Pinto Beans – Reboot

A reboot from 2007, updated to use the instapot.

As I spoke in my reboot of corn bread, Pinto Beans a a perfect accompaniment.   But is it Pinto Beans, or refried beans ?   That is a fairly simple item, re-fried beans are cooked pinto beans that have been mashed and mixed with some form of fat, traditionally lard, often times additional spices / seasonings (smoked meats) will be added.

Since this is a reboot, I’ll update to use modern cooking tools, I.E. the instapot, and update to meet the existing dietary requirements as well as the existing time requirements.

A lot has been written on soaking beans, so I’ll summarize here.

Cooking methods for beans:

• Soak overnight, simmer in a stock pot
• Boil for 3 minutes, soak for 4-8 hours, simmer in stock pot
• Boil for 6 minutes, soak for 1 hour, simmer in a stock pot
• Place in instapot, add all ingredients, cook for 45 minutes

Now, since I do have an active life, and wander in at all hours of the night, I tend to forget the soak overnight, and the next two also really do not match my life timeline, so InstaPot it is.

Two steps that can not be skipped, sort / inspect the beans, discard any damaged, withered beans, and any other material (yep, I have found rocks in my beans), then rinse completely and drain.

Pinto Beans

Who doesn’t love a big bowl of steaming hot, creamy, smoky Pinto Beans? Add a side of corn bread, and there is not a better comfort food meal.

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 10 minutes mins

Cook Time 45 minutes mins

Total Time 1 hour hr 20 minutes mins

Course Main Course, Side Dish

Cuisine American, Southwestern

Servings 10 1/2 Cup

Calories 9 kcal

Ingredients

  

1x2x3x

• 1 Bag Pinto Beans 16 oz.
• 1 Ea Large Sweet Onion Peeled, diced
• 1 tbsp Roasted Garlic Mashed
• 1/2 tsp Salt
• 6 Cups Broth Chicken or Vegetable
• 1/2 tsp Chili Powder
• 1/2 tsp Cumin
• 1/2 tsp Oregano
• 1 ea Jalapeno Pepper Large, washed, seeded, stemmed, diced
• 1 dash Liquid Smoke

Instructions

 

• Rinse the bag of beans well and remove any that look bad; Drain well
• Add all to InstaPot Select Chili/Beans Set time for 45 Minutes Make sure the vent is set to seal
• After cooking let the pressure release normally. Do not vent let this drain, this takes about 25 minutes
• If you want, one can take a cup of the beans and mash / blend and return to ass a creaminess

Notes

This is built Vegan / Vegetarian, one can add thick cut bacon, ham bones, smoked ham hocks...

I serve with cornbread, if the beans are too thick one can thin with water or broth.

Nutrition

Calories: 9kcalCarbohydrates: 2gProtein: 1gFat: 1gSaturated Fat: 1gSodium: 683mgFiber: 1gSugar: 1gVitamin A: 340IUVitamin C: 1mgCalcium: 1mgIron: 1mg

Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!