Filling Your Freezer Bags
One other tricky moment is filling the bags. How do you get the food inside the bag without making a gigantic mess on your counter?!
My usual methodis to place the bag upright in something tall and fairly skinny, like a quart-sized fluid measuring cup. Hold the bag open with one hand and use your other hand to carefully fill the bag using a measuring cup. You may still get some dribbles here and there, but at least they’re contained inside the measuring cup.
Also, if you have a canning funnel, this is a good time to use it.
How To Reduce Gas Caused By Eating Beans
Yep, I’ve got even more to say about gas, I am, after all, still a Nurse Practitioner at heart and belly problems are a regular topic of conversation for me.
- Soak the beans for at least 12 hours before cooking them
- Slowly increase your intake of beans over time. Your belly will learn to deal with the extra fiber better as you eat more of them
- Try different beans. Some people do better with certain beans than others so if one variety is causing you or your loved ones problems, try a different one
- Take a supplement like Beano with your meal. Beano contains enzymes that are better at breaking down the hard to digest sugars in beans which means less fermenting and gas production in your digestive track
To Soak The Beans Or Not When Cooking Beans In Instant Pot
You do not need to pre-soak the beans. Soaked or not, the Instant Pot definitely does a great job cooking the perfect beans.
Although soaking is not mandatory, it is highly recommended as it aids digestion. Soaking beans removes indigestible complex sugars that cause gas. Its best to soak beans overnight.
However there can always be times when you forgot to soak or need to get something on the table instantly and for those times, I just soak for like thirty minutes in the Instant Pot itself before cooking or sometimes I dont even have 30 mins so I just cook my dried beans without soaking them
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The Best Instant Pot Pinto Beans
Warning: once you start making these Instant Pot pinto beans, you might never go back to canned. I must admit that for years I convinced myself that making beans from scratch was a waste of time. Why go to the trouble when you can open a can in seconds? Well let me tell you, these pinto beans have a flavor and texture thats miles away from canned. Plus, they take only minutes to prepare. These beans turned Ella from a staunch bean hater into a bean lover. And people, THATS A MIRACLE!
Tips For Using Freezer Bags
I acknowledge that this method requires a certain amount of faith, especially when it comes to concerns about bursting or leaking bags. Here are a few tips to help with that:
Use good-quality freezer bags: Make sure the box actually says “freezer” on the label. These bags are sturdier and made of thicker plastic than the bags meant for sandwiches. Also, I think it’s worth it to buy good-quality bags from a brand that you trust. I generally use quart-sized Ziploc freezer bags.
Don’t overfill the bags: Liquids expand as they freeze, so be sure to leave a little extra room to account for this. In a quart-sized bag, I usually put only two to three cups of food. In gallon-sized bags, I put about three quarts or so.
Don’t stack bags more than 3 or 4 high. I’ve admittedly never fail-tested this, but more than four stacked bags makes me worry that the weight of the bags on top might cause the ones on the bottom to pop.
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How Long To Soak Kidney Beans
You need to soak the kidney beans for at least 8 hours or overnight. If you plan to soak the beans for more time, soak them in the refrigerator so that beans are not fermented.
- Clean the beans to remove stones and other dirt. Wash them once and soak them in clean water for about 8 hours. You can soak them overnight as well.
- Beans will absorb the water and will increase in volume. One cup of dry beans will yield around 2.5 cups of soaked beans.
- Discard the water from soaked kidney beans and wash them a couple of times. There might be white foam on the top of the water. Rinse them well to remove the foam.
Instant Pot Black Beans: Turning Up The Flavor
While you can use this method to make regular ol Instant Pot Black Beans , I wanted to make them extra special and flavorful.
I took inspiration from the islands and made these Instant Pot Black Beans Cuban by incorporating a few star ingredients in Cuban cuisine: bell pepper, onion, cumin, bay leaves, and oregano. I loved the extra depth of flavor and caught myself eating these right out of the pot.
While these black beans are Cuban inspired, you certainly dont need a Cuban recipe to use them.
The flavors and ingredients are fairly ubiquitous in Mexican cuisine too, so any Southwest style of recipe would be excellent with these seasoned black beans swapped in place of plain.
