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.
Can I Freeze Cooked Beans
Sure! Go ahead and make a big batch of beans and freeze some for later. Freeze the beans in a Ziploc bag, removing as much air as possible. You can drain the beans or freeze them in the bean broth they cooked in. Freeze smaller portions to replace the use of canned beans. About 1 ½ cups cooked beans equals a 15-oz can of beans
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How Can I Add More Flavor To My Beans
You can easily add more flavor to your beans! Both before and after cooking. Here are a few of our favorite flavor enhancing suggestions:
- Many people swear by the addition of kombu, a dried seaweed. The amino acids in a 4 inch strip is supposed to help soften the beans, make them more digestible, and also give a tasty quality to the cooked beans.
- Cayenne for an Extra Kick To spice things up, add ½ teaspoon of cayenne pepper to the mix or chop up some fresh hot peppers and throw them in with the beans before cooking. Thatll take it up a notch!
- Sprinkle in Some Salt Again, less is more when it comes to salt. A little salt will give just enough seasoning. You can always add more to the amount on your plate.
- Vegetable Broth Boost Feel free to use vegetable broth instead of water to cook your beans. Its a quick way to add flavor without having to think too much about it. Use the low sodium version so that, when the beans reduce, they arent too salty.
- Honor Those Herbs If youve got a garden with fresh herbs, now is the time to use them! Chop up your favorites and add them to the pressure cooker. If using dried herbs, use a lot less. Using ½ 1 tablespoon would work well.
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Instant Pot Black Beans
We debuted our Instant Pot by making brown rice, so it was only natural that we try its perfect match: black beans!
Making homemade black beans is cost-effective and delicious, but it can be a little time consuming on the stovetop.
But with a little help from the Instant Pot, perfectly tender black beans are ready in under 1 hour with just 1 pot and 3 ingredients !
More Ways To Use Instant Pot Black Beans
- Instant Pot Black Beans and Rice: CLASSIC! Mix with brown rice for a simple meal. You can also top with chicken, a fried or poached egg, and avocado or salsa.
- Add to a tofu or egg scramble.
- Mash with avocado and spread on toasted bread for next-level avocado toast .
- Fill burritos, quesadillas, enchiladas, tacosand all other good things involving tortillas and cheese.
- Make the Cuban Beans and Rice that Im sharing later this week!
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Want To Take Your Beans To The Next Level Try This:
- Sauté your favorite aromatics before adding the water and beans. Heres an easy but tasty option for 1 pound of beans:
- Heat some olive oil on the Sauté setting. Once hot, add 1 diced yellow onion with a pinch of salt. Cook until golden and softened, but not browned. Add 3-4 finely chopped garlic cloves and cook another 1-2 minutes. Deglaze with the water or broth, scrape up any browned bits, then add the beans and pressure cook as normal.
Instant Pot Pinto Beans Recipe
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A no-soak Instant Pot Pinto Beans Recipe that is an incredible side dish to all your Tex-Mex inspired recipes. This is the best pinto beans recipe I have ever made. Learn how to cook pinto beans.
If you have an Instant Pot, you have to cut out a lot of prep and time, and try my Southern Pinto Beans Recipe! It is a game-changer and the only way to cook with dry beans.
We love making Instant Pot rice and beans, so cooking dry pinto beans in Instant Pot was on my list to do. Speed up the crock pot pinto bean recipe and make it in your pressure cooker.
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In addition to the beans, youll also need a good quality oil and salt as well. I prefer to cook with unrefined salt as regular ole table salt has been bleached and has a lot of additives that Id rather avoid. My favorite type of salt is REAL Salt from the Great Salt Lake in Utah. I love its pretty colors and it has a nice taste and lots of healthy qualities too. There are so many different types of salt. We only use table salt for crafts.
What Can I Substitute For Ham Hocks
If you dont have or want to use ham hocks in this pressure cooker pinto bean recipe, that is okay. You can opt to add in some ham or even slices of cut up bacon.
The meat will add a nice depth of flavor that I think you will enjoy. If you prefer to not use meat, go ahead and skip. You will find not using meat will affect the overall flavor a bit.
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Do You Need To Soak The Beans Before They Are Cooked In A Pressure Cooker
As I mention above, you dont need to presoak the beans. However, according to the recipe booklet that comes with your Instant Pot, if you pre-soak the beans for 4-6 hours in water , the cooking time will be reduced to 7-9 minutes.
If you have time to presoak the beans, as you can see, the cooking time is cut drastically. Soak or no soak? Decide which way works best in your schedule.
Or maybe slow cooking works best for you, I get that! Check out how to make slow cooker pinto beans.
Pressure Cook Pinto Beans In Instant Pot
Add 2 tbsp regular soy sauce, half of the bacon bits, well-drained pinto beans in Instant Pot, then pour in the remaining 3 ½ cups unsalted chicken stock. Mix well and make sure all the beans in Instant Pot are submerged in the liquid.
Now carefully layer the crushed fire-roasted tomatoes on the very top. Do not mix after this.
Close the lid and turn the Venting Knob to Sealing Position.
- Pressure Cooking Method: Pressure Cook at High Pressure 45 mins + 20 mins Natural Release
After 20 minutes of Natural Releasing, carefully turn the Venting Knob to Venting Position to release the remaining pressure.
Once the Floating Valve drops, open the lid carefully.
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Natural Pressure Release Or Quick Release
One last point to discuss: the pressure release. I think it’s worth it to let your pressure cooker release naturally, or at least for as long as possible before you open the pot. This helps offset some of the appearance problems, resulting in fewer blow-out beans — though you’ll still get some. The bean cooking liquid also tends to foam up into the steam valve when you if you do a quick release letting the pot depressurize as long as possible helps avoid this.
