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My 8-year-old daughter just told me these are the “best beans” I’ve ever made. But that’s not the only reason to love them. When you cook black beans in the Instant Pot, the method is also hands-off and as easy as possible!
Before you begin, it’s crucial to use the correct bean-to-water ratio. If you use the wrong ratio, you’ll wind up with some beans that are tender, and some that are still hard as a rock.
(Any bean that isn’t fully submerged in water won’t be cooked, FYI.)
I first wrote about these beans in my Instant Pot cookbook, but I’ve tested them even more since then. Follow the method below for perfectly tender and seasoned beans every time!
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Featured Review
“Love this recipe. Perfect, awesome and so very delicious. I’m never soaking beans overnight again and only using canned black beans in a pinch. These were incredibly tasty.” – Melanie
Pressure Cooker Black Bean Ingredients
- Dry black beans. Most of the time, I cook black beans without soaking them first, simply because I don’t plan that far ahead. The age of your beans can affect cooking time, so it’s best to work with beans that have been recently purchased, rather than ones that have been sitting in your pantry for years.
- Pantry spices. For lightly seasoned beans, I like to add ground cumin, oregano, and a bay leaf. You can omit these if you are hoping to make beans that will simply replace plain canned beans in a recipe. (For example, you might not want seasoned black beans if you plan on making brownies with them.)
- Salt. There’s a rumor that salt might prevent beans from becoming tender, but that’s not the case when cooking black beans. I wouldn’t recommend using more than 1 teaspoon of salt per cup of dry beans, though.
- Water. If you’re used to cooking beans on the stovetop, you might be disappointed to see how watery black beans look when they are cooked in the pressure cooker. That’s because the beans MUST be fully submerged in water to cook correctly, so don’t reduce the water that this recipe calls for. You can always cook the liquid down later for a thicker sauce.
How to Cook Instant Pot Black Beans
Step 1:
Add the dry beans, cumin, oregano, bay leaf, salt, and water to the stainless steel bowl of the Instant Pot. Or, for plain black beans, omit the seasonings.
Use 3 1/2 cups of water for every 8 ounces of dry beans you plan to cook. Alternatively, you can use a ratio of 1 level cup of beans to 3 cups of water if you don’t have a food scale.
Step 2:
Secure the lid on your Instant Pot and move the steam release valve to the “Sealing” position. Use the “Manual” or “Pressure Cook” button on your machine to cook at high pressure for 30 minutes.
The pot will take approximately 15 minutes to pressurize, so the screen will display ‘ON’ until the floating valve in the lid rises. (Once that happens, you’ll know the pot is pressurized.)
Step 3:
When the cooking cycle is complete, be patient. You’ll need to let the Instant Pot naturally release the pressure, which takes 25 to 30 minutes. Do not perform a quick release.
When the floating valve in the lid drops, you’ll know the pressure has been released and it’s safe to open the lid.
Remove the lid, then the bay leaf. (It’s a choking hazard, so don’t leave it in your beans.) The beans will look very watery, but should be tender. You can test a few by mashing them against the side of the pot with a fork.
Use a fine-mesh strainer to drain the beans, and then serve.
Optional step for saucy beans
For a thicker, more seasoned sauce, you can reserve the drained cooking liquid and return it to the Instant Pot. Press the “Sauté” button and let it simmer until it thickens or reduces by half. It will become more concentrated in flavor, so you can add as much or as little as you want to the beans.
More Instant Pot Black Bean Tips
In case you’re curious, here’s what I’ve learned from weeks of experimenting.
- Don’t use less water. I originally tried cooking 8 ounces of dry beans in 3 cups of water, but some beans remained uncooked, even when using a 6-quart Instant Pot. This was even the case when I doubled the recipe, using 1 pound of black beans to 6 cups of water. Any bean above the water level was not tender, and I don’t recommend consuming any undercooked beans for safety reasons.
- You can add onion and garlic. The cool thing about the Instant Pot is that you don’t have to saute the veggies and spices to develop an aromatic flavor. (You can, but it’s not necessary.) If you’d like to add onion and garlic, add 1/2 cup of diced white onion and 1 clove of garlic for every 8 ounces of dry beans you are cooking.
- You can use soaked beans. If you prefer to soak your beans first, cover them with 3 inches of water and let them soak for 8 hours or overnight. The soaked beans will double or triple in size. When you’re ready to cook the beans, drain away the soaking water and cover them with 3 1/2 cups of fresh water for every 8 oz of dry beans that you soaked. Cook at high pressure for 9 minutes, then let the pressure naturally release for 25-30 minutes.
- Not all bean varieties cook the same. This tutorial is specifically for cooking black beans. Pinto beans, garbanzo beans, and cannellini beans may require different water ratios or cooking times, so be sure to look for another recipe if you have a different type of bean.
