I don’t soak beans overnight. If I were the type of person who remembered to soak beans the night before, I would probably also be the type of person who remembered to put dinner in the slow cooker after breakfast. Sometimes it is best to acknowledge your weakness and play to your strengths. And the pressure cooker is the great equalizer!
One pound of dried black beans makes the equivalent of 4 cans of beans. I stock up on organic dried beans when they go on sale because during that time I can by a pound of beans for less than a can of cooked beans.
This is how I make beans start to finish in less than 1 1/2 hours:
1. Add 1 pound of beans to a large pot and cover with water.
2. Place the pot over high heat and bring to a boil.
3. Remove from heat, place lid on pot and let sit for 1 hour.
4. Drain and rinse the beans.
5. Place Beans in a pressure cooker and add 10 cups of water ( make sure you don’t pass the fill line on your pressure cooker). Place lid on the pressure cooker and cook over a high heat until it reaches high pressure. Lower the flame to stabilize pressure and cook for the amount of time listed below:
Black Beans, Great Northern Beans, and Kidney Beans: cook approximately 8 minutes
Pinto Beans or Adzuki Beans: cook approximately 6 minutes
Black-eyed Peas: cook approximately 4 minutes
Double the cooking time if you are going to mash them.
6. Release pressure quickly by running cold water over the cover. Do not open cover until all pressure has been released.
7. Drain beans and add to recipe or divide up and freeze to speed up prep time on busy evenings.
A can of beans usually contains 1 3/4 cups of beans. I replace canned beans in recipes whenever I can with my pressure cooker beans. here are a few recipes that I substitute my beans for canned:
Minestrone Soup
Black Bean and Cauliflower Chili
GG’s Taco Salad
More Pressure Cooker Recipes:
Cooking Rice in the Pressure Cooker
How to Make Apple Sauce in a Pressure Cooker
Pork Roast with Saeurkraut and Sweet Potatoes
Swiss Steak Prepared in a Pressure Cooker
How do you save time in the kitchen?
I am linking this recipe to The Hearth and Soul Hop, Tasty Tuesday, Works for Me Wednesday, Real Food Wednesday, and Fight Back Friday.
I use pressure cooker to cook all lentils and rice. It is always a great help.
omygoodness! I need to get a pressure cooker badly. I love making my own beans; but, I always forget to soak them.
Do you end up with explodey split beans with this method? I also "soak" my beans in the pressure cooker but they usually lose their form. I don't mind when I'm doing it for refried beans or soup but sometimes the appearance of the bean actually has an impact (like in salads for example).
I thought it was the pressure cooker but maybe I need to do the soak the way you do it instead!
If you add a little oil (I use olive oil) to the pressure cooker the beans remain whole and don’t explode.
Thanks for the tip. I am going to try it tonight!
I am just a bit afraid of a pressure cooker – I have only used mine once – yes once- crazy I know. I may have to get mine out and try and figure it out, it would be lovely to have beans that fast! Thanks for hosting and posting to the Hearth and Soul Hop!
I've been wanting to get a pressure cooker but don't actually know anything about them so this is great! This is different than a pressure canner right or are they the same? I always soak the night before and then cook my beans in the morning but this would cut the cooking/soaking time considerably
Thanks for sharing.
I can't live without my pressure cooker … its a real time saver!
Mub,
To create a really pretty cooked bean, you need to do the overnight soak, instead of the fast soak. Then you can cook them in the pressure cooker for the minimum time. They will remain intact and a little firmer, which is good for a salad.
Rosina, A pressure canner can be used as a pressure cooker, but I would not use my pressure cooker as a pressure canner. A pressure canner allows you to have more control over the amount of pressure, which is perfect for canning, but also very nice for cooking. Your manual might have some recipe ideas to get you started. if you have lost your manual, google your brand and model number – most companies keep one online.
I don't have a pressure cooker, but this sounds like a fantastic way to cook beans, Alea. And I'm not the kind of person who remembers to soak beans, or put the dinner in the slow cooker after breakfast either! Thank you for sharing with Hearth and Soul