Instant Pot pinto beans are delicious, simple and easy! I will show you how to cook dry pinto beans in the Instant Pot, and there is no pre-soaking required.
Side note: if you’d rather use a slow cooker, check out my crock pot pinto beans recipe. (You can make that with or without the ham.)
I am happy to introduce to you The Easiest Pinto Beans Recipe Ever. 🤓👍🏻
Often, I will prepare these exactly like my instant pot black-eyed peas. But I wanted to do a vegetarian/ vegan version for y’all because they are just as good y’all. Seriously.
I love that I can make these from dry beans, and they don’t have to soak them or have hours to cook them.
Dry beans are suuuuper cheap, and they are great for stretching a buck. I barely buy canned beans much anymore. I mostly keep canned ones on hand for emergencies.
You can make them ahead, portion them out and freeze them if you wish.
Sometimes I make a batch of these Instant Pot pinto beans at the beginning of the week, along with some rice, and we eat them for lunch all week with various toppings: diced avocado, cilantro, hot sauce, salsa, etc.
Side note: skillet corn bread is excellent with these, as shown in these pictures.
How to make Instant Pot pinto beans
First, gather your ingredients.
Ingredients
- dried pinto beans
- water
- Better than Bullion vegetable base
Prepping and cooking
Rinse off your pinto beans, and drain them using a wire mesh strainer.
Add them to the Instant Pot, along with the water and Better Than Bullion vegetable base.
Cook time for Instant Pot pinto beans
Close and lock the lid, and cook on manual high pressure for 45 minutes. Note: It will take several minutes to come to pressure.
Allow the pressure to naturally release (Do not use the valve, but let it sit until the pressure indicator pin drops on its own. Mine took about 26 minutes, FYI.)
Additional notes and tips
The last thing I will say about my Instant Pot pinto beans is about the cook time. Usually the Instant Pot recommended cook times are pretty close to accurate. For some reason, they seem WAY off to me with their bean recommendations. That, or I like mine well-done! 😆
And yes, I have tried cooking them both salted and unsalted. Some folks say cooked them seasoned/ salted makes them need to cook longer.
After testing it out myself, I get similar results done both ways. So eliminating salt doesn’t seem to make a difference for me. What can I say, I still like them cooked longer. 🤷🏼♀️
Either way, if you have tried with their time recommendations and have been unhappy with the texture of your beans, I say cook those bad boys at least 50% longer than they recommend.
I cooked these for a whopping 45 minutes (with natural release), whereas Instant Pot recommends 25 to 30.
And they turn out perfect every time!
Storage tips
Store Instant pot pinto beans in an airtight container for up to a week in the fridge, and up to three months in the freezer.
Frequently asked questions
I have found that 5 1/2 cups for every pound of beans works perfect. This gives the beans plenty of cooking liquid to get well-cooked.
For super tender pinto beans, cook on high pressure for 45 minutes, with a full natural release. Please note that the pot will take some time to come up to pressure. Total time is around 1 hour, 27 minutes, but most of this is hands off time.
Yes, these freeze really well. Pull them out and thaw prior to using them alone, or in other recipes.
Yes! These make a great base for refried beans, or even un-fried (oil free beans). We make those often, with the cooked beans plus some of the reserved cooking liquid. I like using a stick blender to mash the beans right in the pot.
You can make these with a teaspoon of garlic powder and salt, to taste. They are still very good.
More Instant Pot Recipes You May Enjoy
- Instant Pot black bean soup
- Instant Pot black beans
- Instant Pot whole “rotisserie” chicken
- Instant Pot “baked” sweet potatoes
- Instant Pot classic beef chili
- Instant Pot red beans and rice
- Instant Pot chicken breasts
- Instant Pot chicken thighs
- Instant Pot pasta e fagioli soup
- Instant Pot hard boiled eggs
- Instant Pot spaghetti (one pot)
- Instant Pot chicken recipes
- Instant Pot oatmeal (pot in pot method)
See ALL of my Instant Pot recipes here.
Tools Used to Make Instant Pot Pinto Beans
This post may contain affiliate links, which pay a referral fee to me at no additional cost to you. My full affiliate disclosure can be seen here.