Want to make Instant Pot Black Beans Mexican? Try adding chili powder and, if you are feeling dangerous, a pinch of cayenne.
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How To Cook Pinto Beans In An Instant Pot
Heres a quick overview of how to make Instant Pot pinto beans. See the recipe box at the end of this post for the full list of ingredients and instructions.
The Best Way To Freeze Soups Beans Broth And Other Liquid Foods Maximizes Storage Space And Makes Thawing Quicker And Easier
I am a freezer hoarder. I can admit that here, right?
My freezer is jammed to the gills — and not only with normal things like frozen fruit and chicken sausage, but also with the random bits of food that one tends to collect as a professional food writer and recipe tester.
This is all to say that I have learned a trick or two regarding Freezer Tetris and how to maximize space.
Since I had a few batches of pressure cooker beans in urgent need of freezing, I thought I’d share my favorite way to freeze soup, beans in their cooking liquid, and broth to both save space and make my weeknight meal prep a little easier.
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How Much Water Do I Need For 2 Cups Of Pinto Beans In Instant Pot
What is the Ratio of Beans to Water in the Instant Pot? When cooking beans in the Instant Pot, youll use 2 1/ 2 cups of water for every 1 cup of dry beans. Ive tried using less than that, but since beans expand as they cook, the ones that arent fully submerged in liquid will cook unevenly.
Use Your Instant Pot To Soak Beans
If after reading Tip #1, youve decided to soak your beans, this section is very handy. The Instant Pot has a nifty Delay Start function that will save time .
If you select 8 hours, your beans will soak in the salted water for 8 hours. When that 8 hours is over, the Instant Pot will automatically start pressure cooking the beans.
I find this function to be incredibly useful. When I had an office job, I would set the timer before leaving for work in the morning. When I came home in the evening, a pot of freshly cooked beans greeted me. Alternatively, I set the timer before bed, and in the morning, I wake up to a pot of cooked beans.
Another caveat because I like to be really thorough. If beans really make you toot , this method may not be the best option. Thats because the beans will automatically start cooking in the water in which theyve soaked. And when beans are soaking, they release those oligosaccharides , which wont be drained out.
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How To Use And Store Beans
One 15-ounce can of beans holds about 1 3/4 cups cooked beans, so substitute accordingly in your recipes. For reference, one pound of dried beans makes about five cups of cooked beans.
Let beans cool completely, then store in their liquid in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. Beans also freeze beautifully. I usually freeze them in their liquid in ziplock bags , which take up less space in the freezer and thaw more quickly. Freeze for up to three months.
Amount Of Water Needed For Cooking Dried Beans In The Instant Pot
Water or broth can be used as the cooking liquid for dried beans. I use a range of liquid amounts depending on my purpose for the beans:
- 4 cups liquid to 1 pound of beans: Best for beans that you don’t plan on straining, like the pinto bean side dishes you get at Mexican restaurants. Less water means a flavorful, thicker, and more starchy sauce
- 5 cups liquid to 1 pound of beans: Best for beans that you want to be less starchy and infused with flavor even after straining some of the extra liquid. This is perfect for Mexican food fillings, salads, salsas, and refried beans
- 6 cups liquid to 1 pound of beans: Best for beans that are hardly starchy and only mildly seasoned. These are perfect for bagging and freezing
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How Much Water Do You Put In A Pressure Cooker
When you use a pressure cooker, you need to have enough liquid in the pot for it to come up to pressure and cook the food properly. The rule of liquids in pressure cooking is to always add at least 1 cup of liquid unless the recipe states otherwise. The liquid will help create enough steam to cook the meal.
What If My Beans Are Still Hard
Occasionally, you might open your pressure cooker and find that your beans are still a little crunchy or not cooked quite as much as you like. This is fine! The cooking times I give in the recipe are just general guidelines, but know that there can be quite a lot of variability in the beans themselves. Your beans might take a little longer to cook than expected depending on their age, their type, or even the type of water you use .
If your beans aren’t quite done, here’s what to do: Put the lid back on the pressure cooker and make sure the release valve is set back to “sealing.” Cook at high pressure for another 5 to 10 minutes . The pot will quickly come back up to pressure because the contents are already hot. Check your beans after the extra cooking time and continue cooking for longer if needed.
