Dairy Free Recipes | Gluten Free Recipes | Instant Pot | Recipes by Method | Side Dish Recipes | Vegetarian Recipes
Instant Pot Pinto Beans (No Soaking Needed!)
Recipe Snapshot
PREP + COOK TIME: 1 hour + 15 minutes (including time to pressurize)
METHOD: Instant Pot
TOTAL INGREDIENTS: 6
Pinto beans are a great source of nutrition and work with many different types of meals. Don’t let the soak time hinder your meal plan. Cook a batch of pinto beans in the Instant Pot and find out how easy it is!
What’s To Love About This Recipe
- I’ll go on the record here and claim that using the Instant Pot is the easiest way to cook homemade beans. You don’t need to plan ahead for soaking, and the pressure cooking will produce a large batch of cooked pinto beans in under an hour!
- This recipe is fantastic for meal prep because it’s so easy to cook the beans and then portion them into baggies to freeze for later.
- Add extra pinto beans to rice bowls, tacos, burritos, soups, and more! With this lightly-flavored recipe, you will have a staple ingredient to bulk up your meals.
- Not only are beans high in fiber and antioxidants, but they are also a super inexpensive ingredient. Making dried pinto beans in the Instant Pot saves you time and money.
- No more worries about high levels of sodium or other preservatives from canned beans. This ingredient list is clean and simple.
- Another benefit of using the Instant Pot is that the pressure cooking will reduce the amount of two compounds – phytic acid and lectins – in the cooked beans. This helps to reduce digestion issues that might otherwise occur.
Ingredients Needed
- Dried pinto beans – Use a pound of dried pinto beans (which usually costs less than a couple of dollars!) and rinse them thoroughly before cooking. Pinto beans are a great source of fiber and protein, plus many other vitamins and minerals.
- Seasonings – I like to use a simple combination of seasonings to give the beans some flavor but also keep them neutral so the beans can be added to other recipes. Combine some cumin, garlic powder, onion powder, and salt and adjust to your liking.
- Water – Add 6 cups of water for 16 ounces of dried beans. This should be enough to cover the beans with about 1 inch of water.
How To Make Pinto Beans In The Instant Pot
- Pick over the beans to remove any debris if necessary, and give them a rinse.
- Add the beans to the Instant Pot along with the remaining ingredients.
- Cover completely with water to about 1 inch over the top of the beans.
- Set the Instant Pot to high pressure for 45 minutes.
- Allow a natural pressure release.
- Drain the beans and serve, or let them cool and place in baggies for freezing.
Pro Tips
- If you use a 6-quart or larger Instant Pot, it’s easy to double a batch for meal prep.
- You can reduce the cooking time to just 15 minutes if you prefer to soak your beans overnight.
- Be sure to use a natural release to allow the beans to soften completely.
- When you are ready to freeze the beans, drain the excess liquid and portion into individual freezer bags.
- One 15-ounce can of beans is about 1 3/4 cups of cooked beans.
Recipe Substitutions and Variations
- To add extra flavor to the pinto beans, add full garlic cloves right into the Instant Pot or even some finely chopped onion or dried onion flakes.
- I like to keep the beans somewhat plain with this recipe so that I can use them for anything, but you can always add additional seasonings as well. Try some chili powder, cumin, smoked paprika, or even a seasoning blend like taco seasoning or a garlic and herb mix.
- You don’t need to pre-soak the beans before cooking them in the Instant Pot, but if you have extra stomach sensitivities, you can soak them for a while before cooking. This can help remove complex sugars that can cause digestive issues.
How To Serve Pinto Beans
Sometimes simple meals are best! Make an easy weeknight meal with a pot of pinto beans and a bowl of Instant Pot Brown Rice or Instant Pot Spanish Rice. Top with your favorite salsa, hot sauce, or a blend of fresh veggies in Easy Corn Salsa.
Try out some tasty toppings with a bowl of pinto beans, such as freshly chopped cilantro, shredded cheese, or a scoop of sour cream.
Utilize your freezer stash for when you need to add some protein to a quick meal. Add pinto beans to Meal Prep Burrito Bowls, soups, chili, quesadillas, tacos, and more!
Storing and Reheating
Store leftover pinto beans in the fridge for up to 3 days or freeze in individual portions for up to 2 months. (Be sure to remove the liquid before freezing.)
Defrost and reheat on the stove or in the microwave.
Instant Pot Pinto Beans (No Soaking Needed!)
Pinto beans are a great source of nutrition and work with many different types of meals. Don’t let the soak time hinder your meal plan. Cook a batch of pinto beans in the Instant Pot and find out how easy it is!
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 pound dried pinto beans
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 6 cups water
Instructions
- Pick over beans to remove any debris, if necessary, and give them a rinse
- Add beans to Instant Pot along with remaining ingredients
- Cover completely with water to about 1 inch over top of beans
- Set Instant Pot to high pressure for 45 minutes
- Allow a natural pressure release
- Drain beans and serve, or let them cool and place in baggies for freezing
Notes
- Store leftovers in the fridge for up to 3 days or freeze for up to 2 months.
- Defrost and reheat on the stove or in the microwave.
- If you pre-soak the beans overnight, reduce the cooking time to 15 minutes.
Instant Pot Pinto Beans FAQs
- What is the ratio of beans to water in Instant Pot? Cook 1 pound (16 ounces) of dried beans with 6 cups of water.
- Can you overcook pinto beans in the Instant Pot? It is possible to overcook the pinto beans if you leave them sealed in the pot for an extended amount of time. In this case, they would just become overly soft. You could still mash them for refried beans or use them in various recipes.
- What can you do if your pinto beans are still hard? If the pinto beans are still hard, they just need to cook a little longer. You may need to add some more water to ensure the beans are still covered in liquid. Simply set the Instant Pot to 5-10 more minutes of high pressure and allow a natural release.
- What size Instant Pot works with this recipe? It is best to use a 6-quart Instant Pot.
I had to adjust this recipe a bit. For me 45 mins was not long enough. The beans came out more firm than I was wanting. I ended up putting them back in for another 5-10 mins or so. I also added more salt, because there just wasn’t enough flavor. (I use Redmond Real salt, which to me is less salty than regular table salt, so that could be why I needed more salt.) With these changes, the texture and flavor were much more to my liking. So next time I plan to try 55 mins at high pressure, plus the natural release. I’m also going to double the salt and do a third less water than listed in the recipe. That will hopefully get me to what I ended up with.
This is our go-to pinto bean recipe! We have occasionally had it come out a firm, but added more time. It usually has to do with our impatience on “natural release.” Lol! They freeze well so we usually double the recipe.
As someone that has for many years, made pinto beans on the stove, this was perfect! I set it for 45 min and left it to naturally release and warm..it turned out soft, favorable, and simply delicious! This method of making beans in my option supersedes the, “watch the beans” so the water does evaporate. I do use fresh onions and pierce a large jalapeño when I make mine, but aside from that, I would change nothing. The only question I have, when cooked, what is the serving size?
Could you recommend what adjustments I need to make for 2 lbs? Do I just double?