Hearty Slow Cooker Calico Beans: An Easy, Flavorful Ground Beef and Bacon Recipe for Any Occasion
Calico beans. Cowboy beans. Baked beans with beef and bacon. These deliciously easy beans go by many names, but they’re all essentially the same thing: a vibrant medley of colorful beans slow-simmered to perfection in a rich, sweet, and tangy sauce, generously loaded with savory ground beef and crispy bacon. This dish is a true crowd-pleaser, delivering deep flavor with minimal effort, making it ideal for potlucks, family gatherings, or a comforting weeknight meal.
Why Calico Beans Are a Must-Try Recipe
As a food enthusiast and blogger, I often get asked for advice on easy, delicious, and crowd-pleasing recipes. People inquire about perfect side dishes, impressive-but-simple desserts, or hearty meals that feed many. For me, one of the most frequent questions I ask myself (and Google!) is “easy ground beef recipe ideas.” If you find yourself pondering the same, then this slow cooker Calico Beans recipe is about to become your new favorite answer.
Calico beans are more than just a dish; they’re a celebration of simple ingredients coming together to create something truly special. The name “Calico” refers to the beautiful patchwork of different colored beans, much like the patterns on calico fabric. This visual appeal, combined with the incredible depth of flavor, makes them a standout.
One of the secret weapons for effortless cooking, especially for dishes like this, is a reliable slow cooker. I personally love the versatility of a good slow cooker, like this one I found on Amazon, which even has neat chalkboard inserts – perfect for labeling your creations at a potluck! It truly simplifies the cooking process, allowing the ingredients to meld and tenderize without constant supervision.
What Makes These Slow Cooker Calico Beans So Irresistible:
- Sweet and Smoky Perfection: The combination of crispy bacon, a hint of liquid smoke, and brown sugar creates an addictively sweet and smoky flavor profile that will have everyone asking for seconds.
- Tangy and Saucy Goodness: A thick, luscious sauce balances the sweetness with a delightful tang from ketchup and apple cider vinegar, coating every bean in savory deliciousness.
- Budget-Friendly and Hearty: Made with inexpensive canned beans and versatile ground beef, this dish is incredibly filling without breaking the bank, making it perfect for feeding a crowd on a budget.
- Incredibly Versatile: Enjoy it as a robust main course, a flavorful side dish alongside grilled meats, or as the star of your next potluck spread. Its adaptability is one of its greatest strengths.
- Highly Customizable: Don’t have a specific type of bean on hand? No problem! This recipe encourages creativity – use whatever canned beans you have in your pantry.
- Minimal Effort, Maximum Flavor: The slow cooker does most of the work, allowing the flavors to deepen and meld over several hours, resulting in a dish that tastes like you spent all day in the kitchen.
How to Make Slow Cooker Calico Beans: A Step-by-Step Guide
Crafting these delicious Calico Beans in your slow cooker is straightforward. The key is a little bit of stovetop prep to build the foundational flavors, followed by hours of hands-off simmering in your slow cooker.
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Sauté the Meats and Veggies: Begin by frying up your bacon until it’s wonderfully crisp. Remove the bacon, leaving some rendered fat in the pan. Then, add a pound of ground beef, chopped onion, and diced green pepper to the skillet. Cook until the ground beef is thoroughly browned and the vegetables are softened. This step is crucial for developing deep, savory flavors. Once cooked, drain off any excess fat – this prevents the final dish from being greasy – and transfer this flavorful meat and vegetable mixture into your slow cooker.
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Add the Beans: Now for the star of the show – the beans! To the slow cooker, add one can of undrained pork and beans. This specific can adds a wonderful, traditional baked bean base and thickness to the sauce. Follow this with three additional cans of your preferred beans, which should be thoroughly drained and rinsed before adding. Rinsing helps to remove excess sodium and any starchy liquid, ensuring a cleaner flavor profile.
Bean Selection Tip: I personally love using black beans, butter beans, and kidney beans for their diverse colors and textures, which truly live up to the “calico” name. However, the beauty of this recipe is its flexibility! Feel free to customize your bean medley. Other excellent choices include garbanzo beans (chickpeas), lima beans, green beans (though these are less common in traditional Calico Beans), Great Northern beans, cannellini beans, pinto beans, or navy beans. The varieties are pretty vast, so use what you love or what you have on hand!
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Mix the Sauce and Simmer: The rich and flavorful sauce for these beans is incredibly easy – you can measure and mix it directly into the slow cooker with the rest of the ingredients. You’ll need ketchup for its rich tomato base and sweetness, brown sugar for that essential sweet and caramelized note, apple cider vinegar for a bright tang that cuts through the richness, prepared yellow mustard for a subtle savory kick, and a touch of liquid smoke for an authentic smoky depth that mimics slow-smoked meats. Once all the ingredients are combined and stirred thoroughly, simply cover your slow cooker and set it to low for 4-5 hours. The low and slow cooking process allows all the flavors to marry beautifully, creating a robust and deeply satisfying dish. Easy peasy, indeed!
Serving Suggestions for Your Calico Beans
In my house, we love to enjoy these flavorful Calico Beans as a main dish, often alongside my favorite version of cornbread – a simple yet effective Jiffy cornbread hack. They also pair wonderfully with a molasses skillet cake for a truly comforting country classic meal. However, the versatility of these beans means they can complement a wide array of dishes.