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How To Cook Pinto Beans In Instant Pot
This post may contain affiliate links. Read our disclosure policy here.
Nothing beats the taste of home-cooked beans, especially if you season it right. In this recipe, were showing you how to cook pinto beans in an Instant Pot in less than an hour without soaking the beans. The beans come out flavorful and creamy.
Cook a big batch of pinto beans and freeze some for later.
How To Quick Soak Beans In The Instant Pot
If you would like to soak the beans, but didn’t plan ahead, there’s good news! You can do a quick soak in the Instant Pot by placing 1 pound of beans and 6 cups of water in the pot. Cook them at high pressure for 2 minutes, Natural Pressure Release for 10 minutes, then release any remaining pressure. Rinse and drain the beans, then return them to the pot and cook them per soaked beans directions above.
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Exercise Caution When Doubling A Pot Of Beans
If you are cooking a large pot of beans in the Instant Pot, you should keep a few things in mind.
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1 pound of beans, once cooked, yields roughly 7 cups of beans. If youre feeding just 1 or 2 people, you might want to start with a smaller quantity.
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If you have a lot of leftover beans, store them in 1 1/2 2 cup increments in the freezer. Thats the amount of beans youll find in a 15-ounce can of bean. That way, you can easily swap in one container of your defrosted beans for canned beans in recipes. Beans will stay good in the freezer for 6-8 months.
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If youre keen on making a large pot of beans, try not to fill the Instant Pot more than halfway. Otherwise, you might end up with a lot of foaming. If you do cross that halfway line mark, never fill your pot up past the Instant Pots maximum capacity line.
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Especially when you are making a large pot of beans, never use the Quick Release Method. This will result in bean foam being sprayed all of your kitchen and face. Instead, allow the Instant Pot to naturally release pressure for at least 10 minutes . Only then switch the valve from Sealing to Venting to release any remaining steam.
I hope you found this guide on How to Cook Beans in the Instant Pot useful! If you did, please leave a comment below or on my Youtube video, and if you found it really useful, then consider ordering my cookbook, The Vegan Instant Pot Cookbook 🙂
A Baking Sheet Is Your Freezer’s Friend
This is just a precaution in case any bags do end up popping or leaking. The baking sheet will keep the mess contained and is much easier to clean up than the floor of a freezer. I usually use a jelly roll pan, which is smaller than a full baking sheet and easier to fit in the freezer.
Additionally, a baking sheet makes it easy to freeze foods flat anywhere in the freezer, not just the floor. I often rest the baking sheet on top of other foods, close to the top of the freezer.
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Do I Need To Soak My Beans When Cooking Them In The Instant Pot
Unlike cooking beans on the stove, cooking beans in the Instant Pot does not require soaking. Simply rinse your beans and then add them to the Instant Pot with your cooking liquid and start pressure cooking.
However, I want to mention a few caveats that might make you want to soak your beans even though its not necessary.
Easy Instant Pot Refried Beans
These are a Taco Tuesday essential!
A staple in Mexican and Tex-Mex cooking and popular throughout many Latin American cuisines, refried beans are infinitely versatile. They make the perfect side dish, dip, or base for burritos, chimichangas, and more. There’s nothing wrong with the canned variety, but if you really want to level up, it’s 100% worth it to make your own.
Many recipes call for soaking and cooking pinto beans before mashing and frying them. This recipe streamlines and simplifies the process. Thanks to the magic of your Instant Pot, you can skip the soaking step all together and just pressure cook the beans, with all the aromatics, for about an hour. Drain them, mash them, adjust the seasoning and consistency as desired, and you’re done! While not traditional , you’ll get the creamy, hearty results you’re craving.
How long does it take to cook dried beans in the Instant Pot?
Cook and pressure release time can vary from recipe to recipe. Here, we set the timer for 1 pound of dried pinto beans on HIGH pressure for 55 minutes. Let them rest for 15 minutes, then, very carefully, manually release the pressure.
What is the bean-to-water ratio in an Instant Pot?
For these refried beans, the magic bean-to-liquid ratio is 1 pound to 6 cups. We call for a quart of chicken stock plus 2 cups water, though you can use all water or all chicken stock if you like.
How should I store Instant Pot refried beans?
fresh lime juice
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