
Pantry foods deserve more respect
Pantry food is what we all need to be resorting to right now. What is pantry food ? Pantry food is dried and canned foods that you keep in your pantry. They usually play a supporting role to a recipe. However with limited access to grocery stores and empty aisles once you get there the time has come to pay overdo respect to those things that sit in our pantry. Enter the humble dried pinto bean and your stuffed away instapot. I took our old tasty family recipe and converted it for quick beans in the instapot. Dried Pinto Beans straight out of the pantry are a breeze with your Insta Pot

Pull out your instapot and let’s cook some dried beans from your pantry
Recently as a result of our current craziness, I bought more groceries than normal. Additionally I bought things I might not normally buy. While grabbing things I was looking for things I can cook with that will keep until I need them. Amazingly there were not many dried beans left on the shelf except two lonely bags of pinto beans. I remembered we use to make a big pot of beans on the weekends. Grabbing two packages of pinto beans I had plans to dig out my instapot and put it to work. My instapot has always scared me a bit. I often find it easier to just cook the old fashion way. I was amazed at how easy cooking the beans was, also they tasted just like when I cooked them on the stove top.
Reacquaint yourself to your instapot
Pull out your instapot from whatever corner of the kitchen you have hidden it. Be sure to check to make sure it is cleaned out. Personally I keep all of the odd things that came with it, sitting inside. Remind yourself how to put the top on and lock it. Close the quick release valve. Locate the timer and the high pressure button. I think you are ready to go now.

You DO NOT have to soak those dried beans from your pantry
If you cook with dried beans you know you always soak them but not this time! Lifelong soakers can still go ahead and soak them but you will need to adjust your cook time accordingly. As a matter of fact If you want to soak them in your instapot and use the delayed start option see this article. Be sure to rinse them off and make sure there are no small rocks, dirt or bad beans. Without the step of soaking your beans taking dried beans and cooking them in an Insta Pot is a breeze.

Get Cooking some easy pinto beans with your Insta Pot
Once you feel like they are rinsed and you have all good beans it is time to drop them into your instapot. It’s time to put everything else into the instapot to join those beans. Check to make sure you have everything in your instapot, finally put the top on and lock it in place. On my instapot 40 minutes on pressure cooker worked perfectly. Check this chart for times on different instapots and for other types of beans.

Your beans are cooked and ready to eat
Once your cooked time is up, open your release valve to release the steam. Carefully remove the bay leaf and serve your pinto beans. These delicious pinto beans are a breeze with your Insta Pot or pressure cooker. We often serve them wrapped up in a flour tortilla, or we serve them over rice. You can also eat them by themselves or even serve them on Taco night.
Delicious Insta Pot Pinto Beans
Equipment
- Insta pot or Pressure cooker
Ingredients
- 1 16oz package of dried pinto beans
- 1/2 medium white or yellow onion, chopped
- 3 cloves garlic, chopped
- 1 Jalapeno, chopped optional extra jalapenos for spicier beans
- 2 cubes Chicken Bouillon I use Knorrs Chicken Bouillon
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 5 cups water
Instructions
Rinse your dried pinto beans
- Rinse your dried pinto beans and remove any beans that don't look good or any small stones. You do not need to soak the beans.
Chop garlic, onion and jalapeno
- Chop your garlic, onion and jalapeno(s) . Please note you can add more jalapenos for added spice, one jalapeno doesn't really make these beans spicy.
Add spices
- Measure your cumin, chili powder and smoked paprika and one bay leaf. Add two cubes of chicken bouillon.
Put everything into your Insta Pot or Pressure Cooker
- Place the beans, garlic, jalapeno, onion and spices into the Insta Pot or pressure cooker and add 5 cups of water.
Cook your beans
- Close the top to your Insta Pot or pressure cooker and lock into place. Be sure your pressure release valve is closed. Press High Pressure cook , using 40 minutes for cook time and start cooking. After 40 minutes release the pressure valve to release the pressure. Once all of the pressure has been release you can open up the top of your Insta Pot or pressure cooker and serve your Pinto Beans.
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