Americans: do you eat baked beans?

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And if you don’t, what do you give your children when you cook something simple like sausage and mash, or chicken nuggets and chips / fries? Aren’t they a bit dry without the beans?

The mashed potatoes for Thanksgiving thing is interesting. Growing up in the coastal South, I never had mashed potatoes for Thanksgiving. But having married a northerner, now we do serve it for Thanksgiving. DH makes it.

We do have baked potatoes fairly often, perhaps once a month, especially with steak.

And we eat a lot of sweet potatoes. Usually baked.

Mashed potatoes are a luxury saved for special occasions?? News to me. I had them regularly when I lived in the states, and I think of it as a bog standard side dish when you can't think of anything more creative.

Baked beans are normally eaten with BBQ type food. American baked beans are better than British ones imo. I live in the UK now and never serve baked beans with anything.

Ok you Americans on this thread.....do you really put marshmallows in mashed potatoes? Or is that a TV myth?

I used to come home from clubbing at about 3am and snaffle a tin of heinz (only they will do!) baked beans cold from the tin.

Now my tastes have matured, baked beans belong on toast or a jacket potato with a lot of cheese. Unless it's a mini tin with sausages in that can also be snaffled cold from the tin.

Sausages and mash. No. No baked beans belong there. Only garden peas and gravy. If you want sausages and baked beans, then head for a full English!

Thank you for reminding me of Miss Manners. I'm British but used to love reading her Q&As about 15 years ago - I'd completely forgotten until you mentioned her!

I eat my baked beans cold out of the can with a spoonful of mayonnaise added - Tesco or Sainsbury's own brand beans are the best.

Absolutely not. You're thinking of sweet potato casserole, which is made with brown sugar and optional marshmallows on top.

I’m from Cheshire!

I grew up in California. We had cans of “pork’n beans” which are like baked beans but with the aforementioned lump of fatty pork that is supposed to melt into the beans and add flavour when you cook them. I always scooped the fat out before I ate them, which was not often.
We also had barbecue beans which are like baked beans but in a bbq sauce, mostly served at bbqs.
I eat a fair amount of baked beans in the UK but they don’t really go with American food.

I have US family and have visited there with the DCs. If you get fish sticks (fish fingers) or chicken nuggets and chips (fries) you get broccoli, salad, or nothing (or ketchup/mayo) on the side.
In the UK my DCs get peas, sweetcorn or green beans on the side. Sometimes baked beans but not as a matter of course - we have them as a main protein with baked potatoes or toast and cheese.

@Littlecatsfeet sweet potato makes more sense to have marshmallows but according to many a Hallmark Thanksgiving movie it's still served as a side dish to the turkey and what not?
Seems an odd mix.

I've never put marshmallows on sweet potatoes, but yes, some people do. We do make sweet potato casserole for holiday dinners, but topped with brown sugar and pecans.
It was my mother's favorite part of the meal.

@CarolinaInTheMorning I like the sound of the sweet potato casserole and I read a recipe for green bean casserole (which again appears to be a thanksgiving meal must have) which I thought looks yummy.
I don't like the traditional British Sunday dinner/Christmas dinner but I reckon I would enjoy a Thanksgiving dinner of just the sides - sweet potato, green bean casserole and mac and cheese!

I grew up in California (born and raised there) with Heinz baked beans, only because my Irish mother (not Irish American but straight off the boat Irish) used to buy them as a treat from an English woman who ran a tea shop in our town. She had lots of British and Irish goods. Barry’s tea was a firm favourite too.
But baked beans in the British sense is an unusual thing, an exotic bird, in the States. American baked beans in a tin are kind of maple syrup/bbq saucy-ish in taste, if I recall. I’ve been here nearly 30 years so, my memory of beans back home is hazy.

Yes to marshmallows and maple syrup in yams/sweet potato on Thanksgiving. It’s a thing.

I'm British. I don't like baked beans and neither does one of my dc. It wouldn't particularly occur to me that a meal needed baked beans in order not to be dry, but sausage and mash woukd be much nicer with peas and gravy than baked beans! Otherwise if sauce is required, then ketchup or bbq sauce is fine.

Yes, turkey really is the least of it for an American Thanksgiving dinner. It's all about the sides.

UK baked beans are very different to US baked beans

Best way to enjoy baked beans is cold, straight from the can. First you drink the liquidy bit at the top (it's like the foremilk) and then you take a mouthful of beans and licksuck the juice off, only chewing the beans after you have swallowed the juice.
#beanporn

Oh my life, this is too much 🤢🤢

I'm from the East midlands and its a pretty normal thing to do here as well!

Peas. Frozen peas, microwaved. There is no need to cover everything in sauce unless you've totally overcooked it and dried it out (something brits would never do, obviously 🙄)

And yes, I do est baked beans, but only on an English breakfast or maybe (not sure) a baked potato - but never sausage snd mash, which requires a green vegetable.

I hope no Italians are reading but..
Here up north a very regular Sunday Tea (evening meal) would be Chips, baked beans.. and Pizza 😂🍕

I love beans but sausage and mash should always be with gravy and green vegetables!

Thanks @elp30 for some great food ideas, I want to make Mexican beans now.

Onion gravy with sausage and mash
Tinned toms with a fry up
The only way to eat beans is on toast, with Mayonnaise 😋