundred fifty degrees. Salt and pepper. Faith.

Sofia discovered the sprinkler this week and now screams with joy every time water comes out of anything. The bathtub, the garden hose, a water bottle. She is obsessed with water in a way that makes me think she might be a swimmer, which is fine as long as she also learns to grill. Priorities.

If I’m spending fourteen hours babysitting a brisket, I’m not going to let the side dishes embarrass it. My dad has always said the beans tell you everything about a pitmaster — anyone can throw meat on a smoker, but a good pot of BBQ baked beans shows you actually care about the whole plate. Given that he just admitted my brisket is better than his (witnesses present, statement on record), I figure I owe it to the occasion to bring something worthy alongside it. These easy BBQ bacon baked beans are smoky, a little sweet, loaded with crispy bacon, and take maybe a fraction of the time the brisket does — which, during a fourteen-hour cook, feels like an absolute gift.

Prep Time: 15 min | Cook Time: 45 min | Total Time: 1 hour | Servings: 8

Ingredients

6 strips thick-cut bacon, chopped
1 small yellow onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 cans (15 oz each) navy beans or pinto beans, drained and rinsed
1 can (15 oz) kidney beans, drained and rinsed
3/4 cup your favorite BBQ sauce
1/4 cup ketchup
2 tablespoons brown sugar, packed
1 tablespoon yellow mustard
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, or to taste
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper (optional, for heat)

Instructions

Cook the bacon. In a large oven-safe skillet or Dutch oven over medium heat, cook the chopped bacon until crispy, about 6–8 minutes. Transfer bacon to a paper-towel-lined plate, leaving 1–2 tablespoons of drippings in the pan.
Soften the aromatics. Add the diced onion to the drippings and cook over medium heat until softened and translucent, about 4–5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute more, stirring constantly so it doesn’t burn.
Build the sauce. Stir in the BBQ sauce, ketchup, brown sugar, mustard, apple cider vinegar, smoked paprika, black pepper, salt, and cayenne (if using). Stir until everything is well combined.
Add the beans. Fold in all three cans of drained beans and most of the cooked bacon, reserving a handful for topping. Stir gently to coat the beans evenly in the sauce.
Bake. Preheat your oven to 325°F. Transfer the skillet or Dutch oven (uncovered) to the oven and bake for 35–40 minutes, until the sauce is thick, bubbling, and slightly caramelized around the edges.
Finish and serve. Remove from the oven and let rest for 5 minutes. Top with the reserved crispy bacon and serve hot alongside your brisket, pulled pork, or ribs.

Nutrition (per serving)

Easy BBQ Bacon Baked Beans — The Side Dish That Earns Its Place Next to Competition Brisket