Instant Pot Cuban Black Beans are a delicious way to round out any dish. They are slightly sweet, savory, and bright. They are amazing on their own, added to any rice bowl, or even as a chip dip! You’ll love these vegan beans because they are simple to prepare, and will zhuzh up any meal.
Beans are a staple in our household and these were inspired by my favorite Caribbean restaurant in Seattle. Besides the fact that they are full of protein and a great staple for a vegetarian meal, beans are the only food our toddler will always eat. Using the Instant Pot makes them extremely easy to cook: it only takes about one hour to prepare and doesn’t require you to soak the beans!
How To Cook
Gather all ingredients: Combine all ingredients in the Instant Pot
Pressure Cook: On your instant pot, set to pressure cook high for 40 minutes. Seal the lid and make sure that the vent is set to the ‘sealed’ position. After the instant pot completes, let it release naturally for 10 minutes, then manually release the pressure out.
Saute: Set the instant pot to sauté. Add in sugar and vinegar and stir. Cook for 3 minutes. The beans will be liquidy, we love them this way because whatever you are serving them with will sop up the flavorful juices!
How Long to Cook
After rounds and rounds in the test kitchen, I have found that setting the pressure cooker to 40 minutes, followed by naturally releasing it for 10 minutes, and manually releasing it if needed is the sweet spot. So many times I have opened the pressure cooker just to find the beans were hard and needed an additional 5-10 minutes.
If you have fresher beans it does take less time (30ish minutes), but if you are like me and have no clue how fresh your beans are and you want them to be done when you open the pot, this timing should work great.
Ratio of Beans to Water
6 cups of liquid to 1 lb of beans makes for a slightly soupy bean, but that is intentional for this recipe! I also played with the ratio of vegetable broth to water and have found that 2:1 (4 cups of veggie broth to 2 cups of water) makes for a savory, well-rounded flavor.
A Note on Vegetable Broth
I ALWAYS use the Better Than Bouillon Seasoned Vegetable Base in place of vegetable broth. If using a less flavorful vegetable broth, you may need to add a pinch more of salt.
Storage Tips
Beans can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days. They can be stored in the freezer for up to 6 months.
Recipe Tips and Tricks
- If the beans come out underdone, just seal the Instant Pot back up and cook for an additional 5 minutes.
- These beans will have a lot of liquid – if you like them a little less soupy, strain until you have the consistency you prefer.
- I always use Better Than Bouillon Vegetable Seasoned Broth Base.
Equipment Used
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Flavorful instant pot cuban black beans (No soaking required!)
- Total Time: 1 hour 10 minutes
- Yield: 3 cups 1x
- Diet: Vegan
Description
nstant Pot Cuban Black Beans are a delicious way to round out any dish. They are slightly sweet, savory, and bright. They are amazing on their own, added to any rice bowl, or even as a chip dip! You’ll love these vegan beans because they are simple to prepare, and will zhuzh up any meal.
Ingredients
-
1 lb black beans
-
½ onion chopped
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1/4 cup tomato paste
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1 tbsp cumin
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1 tbsp oregano
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2 tsp salt
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½ tsp garlic powder
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4 cups water
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2 cups vegetable broth (I use the equivalent of Better Than Bouillon, see notes above if using regular broth)
Finishing touches:
- 1 tbsp white vinegar
- 1/2 tbsp sugar
Instructions
Gather all ingredients: Combine all ingredients (except white vinegar and sugar) in an Instant Pot. Give it a big stir.
Pressure Cook: On your Instant Pot, set to pressure cook on high for 40 minutes. Seal the lid and make sure that the vent is set to the ‘sealed’ position. After the Instant Pot completes, let it release naturally for 10 minutes, then manually let the pressure out.
Finishing touches: Set the Instant Pot to sauté. Add in sugar and vinegar and stir. Cook for 3 minutes, stirring occasionally. The beans will be liquidy. We love them this way because whatever you are serving them with will sop up the flavorful juices, but feel free to strain to the desired consistency.
Notes
Beans can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days. They can be stored in the freezer for up to 6 months
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 1 hour
- Category: side
- Method: instant pot
- Cuisine: cuban
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