Boston Baked Beans (Traditional)

Ingredients

• 2 pounds white beans (aka navy, yankee, boston, and fagioli)
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 2 small onions – peeled
• 3 tablespoons brown sugar
• 1 ½ teaspoons dry mustard
• ½ pound salt pork
• 1 cup molasses
• 2 teaspoons salt
• ½ teaspoon pepper

Directions

In a large saucepan, let white beans soak overnight (or at least 8 hours) in 2 quarts of water. The following morning, or after the soak, add baking soda to pot and bring beans up to a simmer for 20 minutes. Remove from heat and allow an additional one-hour soak in the same water. Drain beans, reserving the liquid.

Place half of the beans in either a beanpot or dutch oven.

In a separate bowl, mix mustard, molasses, brown sugar, salt, and 2 cups of the reserved water. Pour ½ of the mixture over beans in the pot.

Place the 2 peeled onions in the middle of the pot, on top of the beans.

Combine the remaining half of the sugar mixture with the remaining half of the beans in a separate bowl, toss to coat. Pour these beans into the pot as well, covering the onions.

Place the salt pork on top of the beans, rind up. Using the reserved water, pour enough water into the beanpot to just cover the beans.

Cover the beanpot. Bake for 6 to 8 hours at 250 degrees. Add water as needed to keep the beans moist. Uncover during the last 45 minutes of baking to brown the pork.