Step 1

Place the dried navy beans in a 4-quart (4 L) Dutch oven. Cover the beans with cold water and let them soak for eight hours.

Step 2

Drain and rinse the beans with cool water. Place the drained beans back in the pot and cover them with 6 cups of fresh cold water. Bring the beans to a boil over medium-high heat then add the baking soda. Reduce the heat, place the lid on the pot, and simmer the beans for 30 minutes until tender.

Step 3

Preheat the oven to 250ºF (120ºC).

Step 4

Drain the cooked beans into a colander fitted over a large bowl or other vessel. Once drained you should have about 3-1/2 cups (875 ml) of cooking liquid in the bowl. Rinse the cooked beans with cool water and drain. Set the cooking liquid and the drained beans aside.

Step 5

Give the Dutch oven a quick wash to remove any cooked beans scum. Stir together the ketchup, molasses, apple cider vinegar, brown sugar, ground dry mustard, and pepper until smooth.

Step 6

Add the chopped onion and bacon to the pot. Stir to mix. Add the 3-1/2 cups (875 ml) of bean liquid and the drained cooked beans and stir well to combine.

Step 7

Place the lid on the pot and bake the beans for 8 hours. Remove from oven, remove lid, stir, and serve.