The evolution of baked beans is more nuanced than traditional narratives suggest. Meg Muckenhoupt's book, The Truth About Baked Beans, challenges longstanding myths regarding their origins, emphasizing the dish's true history involves 19th-century innovations in response to sugar price drops rather than ancient Native American recipes. Muckenhoupt cites research showing that familiar ingredients like molasses were scarce, shifting the recipe to salt pork and simpler elements as it gained popularity. Early recipes appear in notable cookbooks, signifying the dish's firm establishment in American culinary tradition aided by the advent of canned beans, popularized by Heinz in the late 19th century.
Muckenhoupt writes, 'As I began researching Boston baked beans, I rapidly realized most of the origin stories about sweet bean recipes were clearly false.'
'The recipe for Boston baked beans wasn't an ancient gift from forgotten Native Americans,' Muckenhoupt writes, 'but the result of...conscious efforts in the late 19th century.'
Muckenhoupt highlights that 'the scant availability of molasses, among other inconsistencies, makes the traditional origin story unlikely to be true.'
Early baked bean recipes emerge from various sources, such as The American Frugal Housewife in 1829, reflecting the evolution of this dish in American cuisine.
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