Cooking black beans in an Instant Pot is faster than you can even imagine. It really is a remarkable appliance, and since it’s been gaining popularity recently, there are many recipes popping up online that are specifically for the Instant Pot. By the way, this is the same process I use to cook Pinto beans in the Instant Pot.
Instant Pot Black Beans
Some of you have asked me how I use my Instant Pot, and what dishes I cook with it. The main thing that I use my Instant Pot for is to cook black beans and pinto beans—and they’re done in a flash!
I grew up with a mother that used a regular stove-top pressure cooker in her daily cooking, so it was normal for me to buy a pressure cooker as soon as I got married.
For those that do not know what an Instant Pot is, let me tell you, is an electric pressure cooker that works quicker than a regular stove top pressure cooker allowing you to cook the food in a shorter period of time, it is also multifunctional since it also can cook like a regular electric skillet or a slow cooker.
How to cook black beans using the Instant Pot.
How to cook black beans using the Instant Pot.We mostly used the pressure cooker for cooking dried beans and tough cuts of meat that would otherwise take hours to cook in a regular pot, but with an electric pressure cooker like the Instant Pot (and other brands now on the market), the cooking time is much shorter. For example, the cooking time in a regular pot for dried beans is about 2 hours, in a regular stove-top pressure cooker it’s 50-60 minutes, and using the Instant Pot it’s only 30 minutes.
Besides the shorter cooking time, another good part about using the Instant Pot for beans is that you don’t need to soak them prior to cooking. Yes, no pre-soak needed! Just make sure to buy good quality beans, since older beans take longer to cook.
Recipes using black beans: Creamy Black Beans, Chorizo Black Beans Soup, Scrambled Eggs with Beans.
The number of beans that I always cook is 1 pound, which renders 6 cups of cooked beans. This works for all kinds of beans, like black beans, pinto beans, navy beans, etc.
Today’s recipe is for black beans since these are the most popular in my family. We do like pinto beans as well, but black beans are the number one favorite with us.
INSTANT POT BLACK BEANS - BLACK BEANS INSTANT POT
NOTES:
- If using a regular pressure cooker the cooking time is about 50 minutes.
- A pound of dried beans renders 6 cups of cooked beans.
- You don't need to pre-soak the beans for this recipe.
- Do not add salt until the beans are cooked. If you add salt at the beginning of the process the skins of the beans are going to be hard.
INSTRUCTIONS TO COOK INSTANT POT BLACK BEANS:
- Clean the beans by removing any old or broken beans. (Please check the ingredients list below)
- Rinse the beans under running water using a strainer.
- Place the beans, water, garlic cloves, ¼ onion, and epazote leaves in the Instant Pot. You can also add the Epazote leaves in Step 5.
INSTANT POT BLACK BEANS COOKING TIME
- Put the lid on and set the release valve to Sealing. Cook for 30 minutes using the Beans Setting. After this time, wait for the steam to be completely released.
- Take the lid off, then add the oil and season with salt. Stir and cook for 5 more minutes in the manual setting. Adding the oil will create a slightly thicker broth.
Instant Pot Black Beans
After this time, your beans are ready to serve. Enjoy a warm bowl of beans cooked in your Instant Pot! If the beans still look a little too firm for your taste, cook them for five more minutes in the pressure-cooking setting.
You can use a regular pressure cooker or the electric one like the Instant Pot
INSTANT POT BLACK BEANS
Ingredients
- 1 lb. black beans
- 7 cups of water
- 2 garlic cloves
- 2 epazote leaves
- ¼ white onion
- 2 teaspoons of salt
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil or lard
Instructions
- Clean the beans by removing any old or broken beans.
- Rinse the beans under running water using a strainer.
- Place the beans, water, garlic cloves, ¼ onion, and epazote leaves in the Instant Pot. You can also add the Epazote leaves in Step 5.
- Put the lid on and set the release valve to Sealing. Cook for 30 minutes using the Beans Setting. After this time, wait for the steam to be completely released.
- Take the lid off, then add the oil and season with salt. Stir and cook for 5 more minutes in the manual setting. Adding the oil will create a slightly thicker broth.
- After this time, your beans are ready to serve. Enjoy a warm bowl of beans cooked in your Instant Pot! If the beans still look a little too firm for your taste, cook them for five more minutes in the pressure-cooking setting.
Notes
- If using a regular pressure cooker the cooking time is about 50 minutes.
- A pound of dried beans renders 6 cups of cooked beans.
- You don't need to pre-soak the beans for this recipe.
- Do not add salt until the beans are cooked. If you add salt at the beginning of the process the skins of the beans are going to be hard.
- Some of you asked if this instant pot black beans recipe also works for Pinto beans, the answer is yes. It is the same process.
Nutrition
I hope you enjoy cooking your black beans with a Mexican flavor using your electric pressure cooker!
Now, if you try this recipe for Instant Pot Black beans and come back to leave us a comment about it.
Stacy
I just stumbled upon your beautiful blog today while reading Rick Bayless's Instagram posts. We love Mexican food in our lil' Missouri town, but cannot find authentic sources unless we drive 90+ miles to Kansas City area. So I cook at home to enjoy the wonderful dishes of Mexico and other cultures. This recipe looks delicious! Can I use dried epazote leaves and if so, would it still be the same amount and added at the same stage of the recipe? Thank you for your blog and I look forward to making many of your dishes. Myhusband looks forward to eating them too!
mmartinez
Hello Stacy,
Thank you for visiting the blog. You can use just one dried epazote leave for this recipe. Happy cooking!