Instant Pot Black Beans (No Soaking Required!)
Ingredients
- 8 ounces dry black beans (see notes)
- ½ teaspoon ground cumin
- ½ teaspoon dried oregano
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 3 ½ cups water
Instructions
- Add the dry beans, cumin, oregano, bay leaf, salt, and water to the stainless steel bowl of your Instant Pot. Secure the lid and move the steam release valve to "Sealing." Cook at high pressure for 30 minutes. Note: You can omit the seasonings for plain beans.
- When the cooking cycle is complete, let the pressure naturally release until the floating valve in the lid drops back down. This should take 25 to 30 minutes, so be patient. This is part of the cooking process, so don't perform a quick release. When the floating valve in the lid has dropped, it's safe to open the lid.
- Remove the bay leaf and use a fork to test several beans for tenderness. They should mash easily against the side of the pot. The beans will be completely submerged in liquid—this is necessary for proper cooking. (If you reduce the water in this recipe, any bean that is above the water level will be rock-hard.) Use a fine mesh strainer to drain away the excess water, and then they are ready to serve warm.
- Leftover beans can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to a week.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Recipes That Use Black Beans
If you try these Instant Pot black beans, please leave a comment and star rating below to let me know how they turned out for you.
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SO so happy. I received an Instant Pot pressure cooker for Christmas and found this recipe. I followed your directions and beans came out just perfect. So impressed. Thank you!
I’m so glad they turned out well for you!
Black beans came out great in the IP. Would you cook garbanzo beans the same way?
Same method, but longer cooking time. When I cook dried garbanzo beans without soaking them ahead of time, they take close to 50 minutes with a natural release after that.
The little button that allows you to modify the number of servings and the amount of ingredients has a glitch. The number of pounds of black beans changes, but it always says in parentheses (about 2 cups). So it says that 1 lb is two cups, 0.33 lb is two cups, 1.5 lb is two cups, etc. I hope I got the ratio right as I measured by number of cups, not weight, and they are cooking in the IP now…
Sorry, the (2 cups) is a note by me for the original weight of the recipe, so it will never change. The recipe software can only change the ingredient measurements, not my notes to the right of them. Since 1 pound = 2 cups, I’d estimate that .5 pound = 1 cup, and 1.5 pounds would be 3 cups, etc.
1 lb of black beans is 2 cups
Just made your black beans in my ipot, they are fantastic! They held their shape and I love the texture. I will be doing this again! Thank you 🙂
Do you know if you could cook chickpeas in the instant pot the same way as the black beans?
I tried this exactly as written. I think 25 minutes is too long because my beans were mushy. It’s great not to soak, but next time I will shorten the IP minutes. Thanks. Black beans are my fave!
Megan, where do you buy dry organic black beans? You said you bought a 16 ounce bag of dry organic black beans for $1.25,
Thank you!
I bought it at Trader Joe’s! That’s the pricing here in the Midwest– I know their stores vary by location.
I sprout my beans before cooking them in a slow cooker. I read that actually transforms them to a vegetable instead of a starch. And I definitely find them easier to digest when sprouted first. I don’t remember if simply soaking made so much of a difference.
how do you sprout them? need to try this.
Yes! Interested in how you spout them in the slow cooker as well. I know spouting other things is just a matter of soaking a few hours before.
I once had a pressure cooker explode on me, sending steaming water and beans all over my kitchen. I’ve never had the courage to try anything similar again. How safe is the instapot? Is it designed so these accidents won’t happen? Thanks?
That sounds scary! I was nervous to try a pressure cooker for the same reason, but I’ve read that Instant Pots are significantly safer than older models of pressure cookers. For example, it’s pretty much impossible to take the lid off of the Instant Pot until the pressure is safely released– which is the main cause of most pressure cooker explosions. I’ve also heard my Instant Pot release a bit of pressure during the cooking process, which I assume is a safe guard against exploding pots. I’ve been using mine for nearly 2 years now with no scares! (The first few times I used it, I totally made my family leave the room, just in case!)
Modern pressure cookers have an additional safety feature that didn’t exist before: The plastic seal around the lid is made of material that will fail and leak out pressure before the pot is in danger of exploding. They are much safer that the old pressure cookers.
Hi Sarah, years ago I had the same experience. I’m thrilled to say that the instant pot is NOTHING like those old contraptions. I got one about 4 months ago and I totally love it.
I have always cooked black beans on the stove but was excited to try them in the IP. But when I made them in the IP they came out mealy. Any thoughts on what’s happening?
Hmmm… did you use this method, where you don’t soak them and cook on high pressure for 25 minutes? I just made these again last night and the beans were really velvety in texture, but I imagine the results could vary by batch depending on the crop and age of the dry beans.