Boston Baked Beans
Pans needed: Heavy lidded pot for slow cooking, such as a bean pot or a cast iron dutch oven; plus a medium to large sized bowl to prepare the spices. You may want to use an especially huge pot for this one! (But, be certain the pot will fit into your oven!)
1 large pork roast, pork shoulder, or any cut of meat for preparing pulled pork - weighing from 8 to 12 pounds
2 pounds Great Northern beans, dried (or navy beans if Great Northern isn't available) or can pork n beans.
8 ounces (1/2 pound) slab bacon, uncooked (sliced bacon can be used if you prefer) In this i used a previously cook ham.
1 large onion, chopped
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup molasses
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 tablespoon ground black pepper
1 and 1/2 teaspoons dry mustard
12 ounces tomato paste
3 tablespoons sugar
3 tablespoons vinegar
3/4 teaspoon ground cloves
The traditional method for preparing Boston baked beans requires a lot of time: the beans need to be soaked overnight, and when they've been prepared they will need to be baked, alongside and beneath the pork, in a 260 degree (Fahrenheit) oven for eight to ten hours.
Soak the beans overnight in water: in a plastic or glass bowl, pour in the beans and add enough water to cover the beans, plus at least an inch of extra water. A 12-hour soak does the job fine. Cover the beans with water to about two inches above the beans; cover the bowl with plastic wrap, and set it on your counter. Don't put the beans in the refrigerator; the cold air in the fridge keeps the beans from softening. If the beans soak too long, they spoil and smell terrible; which is why a 12-hour soak works just about right. (If you're worried about them contracting bacteria when soaking on the countertop, the 10 to 12 hour cook in the oven at 250 or 260 degrees will take care of that.) The beans will expand as they soak, which is why the additional water is needed. After soaking the beans, drain the bowl with a colander and reserve the soaking liquid, so that it can be re-used with the beans as vegetable (bean) broth.
Preheat your oven to 260 degrees Fahrenheit. Slice the bacon into small pieces or cubes. Peel and chop the onion.
In a separate bowl, combine the brown sugar, molasses, salt, pepper, dry mustard, tomato paste, vinegar, sugar, and cloves. (This mixture makes a decent barbecue sauce, as well!)
Arrange the beans in a cast iron dutch oven of at least 6 to 8 quart size. Spread a layer of beans across the bottom of the pot, then lay the bacon and onions on top. Cover the bacon an onions entirely with the remaining beans. Pour two-thirds of the baked bean sauce over the beans, and mix them all together. (Set the remaining sauce aside, for coating the pork roast.)
Pour in enough of the reserved bean water to fully cover the beans. plus a bit more. If there isn't enough bean water, make up the difference with tap water or chicken broth. It will look as though there is far too much liquid in the pot, but this will work fine.
Rinse off the pork roast, and pat it dry with paper towels. Place the pork roast into the pot, on top of the beans, with the fat cap facing UP on top. This will allow the fat to melt and meld into the meat and the beans; also, the excess fat will be easy to scrape off the top when the pork and beans have finished cooking. Pour the remaining the bean sauce over the top of the pork roast, and spread it all around to coat the surface of the roast.
