Why Boston is Called Beantown

Boston has a number of nicknames, from The Cradle of Liberty to City of Champions, and more. Perhaps the most well-known tag is Beantown. The origin of the moniker dates back to Colonial times when Boston was one of the major ports on the "triangle trade" route of that involved both raw materials and slaves beginning in the late 16th century.

Down in the Caribbean, slaves grew sugar cane that was transformed into molasses and shipped up to Boston. There, the molasses was processed into rum that was sent over to West Africa and used to purchase more slaves that were sent to the West Indies.

Because so much molasses was made available in Boston, locals began using it to cook. The thick, sweet syrup is actually quite rich in iron, and B vitamins. The molasses found a natural partner in another staple food of the times – beans.

Pilgrims had adopted and adapted the cooking of beans and corn bread from the Native Americans in the area. In the early 1620s, settlers in Plymouth began adding barley to the corn meal and baking brown bread to go with the beans. Once the rum trade picked up, molasses was added to the bean recipe – as was salt pork or bacon – and the iconic Boston Baked Beans emerged.

One of the factors was the Sunday Sabbath wherein the settlers could not work. To prepare themselves a hot meal ahead of time, they would slow cook beans and bread in a brick oven starting on Saturday. The weekend tradition involving baked beans and brown bread lasted for about 100 years. Then, in the 1930s, religious and cultural restrictions were eased.

The triangle trade eventually died off, too, in the early 19th century, although Boston's rum industry stayed strong. Then came the Great Molasses Flood of 1919 when a holding tank exploded, killing 21 people and injuring another 150 with its 2.5 million gallons of molasses.

Commercial production of Boston baked beans was another industry that boomed in town. These days, though, there aren't any companies continuing the legacy. Even contemporary Boston restaurants fail to include baked beans on their menus, save one hold out – Durgin-Park, located at 340 Faneuil Hall Marketplace, which won the James Beard award for American Regional Classics in 1998.

Here's the recipe Chef Tommy Ryan has used at Durgin-Park for over 40 years.

Boston Baked Beans in 2 1/2-quart Bean Pot
1 pound beans*
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 pound salt pork
1/2 medium onion -- peeled and uncut
4 tablespoons sugar
1/3 cup molasses
1 teaspoon dry mustard
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper

*Use California pea beans, York State beans, or small white beans.

Soak beans overnight. In the morning, preheat oven to 325° F. Place the baking soda in a Dutch oven and fill half way with water. Bring to a boil and add the beans. Boil for 10 minutes. Drain beans in a colander and run cold water through them. Set aside.

Dice the salt pork (available in the bacon section of the grocery store) into 1-inch squares. Put half of the salt pork on the bottom of the bean pot, along with the onion. Put beans in the pot. Put the remaining salt pork on top of the beans.

Mix the sugar, molasses, mustard, salt and pepper with 3 cups of hot water and pour over the beans. Cover pot with lid and place the pot into the preheated oven. Bake for 6 hours. Check pot periodically to check the amount of liquid. Add water to the beans slowly as needed to keep them moist; do not flood them. Remove the pot from the oven and serve. Makes about 7 cups.

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