- BBQ Feasts: These beans are a quintessential side for any barbecue. Serve them alongside grilled chicken, juicy pulled pork, smoked ribs, or hearty hamburgers and hot dogs.
- Potlucks and Picnics: Their ability to feed a crowd and hold up well makes them perfect for any gathering. Just set your slow cooker to the “warm” setting, and guests can serve themselves.
- Simple Weeknight Dinners: If you’re looking for an easy ground beef recipe that’s also a complete meal, these beans fit the bill. Just add a simple green salad or some crusty bread.
- Camping and Outdoor Adventures: Prepare a batch ahead of time and reheat them over a campfire or portable stove for a hearty and satisfying meal under the stars.
This country classic definitely meets the easy ground beef recipe category, offering a satisfying blend of textures and tastes. I hope you’ll enjoy it as much as we do!
Slow Cooker Calico Beans
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Ingredients
- 6 strips bacon (diced)
- 1 pound ground beef
- 1 small onion (diced)
- 1 green pepper (diced)
- 1 15 ounce can pork and beans
- 1 15 ounce can butter beans, drained and rinsed
- 1 15 ounce can kidney beans, drained and rinsed
- 1 15 ounce can black beans, drained and rinsed
- 1/2 cup ketchup
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 3 Tablespoons apple cider vinegar
- 1 Tablespoon prepared yellow mustard
- 1 1/2 teaspoons liquid smoke flavoring
Instructions
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In a medium-sized skillet, fry the diced bacon until it’s crispy. Remove the bacon and set aside, reserving some of the rendered fat in the skillet. Add the ground beef, chopped onion, and diced green pepper to the skillet. Cook over medium heat, breaking up the beef with a spoon, until the ground beef is thoroughly browned and the vegetables are softened. Drain off any excess fat from the skillet, then transfer the meat and vegetable mixture (and the crispy bacon) to a 4-6 quart slow cooker.
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Add the undrained can of pork and beans to the slow cooker. Then, add the three cans of your chosen beans (e.g., butter beans, kidney beans, black beans), ensuring they have been thoroughly drained and rinsed prior to adding.
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Next, stir in the ketchup, brown sugar, apple cider vinegar, prepared yellow mustard, and liquid smoke. Mix all ingredients thoroughly until well combined. Cover the slow cooker with its lid and cook on the LOW setting for 4-5 hours, or until the beans are tender and the sauce has thickened to your desired consistency. Stir occasionally if possible.
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Tips for the Best Slow Cooker Calico Beans
- Don’t Skip the Sauté: Browning the ground beef and cooking the onions and peppers on the stovetop before adding them to the slow cooker is crucial. This step builds a foundational layer of flavor that simmering alone can’t achieve.
- Drain the Fat: After browning the meat, draining off the excess fat is important to prevent the beans from becoming greasy.
- Rinse Most Beans: Always drain and rinse canned beans (except for the pork and beans) to remove excess sodium and starchy liquid.
- Adjust Sweetness and Tanginess: Feel free to tweak the amounts of brown sugar and apple cider vinegar to suit your personal preference. Love a sweeter bean? Add a little more brown sugar. Prefer more tang? Increase the vinegar slightly.
- Crispy Bacon is Key: While the bacon simmers in the sauce, its initial crispiness adds a wonderful texture contrast.
- Custom Spice Level: If you enjoy a bit of heat, consider adding a pinch of red pepper flakes or a dash of your favorite hot sauce to the mixture before cooking.
Storage and Reheating
Calico Beans are fantastic for meal prepping or enjoying as leftovers, as the flavors often deepen overnight.
- Refrigerator: Store leftover Calico Beans in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3-4 days.
- Freezer: These beans freeze beautifully! Transfer cooled beans to freezer-safe containers or heavy-duty freezer bags. They can be frozen for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator before reheating.
- Reheating:
- Microwave: For individual servings, reheat in the microwave until hot, stirring occasionally.
- Stovetop: For larger quantities, gently reheat in a pot on the stovetop over medium-low heat, stirring frequently, until warmed through. Add a splash of water or broth if the sauce seems too thick.
- Slow Cooker: Reheat on the low setting for 1-2 hours, stirring occasionally, until hot.
Frequently Asked Questions About Calico Beans
- Q: Can I use different types of ground meat?
- A: Absolutely! While ground beef is traditional, you can substitute it with ground turkey, chicken, or even a plant-based ground meat alternative if you prefer. Adjust cooking times as needed.
- Q: What if I don’t have liquid smoke?
- A: Liquid smoke adds a distinct, authentic flavor. If you don’t have it, you can omit it. However, for a smoky hint, consider adding a pinch of smoked paprika or a little extra bacon fat when sautéing.
- Q: Can I make this recipe spicier?
- A: Yes! To add a kick, include a diced jalapeño or a pinch of red pepper flakes when sautéing the onions and peppers. A dash of hot sauce at the end also works wonders.
- Q: Can I make these beans without a slow cooker?
- A: Yes, as noted in the recipe card, you can make this on the stovetop. After the initial sautéing of meat and vegetables, combine all ingredients in a large, heavy-bottomed pot. Bring to a simmer, then reduce heat to low, cover, and cook for 25-30 minutes, or until heated through and flavors have blended.
- Q: Are Calico Beans gluten-free?
- A: Most canned beans and the other ingredients are naturally gluten-free. However, always check the labels of your specific brands (especially pork and beans, ketchup, and mustard) to ensure there are no hidden gluten-containing ingredients if you need to adhere to a strict gluten-free diet.
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