Amazing Bean Dip Recipe
Published January 24, 2023. This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my disclosure policy.
This amazing bean dip recipe with smoked cheese and assorted vegetables is the perfect appetizer for your next get-together. You will be blown away by the amazing flavors in this dip.
If you can’t have enough of dip-style appetizers then definitely check out my Spinach and Artichoke Dip or my Beer Cheese Dip.
Bean Dip
Bean dip is a simple recipe consisting of cooked mashed beans, and other ingredients, that are commonly served as an appetizer with assorted dipping foods like vegetables and bread. In most cases, this recipe will taste completely different depending on who is making it.
There are many ways to customize this recipe to your liking with different types of beans and cheeses. Feel free to get creative when making this delicious appetizer.
Ingredients and Substitutions
- Bacon – I like smoked, uncured thick-cut bacon, but regular-cut bacon also works.
- Onions – A yellow, white, or sweet onion will work. In addition, a few garlic cloves will help add a lot of flavor to this.
- Beans – I like to use a combination of pinto beans and cannellini beans.
- Cheese – a combination of mozzarella and smoked white cheddar cheese adds amazing flavors to this.
- Fat – A little bit of sour cream and mayonnaise will help add some much-needed fat to the bean dip.
How to Make a Bean Dip
Add the bacon to a medium size pot over medium heat and cook until crispy. Once they are brown and crisp, remove the bacon and set it aside. Next, add the onions and garlic to the pot with the rendered bacon fat and cook until browned.
Drain the beans in a colander and place them into the pot along with a ¼ cup of water and cook over medium heat for 5 to 8 minutes or until they begin to break down a bit. Mash with a hand masher and fold in the cheeses, sour cream, mayonnaise, salt, and pepper.
Transfer the mixture to a cast iron or enamel pan and top it off with cheese. Bake in the oven for 10 minutes or until the cheese is melted and golden brown.
Garnish the top of the bean dip with optional garnishes and serve with crudité options.
What Do You Serve It With?
There are many different foods that you can serve this bean dip with. Here are some of my favorites:
- Mini Bell Peppers
- Carrots
- Celery
- Cauliflower
- Pita Bread
- Tortilla Chips
Make-Ahead and Storage
Make-ahead: This recipe is meant to be eaten as soon as it is done cooking. However, you can cover it and keep it warm at low temperatures (200°) in the oven for 1 hour before you serve it.
How to Store: Cover them and keep them in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. To freeze, cover with plastic wrap or place it in a plastic container and keep it in the freezer for up to 2 months. Thaw it in the refrigerator for 1 day before reheating.
How To Reheat: To reheat, add it to a small baking dish, cover it with foil, and bake in the oven at 350° for 10 to 12 minutes or until hot.
Chef Notes + Tips
- This is meant to be a quick recipe, but you can use dried beans that are soaked in water overnight.
- Soaked dried beans will then need to be boiled in water until soft, which will take 1 to 2 hours. From there, drain them and proceed with this recipe.
- Feel free to use whatever cheeses you’d like. Some other good cheeses would be gouda, smoked gouda, regular cheddar cheese, cotija, or queso fresco.
More Appetizer Recipes
Amazing Bean Dip Recipe
Ingredients
- 6 strips of chopped thick-cut bacon
- ½ peeled and small diced yellow onion
- 3 cloves of finely minced garlic
- 2 15- ounce cans drained and rinsed Cannellini Beans
- 1 15- ounce can drained and rinsed pinto Beans
- 2 cups shredded mozzarella
- 2 cups shredded smoked white cheddar cheese
- ¼ cup of sour cream
- ½ cup of mayonnaise
- sea salt and fresh cracked pepper to taste
- optional garnishes: sliced green onions, and roasted peppers and onions
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400°.
- Add the bacon to a medium size pot over medium heat and cook until crispy. Once they are brown and crisp, remove the bacon and set it aside.
- Next, add the onions and garlic to the pot with the rendered bacon fat and cook until browned.
- Drain the beans in a colander and place them into the pot along with a ¼ cup of water and cook over medium heat for 5 to 8 minutes or until they begin to break down a bit.
- Mash with a hand masher and fold in half of the cooked bacon, cheese, sour cream, mayonnaise, salt, and pepper.
- Transfer the mixture to a cast iron or enamel pan and top off the remaining shredded cheese. Bake in the oven for 10 minutes or until the cheese is melted and golden brown.
- Garnish the top of the bean dip with optional garnishes and serve with crudité options.
Cut recipe in half, is wonderful and will make again
fantastic!
Would this dish be flavorful if it was made vegan? Or could there be something else I could add to bump it up?
sure? I’m not vegan so I’m not sure.
I could not find smoked cheddar. I was able to get smoked Gouda. Do you think it will work?
try it and let me know!
A most delicious dip! Great with Fritos scoops as well. It makes a lot so I froze some of it. It was delicious!( I had not baked the frozen portion prior to using it and added the cheese on top then.)
thanks for giving it a shot!!
This bean dip comes together fast and is a crowd pleaser! We have enough for another meal… and it is a meal!! Thank you so much for sharing this wonderful recipe with us. With summer potlucks just around the corner I will be making this again for sure!
thanks for giving it a shot!!
W O W, but what isn’t that Billy invites us to make AND love.
Very kind of you to say!
Love the pics!