4.6 from 15 votes
Pressure Cooker Pinto Beans
FAST, Creamy, thick, hearty, smoky and delicious! These pressure cooker pinto beans hit the all the right notes for a fast filling dinner that's ready in minutes instead of hours!
Prep Time
5 mins
Cook Time
5 mins
precook plus natural release
30 mins
Total Time
1 hr
Servings: 4 servings
Calories: 433 kcal
Course:
Main Course
Cuisine:
American
Ingredients
For PreCook
- 16 oz dried pinto beans
- fresh water
For Pressure Cook
- 1 Tbs bacon grease or alternative fat like cooking oil/butter/etc.
- 1 teaspoon broth concentrate or substitute broth for water
- water to cover beans
- ham bone or substitute a few slices of bacon
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder or substitute 3 cloves minced garlic
- 1 teaspoon onion powder or substitute 1 chopped onion
- 2 bay leaves
- ½ tsp cayenne pepper optional
After Pressure Cook
- 1 tsp salt add more to taste
- 1 tsp black ground pepper add more to taste
- 1 tsp cider vinegar more to taste (some people like the vinegar with hot pepper in it).
Instructions
For Pre Cook
- Rinse the beans in a colander and remove any broken beans or beans that appear to have a bad spot.
- Place rinsed beans into a stock pot or into the bowl of a stove top pressure cooker and cover with cool water.
- Cook over medium heat and bring to a simmer. Simmer for 10 minutes.
- Remove from the stove top, pour back into the colander and rinse with cool water.
Cup of Yum
For the Pressure Cook
- Place the rinsed and precooked beans into the pressure cooker.
- Add the bacon grease, broth concentrate, water, ham bone, garlic powder, onion powder, bay leaves and cayenne.
- Secure the pressure cooker lid onto the base and set for high pressure. Bring to temp and cook at high pressure for 25 minutes. Allow to release naturally.
After Pressure Cooking
- Add salt, pepper and cayenne (the cayenne is optional, leave it off if you don't like any spiciness to your beans). Stir well and taste. Add more salt and pepper as needed. If the beans don't taste like they have enough flavor, add more salt.
Notes
- There are a number of substitutions you can make in this recipe as it is very flexible. The recipe outlines these.
- If you are making these beans vegetarian, then use a vegetable based oil and leave off the bacon grease/meat options. Use 1 teaspoon liquid smoke to get the smoky flavor.
- When I make pressure cooker beans, I cover the beans with water to allow for plenty of "pot liquor", however, if you prefer less, you can use less. That said, use at least 1 ½ cups of liquid in your beans so that they cook completely.
- If using a bouillon cube instead of broth concentrate, you'll notice that you will not have to use much salt, if any.
- This recipe produces a mid range soft bean much like the texture of pinto beans from a can. If you prefer a softer bean, cook for an additional 5 minutes in the pressure cooker.
- This recipe will work for either a stove top pressure cooker, electric pressure cooker or Instant Pot.
Nutrition Information
Calories
433kcal
(22%)
Carbohydrates
72g
(24%)
Protein
25g
(50%)
Fat
5g
(8%)
Saturated Fat
2g
(10%)
Polyunsaturated Fat
1g
Monounsaturated Fat
2g
Cholesterol
3mg
(1%)
Sodium
731mg
(30%)
Potassium
1609mg
(46%)
Fiber
18g
(72%)
Sugar
3g
(6%)
Vitamin A
110IU
(2%)
Vitamin C
7mg
(8%)
Calcium
134mg
(13%)
Iron
6mg
(33%)
Nutrition Facts
Serving: 4servings
Amount Per Serving
Calories 433
% Daily Value*
| Calories | 433kcal | 22% |
| Carbohydrates | 72g | 24% |
| Protein | 25g | 50% |
| Fat | 5g | 8% |
| Saturated Fat | 2g | 10% |
| Polyunsaturated Fat | 1g | 6% |
| Monounsaturated Fat | 2g | 10% |
| Cholesterol | 3mg | 1% |
| Sodium | 731mg | 30% |
| Potassium | 1609mg | 34% |
| Fiber | 18g | 72% |
| Sugar | 3g | 6% |
| Vitamin A | 110IU | 2% |
| Vitamin C | 7mg | 8% |
| Calcium | 134mg | 13% |
| Iron | 6mg | 33% |
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet.