The Best Vegan Baked Beans (3 Ways)

The absolute best vegan baked beans are easy to made whether you are using dried or canned beans! We’ll show you how to make in the Instant Pot, Crockpot, or in the oven.  

If you are talking to someone about classic summer sides dishes, there are going to be a few mentioned.  Potato salad, corn on the cob, and baked beans may just take the cake on being the Top 3.  These vegan baked beans are so flavorful and can wow a crowd no matter what their dietary preferences are. 

Now, I know there are a lot of vegetarian baked beans available on the market; however, there’s nothing quite like homemade baked beans when it comes to summer time. 

The process is actually super easy and can be made a variety of different ways. Today, we’re going to be sharing with you how to make vegan baked beans in the Instant Pot, Crockpot (slow cooker), or traditionally made in the oven. 

You can also used dried or canned beans.  Canned beans will decrease the amount of time that you spend making your homemade baked beans; however I know many people prefer to use dried beans. 

No matter which method you choose to make, the majority of the time you are letting the beans cook.  There is very minimal time that you are actually spending over the beans cooking them. 

Quick note: In the video and the recipe of this post, we describe how to make vegan instant pot baked beans; however, if you scroll through the post, we will talk about how to make them with dried or canned beans in the slow cooker and oven also.

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Watch how to make vegan baked beans:

What ingredients do you need for vegetarian baked beans?

I try not to use a ton of ingredients in our recipes, especially speciality ingredients; however, this is one of those recipes that you are going to have a counter full of ingredients to start.  

They are all specifically chosen to serve a purpose in terms of flavor for the recipe, and we think that when combined they make the most delicious homemade vegan baked beans that you have had! 

The ingredients that you are going to need to make baked beans from scratch are: 

• 1 pound dried Great Northern beans (or 4 15oz cans if using canned)
• Water
• Vegetable Broth
• Sweet Onion
• Garlic
• Jalapeno 
• Green Pepper
• Tomato Paste
• Yellow Mustard
• Brown Sugar
• Maple syrup
• Apple Cider Vinegar 
• Vegan Worcestershire sauce
• Soy Sauce (see notes below if allergic or avoiding soy)
• Liquid Smoke
• Salt
• Pepper
• Cayenne Pepper
• Smoked Paprika 
• Bay Leaves 

I know. I know.  This is probably the most ingredients we’ve put into a recipe.  But, I promise you that the results will be amazing. 

How do you make Instant Pot Vegan Baked Beans?

The Instant Pot is the quickest of all the methods that we share today. They can be ready from dried beans to done in just 90 minutes. For references, we use the Instant Pot Duo60 for our recipe.  This is also the method that you see us make in the video above. 

To start, you are going to add 4 cups of water and 4 cups of vegetable broth to your Instant Pot with 1lb of your dried beans. Turn your instant pot on to manual (high pressure) for 25 minutes. 

While that’s cooking, roughly chop and add your onion, garlic, green and jalapeno peppers to a food processor and pulse until equal in size. 

When your instant pot has finished cooking, allow the pressure to naturally release for 25 minutes before removing the lid. 

When finished, strain the beans in a colander over a bowl (you want to save the vegetable broth/water mixture they were cooking in. 

Set the beans aside once fully drained and add ¼ cup of that vegetable broth mixture back into your Instant Pot.  Turn on the Saute setting. We are using the vegetable broth in place of oil.

Add in the chopped vegetables and saute for about 5 minutes until most of the water has evaporated (it’s okay, if there’s a little left).  Turn off the Instant Pot. 

Add all the remaining ingredients and stir until well combined, really making sure that tomato paste is distributed well.  Add in your beans and 1 more cup of that reserved vegetable broth. 

Secure lid, making sure that you close the steam valve back. And cook on manual, high pressure for 15 minutes this time.  Naturally release for 15 minutes before removing the lid. 

Gently stir to combine and then serve. 

Can I make Vegan Instant Pot Baked Beans with Canned Beans?

