How To Cook Beans in The Instant Pot?(Instant Pot Beans)

Love instant pot beans and don't know how to cook beans the right way? Then, here I have a complete guide to cooking beans on the stovetop and in the instant pot. It's not complicated and easier than you have ever imagined. Once you start making your own beans in the instant pot, you are never going to eat the canned stuff.

Cooking beans is a lot more than just filling a pot of water and letting it simmer. But it's easy. What matters the most is the amount of water you use, the type of beans you choose and the method of cooking you follow. With pressure cooking and instant pot methods, cooking beans is super easier than before. But, I know that many people still don't use an instant pot or a pressure cooker and want to learn how to cook beans in stovetop easily. That’s why I have included both ways here.

Tips for Making the Best Instant Pot Beans:

Here are some tried and tested tips to make the best instant pot beans.

Soak the beans:

Okay, I hate to say this that soaked beans give a better result than unsoaked beans. If you have time, then soak the beans for at least 30-minutes or overnight before throwing them in the pot to cook. Here is why you should pre-soak beans.

Why should you soak beans?

• Soaking can drastically affect the cooking time and beans will cook faster.
• Pre-soaking helps the beans to cook more evenly and become super tender all-the-way through.
• Soaked beans are easy on the stomach. That means no indigestion {or no flatulence}.

How long Should You Soak Beans?

Among all my experiments, while considering only the successful ones, soaking overnight is the best option.

Kidney beans, garbanzo beans, pinto beans - 12-hours or overnight. For Black beans, white beans, black-eyed peas, and smaller beans - 1-2 hour soak, and Split peas, and lentils - 30-minutes or no soak

Over-night Soak:1 cup beans with 3-5 cups of water. Wash and rinse the beans and soak them in a bowl for 12-hours or overnight. (Water quantity may change depending on the type and variety of the beans)

Hot Soak: Hot soaking is also known as quick soaking as it helps to swell the beans real quick. Add boiling, hot water to a cup of washed and rinsed beans and allow it to stand for at least 1-hour or up to 4-hours. Hot soaking also helps in dissolving some gas-causing substances in the beans.

Quick Soak/Cook Instant Pot: While this is not a soak method, essentially, you need to do it before cooking dry beans if not pre-soaked. As per the Instant Pot® website, cook the beans in the instant pot in high pressure for about 2-8 minutes and allow the NPR. After the natural pressure release, use the beans for any recipe you want and use the pressure cooking time that you would use for the soaked beans.

Simmer or Pressure Cook:

Whether you are using your stockpot, dutch oven or instant pot, keeping beans at a constant temperature ensures even cooking. If using the stovetop method, keep the beans at a simmering temperature. Similarly, cook the beans in the pressure cook mode to ensure even temperature is maintained while cooking beans.

In both of these methods, bring the beans to a boil in the beginning (happens naturally in pressure cooking) and then let it simmer or pressure cook until tender, still retain their shape, and have their skins intact.

Add salt later:

Unless you are using soaked beans and cooking in an instant pot, add salt when beans are barely tender. Adding the salt at the beginning of cooking may make the beans firm and chewy as it prevents the bean starches to break down. If cooking in the stovetop, wait till the beans are tender enough or al dente, and add the salt.

Understanding The Beans and Their Cooking Time:

If you want super-soft and tender beans, then make sure to give enough time to these legumes to cook thoroughly. The biggest and hardest truth about beans is that they take time unless you use a pressure cooker to cook them. But, even with a pressure cooker, it does take 5-30 minutes for your beans to become super-tender and creamy.

Here is a chart with cooking time for all beans. Feel free to Pinit and print it for your everyday usage.

Again, the time can vary depending on the type of beans you use and whether they are soaked or unsoaked. Also, the age, size and the variety of beans always affect the cooking time. Once they’re on the stove or inside the instant pot and simmering or in the pressure-cooking mode, it can take anywhere from a few minutes to even three hours (unsoaked garbanzo beans) for the beans to become tender.

How to cook beans in the Instant Pot?

