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Slow Cooker Barbecued Green Beans

Slow Cooker Barbecued Green Beans are sweet and tangy bbq green beans with lots of smoky bbq flavor. Made from canned beans, they are a cinch to make and are a great side dish for potlucks and family meals. They are kind of like the flavor of baked beans, only with green beans. What’s not to love about that?

Slow Cooker Barbecued Green Beans

BBQ Green Beans

I love the flavor of bbq sauce. It is like ketchup to me. I even use it as pizza sauce. It’s definitely a good complement for green beans.

I find recipes featuring green beans are very popular. Southern-Style Green Beans and Sweet and Sour Green Beans are two of the most popular recipes on Spicy Southern Kitchen. As much as I love both recipes, I think this Slow Cooker Barbecued Green Beans recipe is my favorite. It’s almost like green bean candy.

BBQ Green Beans cooked in the slow cooker.

How To Make Canned Green Beans Taste Homemade

This recipe turns canned green beans into a side dish that tastes homemade. With a bunch of extra flavors added, no one will guess you started with canned beans. Be sure to try these other canned green bean recipes: Rotel Green Beans and Candied Green Beans.

How To Make

(More detailed instructions below.)

The canned green beans are slow cooked with ketchup, brown sugar, BBQ sauce (use your favorite) and Worcestershire sauce. And bacon. Lots of bacon. I like to add just a touch of cayenne pepper to balance the sweetness some.

Four to five hours in the crock pot on LOW and the green beans are coated in the most amazing sweet and tangy flavor!

BBQ Green Beans slow cooked with lots of bacon.

Can I Use Fresh Or Frozen Beans?

Yes! If using fresh, either blanch them before adding them to the slow cooker or cook them a little longer in the slow cooker. If using frozen, thaw them first.

More Slow Cooker Side Dishes

Barbecued Green Beans cooked in a crock pot.


Slow Cooker Barbecued Green Beans

Slow Cooker Barbecued Green Beans

Slow Cooker Barbecued Green Beans are sweet and tangy with lots of smoky bbq flavor.
PREP: 10 minutes
COOK: 4 hours
TOTAL: 4 hours 10 minutes
SERVINGS: 8

Equipment

Ingredients

  • 8 slices thick-cut bacon
  • 1/2 cup chopped onion
  • 1/2 cup ketchup
  • 1/3 cup packed light brown sugar
  • 1/4 cup BBQ sauce
  • 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
  • 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
  • 4 (14.5-ounce) cans green beans, drained

Instructions

  • Chop bacon and cook it in a large nonstick pan. Remove bacon and set aside.
  • Discard all but 2 tablespoons bacon grease. Add onion to bacon grease left in pan and cook until soft.
  • In a medium bowl, stir together ketchup, brown sugar, BBQ sauce, Worcestershire sauce, salt, pepper, and cayenne pepper.
  • Add green beans to a lightly greased 4 to 6 quart crock pot. 
  • Add onions along with any bacon grease left in pan to crock pot.
  • Pour ketchup mixture on top and stir in.
  • Sprinkle bacon on top. Cover crock pot and cook on LOW for 4 to 5 hours.

Nutrition

Calories: 185kcal
Author: Christin Mahrlig
Course: Side Dish
Cuisine: Southern
Keyword: canned green beans, slow cooker

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83 thoughts on “Slow Cooker Barbecued Green Beans”

  1. Thank you for this recipe! It is a huge hit every time I make it and I can’t stop craving it. I don’t make any adjustments as it is perfect for us! I recommend this year round side to anyone looking to try something new that will have people talking!

  2. This look great! I’m thinking about adding baked beans along with everything else, do you think that would work?

  3. I’m using sweet baby rays hickory and town sugar bbq sauce, should I cut out the brown sugar since the sauce has it in there?

  4. Hi was wondering if u can make this the night before for a dinner the following day at 2pm Or should I partially make this by making bacon tonight and do rest in the early am? What’s your thoughts not a lot of time in the am? Thank u!!

  5. Delicious!!!Hi, Thanks for this delicious green bean recipe. My husband just brought me a crockpot. I’m 33 yrs old and we will be celebrating our 14 yr anniversary on Dec 14. n he said it was time for me a crockpot. I also added a tbsp. each of bellpepper and celery. I cooked the barbecue green beans Sunday with homemade yeast rolls, meatloaf, and mashed potatoes. I highly recommend everyone to try this recipe

    1. Christin
      Christin Mahrlig

      If you defrost them ahead of time, which I would recommend, no need to make any adjustments.

      1. I am so excited to make these, however, I too would like to use fresh French green beans. Any ideas on cooking adjustment times? I too plan to add celery, bell peppers, a bit of jalapeño and possibly BBQ beans…… too much? Thoughts plz

  6. Christine @ myblissfulmess

    These were so dang good, and such a nice change in flavor. So easy too! These are one of my new favorite ways to prepare green beans. I love it so much and it went so well with the meal I prepared for a Sunday dinner, that I’m mentioning and linking to it over on my blog. Thank you so much for this recipe. Everyone loved them!

      1. I’m going to try chicken bacon we get here at Walmart. I’m allergic to pork. I’ll let you know.

  7. Christine @ myblissfulmess

    Love this!! Always looking for new ways to fix green beans because it’s one of the few veggies I can get my hubby to eat. Thanks for this! Perfect potluck faire too.

  8. I made this dish for my family reunion yesterday. Everyone loved it! Does anyone know how to cut the portions, say for one can of green beans? There are just the two of us, and this recipe is too large for us.

    1. Christin
      Christin Mahrlig

      I think I would just cut all ingredients in half and use 2 cans of beans Lana. Leftovers reheat well.

  9. Melba person

    I’m going to do this recipe hope I like them to add to my Thanksgiving menu. Always looking for new exciting recipes to try send me something my Pint rest friends

  10. This recipes sounds delicious! I would like to use fresh green beans instead of canned. Do I need to adjust the recipe or cooking time?

    1. Christin
      Christin Mahrlig

      If using fresh, I would go ahead and steam them or boil them until they are crisp-tender and then proceed.

    1. OMG I’m making this for a group of campers this Saturday and I had your same question about to drain or not to drain 🙂 thank you

  11. Douglas Battjes

    Man these sound yummy, but have recently found green beans from Delray Beach Florida, they are the best ever, always so tender and if you steam them for a 15 mins they are perfect. This sounds so good but think these may be like much. Have to think about how to alter the receipt, made them before with bacon but not with the sugar, and other ingredients.

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