Make seasoned Instant Pot Mexican Black Beans quick and effortlessly. No soak and ready to eat in a little over an hour.
Why Make Black Beans From Scratch?
In today’s world of conveniences, most of us reach for canned goods. It’s simple, it’s quick, it’s ready to go.
So why bother making black beans from scratch when you could just open a can?
Two BIG reasons. Cooking dried beans are lower cost and lower sodium. Also, some prefer to make as much of their food as possible. Additionally, you can opt for a firmer or softer bean texture.
A one pound bag of dried black beans will yield about 6-7 cups of cooked beans. A can of cooked beans yields about 1.5 cups.
On average, I pay less than $2 bucks for a pound of dried beans, a little over $1 for 15-ounces of canned beans, almost double if I want organic.
The amount of sodium in canned goods is cause for concern. It’s well established that the average American consumes far over the recommended amount of sodium on a daily basis. Making your own beans gives you control over your sodium intake.
Ingredients
Not too many ingredients are required for making Mexican Black Beans in the Instant Pot.
Start off with a one pound bag of dried black beans. I usually buy from the bulk section in a small local store, but often grab bags from big grocers as well.
Chicken broth or stock. Of course homemade stock will be the best (as always) but store bought broths work great too. If you’re vegetarian, vegetable stock is wonderful as well.
If you prefer low-sodium chicken broth, just know that you made need to increase the amount of salt. Honestly though, less is always more and you can always salt & season to taste after your black beans are done.
You’ll need paprika, cumin, garlic powder, oregano, salt and a bay leaf.
Fresh epazote is optional if available. Unfortunately my epazote plant didn’t make it this year, and epazote is not an ingredient readily available in my area (and many other areas).
As for dried epazote, I’m not familiar with it’s usage. This recipe is adapted from a Mexican friend of mine. Her recipe calls for beans soaked overnight, cooked on the stovetop and she always throws about a tablespoon of finely minced, fresh Epazote in her beans when it’s available. Oregano is her substitute when Epazote is not available.
If you would like to learn more about epazote – click here for a great write up about it from honest-food.
Preparation
A little prep work needs to be done here.
It’s important to sort and inspect the beans. Remove any foreign matter – dirt, little stones – I also pick out broken beans.
True story – you will find dirt, debris and little stones in dried beans. It’s best to take a few minutes to properly inspect the beans so no one ends up with a chipped tooth.
Everyone has their own inspection method. I find it easiest to pour a handful of beans in my hand, sort through them, pick out any bad beans or foreign matter and slide the rest into a bowl underneath.
Then rinse the beans to further remove any potential dirt or grime. I usually have the beans in a bowl of water, swirl them around by hand, pour through a sieve and repeat a few times.
After inspection & rinsing, everything goes into your instant pot. 25 minutes for beans with a bit of firmness, 30 minutes for softer beans.
This recipe can easily be cut in half if you’re not prepared to use 6 cups of black beans.
Serving Suggestions
What to do with all those black beans?
Add them to dips! Try them in this Taco Dip with Ground Beef.
Add Mexican Black Beans to soups and chili. Try them in this Buffalo Chicken Chili.
Make refried black beans. Make black bean burgers. Serve with warm tortillas and your favorite toppings.
Add them to salads & salsas.
My favorite is simple – a bowl of white rice, black beans and shredded chicken or pork. I usually season the beans more when I serve with rice – more herbs, garlic and sazon.
Mexican black beans & rice pair nicely with pimento stuffed olives as well.
Black beans are a cheap, tasty & nutritious protein!
Hope you enjoy!
Amanda ♥
Mexican Black Beans – Instant Pot – No Soak
Equipment
- Instant Pot / Pressure Cooker
Ingredients
- 1 pound dried black beans no need to soak
- 4 cups chicken stock or broth or vegetable broth if preferred
- 1 teaspoon cumin (ground)
- 1 teaspoon oregano (dried)
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 tbsp fresh minced epazote (optional)
Instructions
- Inspect black beans and pick out any stones, foreign matter or broken beans. Rinse thoroughly and drain, repeat a few times.
- Add beans, salt, seasonings and bay leaf to Instant Pot. Pour broth into Instant Pot. Stir so seasonings are incorporated into broth.
- Close up Instant Pot and run on "Beans function – High Pressure". Set cooking time for 25 minutes for means with a bit of firmness, 30 minutes for softer beans.
- Let pressure release naturally.
Notes
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