Instant Pot Refried Beans are creamy, flavorful, and super easy to make using an electric pressure cooker, dried beans, and the perfect blend of spices. And because this easy recipe for homemade refried beans requires no soaking of the dried beans, delicious refried beans can be whipped up last minute to pair with endless Tex-Mex dishes!
When it comes to Tex-Mex meals, like Shredded Chicken Tacos, Beef Tacos, and Chicken Enchilada Casserole, refried beans are a classic pairing. And when you want the best flavor, nothing compares to this Instant Pot Refried Beans recipe!
Made with dried pinto beans, onions, jalapeno, and the perfect Tex-Mex seasoning, this recipe for Instant Pot Refried Beans are are creamy, flavorful, and seriously, the BEST refried beans ever!
Why Instant Pot Refried Beans are Best
- The Easiest Refried Bean Recipe. Using the Instant Pot is the easiest and tastiest way to make homemade refried beans ever! No soaking, no sautéing, just dump and cook!
- Starts with Dried Beans. Just like my recipes for Instant Pot Black Bean Soup and Instant Pot Red Beans and Rice, this recipe starts with an inexpensive bag of dried beans. Throw in a handful of staples, this dish delivers flavor for pennies.
- Restaurant-Flavor. Instant Pot Refried Beans are just as delicious as anything you get at your favorite Mexican restaurant. They are super creamy and super flavorful. SO much better than canned refried beans.
- Better for You. While this recipe produces crave-worthy results, it is made with good-for-you ingredients. No lard. No MSG. And MUCH lower in sodium than anything you can buy or get at a restaurant.
Notes on Ingredients
This recipe starts off with a bag of dried beans, but it is what is added to those beans that makes the these refried beans so flavorful!
- