A lot of baked beans get consumed in our house. Do they in yours too?

Baked beans are my go-to quick, no think wfh lunch. Baked beans get me out of a lunchtime fix at weekends and in school holidays with the kids. Baked beans can be the quick base for a meal, adding ingredients and turning a tin into more of a stew type meal.

Every so often though, I like to make my own baked beans. The sauce tastes so fresh, I can monitor the salt and sugar content and I can pack in some veggies. And they really don’t take as long to cook as you might imagine.

Serves 4-6

Ingredients	Equipment to have ready
2 tbsp olive oil	Chopping board
1 small onion, roughly chopped	Sharp knife
1 stick celery, roughly chopped to similar size as onion	Large saucepan with a lid
1 large carrot, roughly chopped to similar size as onion	Stick blender
1 large clove garlic, roughly chopped	Wooden spoon
1 tbsp tomato puree	Tablespoon measure
1 tin chopped tomatoes	Teaspoon measure
1/2 tbsp tomato ketchup
1/2 tsp brown sugar
A dash of Worcestershire sauce (optional)
2x 400g tins of haricot beans, drained
Salt and pepper

Method

1. Heat the olive oil in a large saucepan over a low heat.
2. Add the onion, celery, carrot and garlic to the pan with a pinch of salt and good grind of pepper.
3. Stir to coat in the oil then sweat the vegetables with the lid on for around 10 minutes, until they have softened.
4. Remove the lid and cook for another 5 minutes or so until any liquid has absorbed and the vegetables start to brown.
5. Add the tomato puree, chopped tomatoes, 1/2 can of water, the tomato ketchup, the brown sugar and a dash of Worcestershire sauce, if using. Stir well.
6. Bring to the boil and simmer for 20 minutes.
7. Blitz with a hand blender until smooth.
8. Tip in the haricot beans, stir and simmer for 10 mins until the beans have heated through (adding a little water if the sauce is getting too thick).
9. Taste and check the seasoning, adding more salt and/or pepper and/or Worcestershire sauce if needed.