Hey, y'all! The weather is warm here in Kentucky, which means that cookout season is here. While there are many iconic cookout foods in the south - many of which can be found here on the blog - one of my life-long favorites = baked beans. However, not all baked beans are created equal; as such, I'm excited to share the recipe for Doctored Up Baked Beans with y'all today.
This recipe stems from my Auntie JJ and is a part of a larger series, #CookingLikeJJ, which you can read more about here.
Jump to Recipe
Doctored Up Baked Beans
What are "doctored up" baked beans? In the south, we often say that we are going to "doctor" something up. By that, we mean that we are seasoning, adding flavor/complexity, etc. It's about sprucing up something simple into something flavorful and delicious!
Shopping List, Ingredients:
- Bush's Original Baked Beans
- Bacon
- Vidalia Onion
- Yellow Mustard
- Ketchup
- Brown Sugar
- Molasses
- Worcestershire
- Kosher Salt
- Black Pepper
- Red Pepper Flakes
- Garlic Powder

How To Make Doctored Up Baked Beans
- Preheat oven to 375F.
- Drain one-third to one-half of the juice from the baked bean cans. Add baked beans, cooked bacon, chopped vidalia onion, yellow mustard, ketchup, brown sugar, molasses, and Worcestershire sauce to a large oven-safe dish. Stir & combine well.
- Season to taste with kosher salt, black pepper, red pepper flakes, and garlic powder.
- Bake for 45 minutes - 1 hour; the beans will be bubbly + caramelized on the top. Serve and enjoy!
Other Cookout Recipes You'll Love
The Recipe: Doctored Up Baked Beans

Doctored Up Baked Beans
Ingredients
- 3 cans Bush's Original Baked Beans 28 oz.
- 8 slices bacon cooked and chopped
- ½ c. ketchup
- ⅓ c. yellow mustard
- ⅓ c. brown sugar
- ¼ c. molasses
- 4 tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
- 1 vidalia onion chopped
- kosher salt to taste
- black pepper to taste
- garlic powder to taste
- red pepper flakes to taste
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375F.
- Drain one-third to one-half of the juice from the baked bean cans. Add baked beans, cooked bacon, chopped vidalia onion, yellow mustard, ketchup, brown sugar, molasses, and worcestershire sauce to a large oven-safe dish. Stir & combine well.
- Season to taste with kosher salt, black pepper, red pepper flakes, and garlic powder.
- Bake for 45 minutes - 1 hour; the beans will be bubbly + caramelized on the top. Serve and enjoy!
Nutrition
About the Series: Cooking Like JJ
My Auntie JJ was the quintessential southern woman. She was classy, tasteful, always refined; an amazing cook and hostess; and did everything that she balanced – teaching, running businesses, raising a family, and keeping an immaculate home – with ease. She is one of the main inspirations behind JCP Eats, as she was the one who taught me about timeless, southern food and entertaining. When JJ passed away, I planned this series as a way to pay homage to her 91 years here on Earth; in a way, it’s a form of mourning – in another, it seems like my final gift to her. I hope y’all will enjoy this deep dive into the culinary archives of my family + Phelps Acres Farm. While I’ll never be able to cook as good as JJ, I can only strive to cook like JJ (hence the title of the series). Learn more here.

Y’all come back now, ya hear?
My best,
JC
Keep Up With JCP Eats
Thank you so much for visiting the blog today! I’d love to keep in touch via social media. You can follow my content on Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest, Tik Tok, Twitter, and LinkedIn. I also author a second website, Notable Kentucky, on which I write about all things of note in the Commonwealth of Kentucky. Read Notable Kentucky here.