I usually let the pot release pressure naturally until the point when I need the beans, then I hit the pressure valve to release it the rest of the way.
How To Flavor Dried Beans
Ham is one of the best flavorings to add to dried beans. I usually use a ham bone, a chunk of ham, bacon or even a ham hock to season a pot of dried beans.
But what if you don’t have some type of ham on hand? If you don’t have a piece of ham to season a pot of dried beans Hurst’s dried great northern beans come with a ham seasoning packet.
What options do you have? If your planning on using the beans for other recipes like soup or stews you don’t need to worry about seasoning the beans with ham.
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If you plan on eating great northern beans as a meal you can add other dried herbs and fresh vegetables to the beans. I like to add onion and garlic. You can add sliced or diced carrots or celery.
I always add salt, pepper and bay leaf to my beans. You can also use thyme to add more flavor.
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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
How Do You Cook Dried Beans In An Instant Pot
You can cook any type of dried beans in your Instant Pot pressure cooker. Water and beans are all you need, seasoning is optional. Check the cookbook that comes with your Instant Pot for guidelines on how long to cook each type of bean. Easy, easy, easy! I love to make Black Bean Soup in my Instant Pot.
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More Instant Pot Recipes
Learning to cook with the Instant Pot has been so fun. I know youll enjoy learning too. It makes things so easy when you dont have to babysit the stove.
Browse all our Instant Pot Recipes or choose one of these.
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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.
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What Is The Dried Bean Equivalent Of A 15 Oz Can
Great question! This seems to be a stumbling block when it comes to making recipes when you only have homemade beans on hand. But, not to worry!
Most cans of beans include 1¾ cups of beans and ¼ cup of aquafaba or bean liquid. If a recipe calls for a 15 ounce can of beans, youll need a little less than 2 cups cooked beans or, if you havent made any beans yet, ½ cup dried.
An approximate ratio is: 2 cups dry = 6 cups cooked
Cups Dry Beans Of Choice Like Great Northern Navy Cannelini Pinto Black And Red Beans 6 Cups Water
How long to cook great northern beans in instant pot. Cranberry Bean Borlotti Beans Shell Bean Christmas Bean. Thanks to the Instant Pot. You can make dried beans WITHOUT soaking.
21 rows When cooking dried beans use sufficient liquid to cover the beans. Allow the beans to pressurize and cook. Most beans can be found in four different ways which include the following whole split with skin split without skin and ground.
Cook on high pressure for the directed time. When it comes to actually cooking your beans in the instant pot the time varies by bean type. Add beans and water.
Cook them on low for 7 10 hours until the beans are tender. Whole beans in an Instant Pot will need to cook for around 20 to 40 minutes. Choose the high-pressure cook option and set the timer for 20-25 minutes.
It will save you so much time money and is an essential in an whole foods kitch. Set pressure cooker on or for 30 minutes485 4Total Time. If youve soaked your chickpeas they only take about 10 whereas soaked black beans take about 5.
Seal the lid and close the valve. Chickpeas for example can take upwards of 40 minutes to cook whereas lentils take less than 10. When the Instant Pot is done let it naturally release for at least 30 minutes.
You can release the pressure manually be careful of the steam but we recommend letting the beans rest until the pressure is completely gone. Select the beanschili button or 30-40 minutes. And then theres the soak factor.
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Health Benefits Of Beans
Beans have a variety of health benefits, including:
- Excellent source of plant-based protein: Beans are a great way to get protein, especially for vegans, vegetarians, and people looking for protein sources not from animals.
- Full of antioxidants: Antioxidants fight free radicals, which are chemicals that can cause various diseases.
- Good for heart health: Beans lower cholesterol, which can be a cause of heart disease.
- High in fiber: High fiber diets may help lower glucose levels in people with diabetes, as well creating a feeling of fullness and aiding in weight loss.
As always, if you’re following any diet for medical reasons, do check with your physician first.
Why Use The Instant Pot To Cook Navy Beans
With the Instant Pot, you can go from dried beans to tender cooked beans in around an hour. No soaking required!
Just like my Instant Pot chickpea recipe, I dont soak my beans beforehand. While some people like to soak their beans overnight because they find it easier to digest, I personally do not feel a difference.
However, I will preface this with a disclaimer that not soaking the beans beforehand will cause more beans to have their skin split. It doesnt affect the flavour of the navy beans but its just not the prettiest. If having the beans look whole and pretty is a main concern , you can soak the beans overnight and and pressure cook it for half the time.
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How Is A Multi
Multi-cookers also have several other functions , including a slow cooker function. However, as I discuss in my book, Fresh Flavors for the Slow Cooker, the slow cooking function on the multi-cooker is designed differently than a traditional slow cooker and can be a bit trickier to manage . I use my multi-cooker almost exclusively for pressure cooking, although you can absolutely use the slow cooker function for many of the slow cooker recipes in my book .
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Do You Need To Soak Black Beans For The Instant Pot
Good news! You dont have to soak beans before cooking them. They cook faster in the pressure cooker, so you dont have to worry about a slow cooking process, and most people have reported little to no improvement when it comes to digesting beans after theyve been soaked. Plus, beans taste better when you skip the soaking process.
In the printable recipe below, Ill show you how to make super-flavorful black beans that you can serve a side dish, or in a burrito bowl.
When the beans are done cooking, youll simply use the Sauté function on the Instant pot to simmer away the excess liquid and concentrate the flavoring at the same time. The sauce will thicken up in about 10 to 15 minutes, leaving you with restaurant-quality beans!
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