• My favorite method to cook beans is by cooking them in an IP. Before you start making your beans, rinse and wash your dried beans or use soaked beans. Depending on the type of beans, use enough water per a cup of beans while cooking in your Instant Pot.
• Cook on high pressure for the directed time(as mentioned in the recipe card). Once the cooking time is over, always allow the pot to release pressure naturally with a valve coming back to its natural position normally. After 20-minutes, you can move the valve to a venting position and do a quick release of pressure.
• If making curry or Mexican style, add the seasoning now. Bring the pot into the saute mode and allow the mixture to boil. If you want, add ½ to 1 cup of water now to bring the beans to the right consistency. Adding tomato-based sauce/curry sauce or vinegar help the beans to become super yummy and easily digestible.
• If not cooking the entire batch, store the cooked beans in its cooking liquid. It helps to keep them moist and tender. Refrigerate cooked beans up to 2-3 days in the refrigerator.

Instant Pot Beans Cook Time:

1. Black Beans – Beans mode or High Pressure - 30 Minutes(unsoaked) - 5-8 minute (soaked)
2. Chickpeas (small variety) – Beans Mode or High Pressure - 18-30 Minutes
3. Kidney Beans – Beans Mode or High Pressure - 30-35 Minutes
4. Pinto Beans – Beans Mode or High Pressure - 25 Minutes -
5. Navy Beans – Beans Mode or High Pressure - 30 Minutes (unsoaked) - 5-8 minutes (soaked)
6. Great Northern Beans – Beans Mode or High Pressure - 35 Minutes - 5-8 minutes (soaked)
7. Mayakoba Beans - Beans Mode or High Pressure - 15 minutes
8. Black Eyed Peas - Beans Mode or High Pressure - 10-11 minutes
9. Adzuki Beans - Beans Mode or High Pressure - 8-10 minutes
10. Split Peas Green - Beans Mode or High Pressure - 5 - 8 minutes (unsoaked)
11. Soy Beans - Beans Mode or High Pressure - 15- 25 minutes
12. Lima Beans - Beans Mode or High Pressure - 18-25 minutes
13. Garbanzo beans (large variety) - Beans Mode or High Pressure - 20-40 minutes

How to Cook Beans on the Stovetop:

• Soak the beans overnight: As instructed before, try to soak the beans a night before. Use either the hot soak or the traditional one for the best results. Before soaking, make sure to wash and rinse the beans thoroughly. Use filtered water to soak the beans and you can use the same water to cook the beans as well.
• If using the stovetop method, transfer the beans to a Dutch oven or large, heavy-bottom saucepan. Add the herbs and spices, if using and add enough water so that water is about an inch above the beans. Bring the mixture to a boil over medium-high heat.

• Add water and bring the beans to a boil. Add enough water to cover the beans by about an inch. Bring them to a boil over medium-high heat.
• Once it starts boiling, reduce to a low simmer and cook. Let the beans simmer in the liquid for about an hour or more depending on the type of beans you are using. Add salt, when the beans are barely tender and cook for some more time till the beans are tender yet have their shapes intact.
• Cool and store the beans: Beans stay good even for a week when kept in air-tight containers inside the refrigerator. However, I prefer to keep the cooked beans frozen for up to 3-months. Remember that beans need to be cooled down completely before storage.

Need help with cup to ounce calculation? Click here to know more about how many ounces in a cup and a free chart! And How many ounces in gallon with free chart.

📖 Recipe

Here is How to cook lentils in Instant Pot.

How many cups in 1 lb of beans?

Approximately two cups of dried beans make a pound or. 1 lb of beans, which yield 2-6 cups of cooked beans.

What is the ratio of beans to water?

The basic rule of thumb to soak beans is 1 cup dried beans in 3 cups of water.

How much dry beans equals to a can of beans?

1 lb of dry beans roughly yield 6-7 cups of cooked beans. Therefore, a 15 oz can is equivalent to ⅓ cup of dry beans.

Are beans healthy?

Beans are rich in good plant based protein, fibers and phyto compounds. Learn more about health benefits of beans here.