- Instant Pot
- Better Than Bullion vegetable base – I get mine at Publix or Walmart
- Measuring cup
- Measuring spoons
Instant Pot Pinto Beans Recipe
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Instant Pot Pinto Beans (No Pre-Soaking)
Instant Pot pinto beans are delicious, simple and easy! I will show you how to cook dry pinto beans in the Instant Pot, and there is no pre-soaking required.
Ingredients
- 1 pound dry pinto beans
- 5 1/2 cups water
- 1 2/3 Tablespoon Better Than Bullion vegetable base
- salt and pepper to taste (Honestly, mine didn’t need any. The BTB flavored them perfectly. Taste them first.)
Instructions
-
Rinse off your pinto beans, and drain them using a wire mesh strainer.
-
Add them to the Instant Pot, along with the water and Better Than Bullion vegetable base.
-
Close and lock the lid, and cook on manual high pressure for 45 minutes. Note: It will take several minutes to come to pressure.
-
Allow the pressure to naturally release (Do not use the valve, but let it sit until the pressure indicator pin drops on its own. Mine took about 26 minutes, FYI.)
Recipe Notes
45 minutes is the pressure cook time, but this will take longer than that to cook. The pot takes a little while to come up to pressure, plus about 25 minute to naturally release.
Nutritional info is approximate and was calculated using a recipe nutrition label generator. Info includes regular vegetable broth, due to the app limitations. Please note a higher sodium content if using Better Than Bullion.
Charlotte says
Try adding about 2 teaspoons of liquid smoke to them. Oh my gosh!!
Teresa S says
Just made these and they came out perfect!!!!! I have always had trouble making the perfect pot of beans! Never again!!!!! I must admit I added jalapeños, tomatoes and cilantro! They are a hit!!!!
Marjorie @APinchOfHealthy says
Great! Those add-ins sound delicious too.😋
annecardwell@gmail.com says
My beans were perfect! thank you!
Shandi says
Thank you. I used 6 cups of water, 2 tsp of better than boillion. 45 minutes high pressure, 33 minutes npr. They were perfect. Thank you again!
Marjorie @APinchOfHealthy says
So glad to hear that you enjoyed them!💖
Anna says
For those that find they need longer cooking times, it may be that you live at a higher altitude.
ken says
i have found that dry beans stored 2 years or more usually take longer to cook.that is how i discovered the instant pot,i doubled the time in the instructions and Perfect beans every time.
Joel says
I used this recipe in my first attempt at cooking beans in my Instant pot. I followed the recipe, but also added some cooked bacon and onions. The result was that after the pressure released naturally, there was no liquid left and most of the beans were very hard. Should I have added more than 5 and a half cups of water?
Marjorie @APinchOfHealthy says
Yikes! These may seem like silly questions….but how did you measure the beans and the water?🤔 If you measured them carefully, using a food scale for the beans and a measuring cup for the water…I would say yes, add more water next time.
Misty says
I just started my beans, but I added a little cooked and diced bacon, half of a diced onion, diced jalapeño and a can of drained Rotel. I also used chicken broth and water. Wish me luck!
Marjorie @APinchOfHealthy says
Sounds delicious, Misty! Hope they turned out delicious for you💖
Misty says
I had to come back and tell you that these were the best and easiest beans I’ve ever made! I did have to up my time to 55 minutes, but that’s just my preferred tenderness. Also husband and kiddo approved
Linda O'Brien Huffman says
My husband
Kurtis says
It may also be taking longer to cook the beans because when you add salt to dried beans it makes them take a lot longer. I would try it without and see if it makes a difference.
Patti baker says
I made these as my first attempt to cook in my IP, thinking if I failed, it was not an expensive loss. But they turned out fabulously! Thank you! one question from a newbie, if you don’t mind: if I would like to add some ham to them next time, would I add it before I start, and if so, would I need to add more time? We loved the beans just like your recipe is; but sometimes on a cold winter night; we enjoy a bowl of ham and beans as dinner. Thank you again for giving me the confidence to use my ip, as your recipe is perfect!
Marjorie @APinchOfHealthy says
Yay! I am so glad you enjoyed them!💖 Yes, adding a ham hock/ ham bone would be great! Or you can use diced up ham as well. Either would work and would be so delicious.