A history lesson: Boston baked bean style
Headed to a bbq later and my contribution is baked beans and jalapeno cornbread. When looking for a nice baked bean recipe, I got sucked in to the history of Boston baked beans (because I apparently need the history of most foods these days).
Boston Baked Beans continue to be one of New England's most-loved traditional dishes and have their roots in colonial times.
During the Triangular trade (operating from the late 16th to early 19th centuries), New England was integral in the trading of slaves, cash crops, and manufactured goods between Africa, the Caribbean/American colonies and Europe. During this time, sugar cane harvested by slaves in the West Indies was shipped to Boston to be made into rum. This sugar cane was often in its liquid form, molasses (another blog can be dedicated to sugar producing), and Boston found itself the keeper of this thick creation, continuing to produce rum even after the slave trade industry was finished.
During this time, molasses replaced maple syrup in baked beans that were common of the American Indian community, thus creating what we call Boston Baked Beans. In colonial New England, the religious beliefs of the Puritans forbade cooking on the Sabbath (sundown Saturday to sundown Sunday) so baked beans were traditionally cooked on Saturdays and left in the brick ovens overnight. On Sundays, the beans were still hot, allowing the Puritans to enjoy a hearty meal, yet still avoiding Gods wrath.
In January 1919, due to unseasonably warm temperatures in Boston's North End, a giant cast-iron tank containing two-and-a-half million gallons of crude molasses ruptured, emptying its entire contents in less than a minute. The result was a deadly flood consisting of millions of gallons of this sweet, sticky, sugar byproduct. The bulk of the devastation was caused by a wave of molasses that was somewhere between 8-15 feet high, flowing through the narrow streets at up to 35 mph. Demolishing entire buildings, burying horses and vehicles, the locals were unable to outrun this disaster, causing 150 injuries and 21 deaths. No joke.
Be warned though, baked beans have been known to cause increased flatulence after consumption.
Serve yourself a bowl and hum along to the childrens song "beans beans the magical fruit".
It's worth it.
Boston Baked Beans continue to be one of New England's most-loved traditional dishes and have their roots in colonial times.
During the Triangular trade (operating from the late 16th to early 19th centuries), New England was integral in the trading of slaves, cash crops, and manufactured goods between Africa, the Caribbean/American colonies and Europe. During this time, sugar cane harvested by slaves in the West Indies was shipped to Boston to be made into rum. This sugar cane was often in its liquid form, molasses (another blog can be dedicated to sugar producing), and Boston found itself the keeper of this thick creation, continuing to produce rum even after the slave trade industry was finished.
During this time, molasses replaced maple syrup in baked beans that were common of the American Indian community, thus creating what we call Boston Baked Beans. In colonial New England, the religious beliefs of the Puritans forbade cooking on the Sabbath (sundown Saturday to sundown Sunday) so baked beans were traditionally cooked on Saturdays and left in the brick ovens overnight. On Sundays, the beans were still hot, allowing the Puritans to enjoy a hearty meal, yet still avoiding Gods wrath.
In January 1919, due to unseasonably warm temperatures in Boston's North End, a giant cast-iron tank containing two-and-a-half million gallons of crude molasses ruptured, emptying its entire contents in less than a minute. The result was a deadly flood consisting of millions of gallons of this sweet, sticky, sugar byproduct. The bulk of the devastation was caused by a wave of molasses that was somewhere between 8-15 feet high, flowing through the narrow streets at up to 35 mph. Demolishing entire buildings, burying horses and vehicles, the locals were unable to outrun this disaster, causing 150 injuries and 21 deaths. No joke.
Be warned though, baked beans have been known to cause increased flatulence after consumption.
Serve yourself a bowl and hum along to the childrens song "beans beans the magical fruit".
It's worth it.
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