Absolutely.  To do this, you are going to follow a similar method above, basically just skipping the first step.  

To start, roughly chop and add your onion, garlic, green and jalapeno peppers to a food processor and pulse until equal in size. 

Add ¼ cup of vegetable broth into your Instant Pot.  Turn on the Saute setting. 

Add in the chopped vegetables and saute for about 5 minutes until most of the water has evaporated (it’s okay, if there’s a little left).  Turn off the Instant Pot. 

Add all the remaining ingredients and stir until well combined, really making sure that tomato paste is distributed well.  Add in your beans and 1 more cup of vegetable broth. 

Secure lid, making sure that you close the steam valve back. And cook on manual, high pressure for 15 minutes this time.  Naturally release for 15 minutes before removing the lid. 

Gently stir to combine and then serve.  

This method is the fastest as it takes under 45 minutes to make. 

How do you make Crockpot Vegan Baked Beans?

The next way we are going to show you how to make homemade baked beans from scratch is by making slow cooker baked beans.  

To start this method, you are going to want to soak dried beans for 8 hours before ready to proceed with the recipe.  If you need to do this faster, look at your package on your beans for faster soaking methods. 

To start, rinse and drain your soaked beans.  Then, you are going to add 4 cups of water and 4 cups of vegetable broth to your slow cooker with the remaining ingredients.

No need to saute your vegetables ahead of time with this method. 

Cook on high for 8 hours or until beans are soft and tender. Gently stir to make sure everything is well combined and then serve. 

Can I make Vegan Slow Cooker Baked Beans with Canned Beans?

Yes!  Follow the steps above but no soaking necessary.  Rinse and drain the canned beans and proceed with the recipe.  Reduce cooking time by half. 

How do you make Vegan Baked Beans in the oven?

Similar to the baked beans in the slow cooker, you want to start by soaking your dried beans for 8 hours before ready to proceed with the recipe.  If you need to do this faster, look at your package on your beans for faster soaking methods. 

Then, rinse and drain your soaked beans. In a dutch oven, add ¼ cup of vegetable broth and saute your chopped vegetables. Then, add 4 cups of water and 4 cups of vegetable broth to the dutch oven with the remaining ingredients.

Cook at 250 degrees for 6-8 hours or until beans are soft and tender. Gently stir to make sure everything is well combined and then serve. 

Can I make Vegan Baked Beans in the oven with Canned Beans?

Yes!  Just follow the steps above but no soaking necessary.  Rinse and drain the canned beans and proceed with the recipe.  Reduce cooking time by half. 

Where can I buy vegan Worcestershire sauce?

We have started to finally find vegan Worcestershire in our local stores, but before that we found on Amazon or Thrive Market.  We used the Annie’s brand for this particular recipe. 

Can I make these Top 8 Allergen Friendly Baked Beans?

For this recipe, there are two ingredients that contain allergens. The soy sauce and the Worcestershire sauce. Those ingredients being wheat and soy. 

You can purchase a vegan, gluten free version of the worcestershire sauce.  As far as the soy, I haven’t yet found a vegan version that you can buy that doesn’t contain soy; however, you could make your own homemade Worcestershire sauce, like this one, and replace the soy sauce with a no soy soy free sauce. 

Depending on the allergies you have, you can replace the soy sauce with gluten-free tamari, coconut aminos or a Top 8 no soy sauce (click links to see each). 

Can I prep these vegan homemade baked beans ahead of time?

Yes!  No matter which method you make, the beans once fully cooked and ready to serve will store in an air tight container for up to a week. 

What are other vegan cookout side dishes that I should make?

There are so many delicious vegan side dishes.  It’s so easy to make most side dishes vegan friendly. So of our favorite vegetarian side dishes are: 

• Potato salad 
• Spicy garlic corn on the cob
• Zesty pasta salad
• Tomato and Cucumber Salad
• Green Bean Salad
• Asparagus with Mushrooms
• Chickpea Salad

All of these recipes are vegan, so they are dairy and egg free. 

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