Yolanda Breidenbaugh
I am so glad you have an Instant Pot too! I really enjoy mine, and like you, started pressure cooking early on in my marriage as my mom had a pressure cooker.
mmartinez
Hello Yolanda,
So glad to hear from you and that you are also an Instant pot user. Enjoy!
Kristy
This is a great recipe, I now make a batch every week. Thank you,
mmartinez
Hello Kristy!
Thank you for trusting the recipe using the Instant Pot to make Balck beans. So glad to know you like it.
Alice
I just got an Instant Pot as a gift after 20 years of cooking and this recipe was my first venture into pressure cooking. I couldn't be happier with the results! I did use veggie broth as the liquid and a bay leaf since I'm not familiar with the type you suggested, but the beans were perfect, delicious and very easy! I'm so excited to try more recipes on your site since I just stumbled on it looking for pressure cooker recipes. Thank you for sharing!
mmartinez
Hello Alice,
Enjoy your new Instant Pot. It is a great help in the kitchen. 😉
Jack
How about pinto beans?
mmartinez
Hello Jack,
yes, you can also make pinto beans using the same recipe. That is the way I cook them too. 😉
Jack
How about pinto beans? (BTW I've been posting comments that are not showing up!)
Ari
Hey, this was great. I omitted the olive oil and half of the salt (eating it with salty chips) and found it very delicious. Thanks. 🙂
mmartinez
Hello Ari,
Love the idea of eating them with chips.
Gene
This recipe is perfect! I didn't have any epazote on hand but the taste and texture was all that I expected and better than anything canned I've ever purchased.
Gregory J Warnke
Best black beans ever and so easy in an Instant Pot. The Epazote set the black beans over the top. Delicious side dish with fresh Rockfish tacos. Awsome!
Wendy
Do you chop the onion, epazote, and 1/4 onion or not?
mmartinez
Hello Wendy,
Yo do not need to chop them, and yes, it is 1/4 of a medium size onion. You can discard them after cooking the beans.
Lec
Did you let the pressure release on its own or did you flip the valve and release it when done?
mmartinez
Hello Lec,
I let the pressure release on their own. This way the skins of the beans won't be open.
Teresa C
Thank you for this delicious and easy recipe. My family of 4 devoured these beans. We all had 2nds and 3rds!!
mmartinez
Hello Teresa,
I'm so glad to know your family like them! Provecho!
Hilda
Hi Mely,
Thank you so much for the delicious black bean recipe. I just finished making them in my Instant Pot. Once the black beans were done I quickly made myself a bean and cheese burrito. I usually buy canned black beans but after this recipe I should never buy canned black beans again! You made them just like my mother used to. Thank you!
Carolyn C
I used vaquero beans and used a lot of fresh cilantro and a little Mexican oregano since I didn't have epazote. Also added 2 serrano peppers. I simmered the beans a bit longer at the end to soften them up a little more and added some corn flour in an attempt to thicken everything - and accidentally ended up with little masa dumplings, which was great! Delicious recipe - thank you!
Colleen
Can this recipe be used to prep the beans to be refried.?
Mely Martínez
Hello Collen,
Yes, after you cook them in the instant pot, you can refried them.
Whitney Lawless
This recipe made the most delicious beans!!! I froze half for later and they were even yummier when I reheated them. I’m gonna make a pot of pinto beans now. Thank you for sharing!
Mely Martínez
Hi! Whitney,
Thank you for trying the recipe, great idea of freezing some for later use.
Michelle Shafer
Ty for this recipe my family loved it. I did add more seasoning later. Cumin, chili powder, and dry mustard. The beans are great either way.
Rosie Dwyer
Hi Mely,
I just wanted to say I was blown away by these beans! I've made Mexican style black beans before with basically the same ingredients and I've always been a little disappointed because they never live up to the kind I get at authentic Mexican restaurants. This is the first time making them that they truly went above and beyond and tasted authentic! I just came across this blog today and I look forward to making more of your recipes.
Also - I subbed butter for the lard/shortening. It tastes great in case anyone else was considering using butter!
Mely Martínez
Hello Rosie,
Thank you for trying the recipe, and for the tip of adding butter.
I hope you like our traditional Mexican home cooking! Wishing you a happy time in the kitchen!
Maria Fernandez
Hi, my instant pot doesn’t have a beans setting. Should I just use the pressure cook setting? And if so, for how long? Thank you!!!!
Mely Martínez
Hello Maria,
It is the one that says chilli/Beans
JimontheBeach
I love black beans and Mexican cuisine, but I have never heard of epazote leaves. In what other dishes do you use it and where can I buy it?
Mely Martínez
Hello, Jim
we have an article that talks about everything Epazote. Check it out HERE
Sylvia
I received an instant pot for my birthday and though extremely excited, I had no idea how to use it. I was a bit worried the flavors I had learned to infuse from slow cooking black beans would be lost. After trying a few different methods, I found myself happy with the time but not the flavor. Then by chance I came across this blog and couldn’t be more happy with the recipe I found here!! Yummy, authentic, flavorful beans made in less than half the time! I can’t wait to try more recipes!! Thank you!!
Justin
These look great. Curious, what you mean by 5 minutes in manual setting? After you put oil and salt. Do I pressure cook another 5 minutes?
Mely Martínez
Hello Justin,
It is when you cook without the lid, there is a button that says, Manual.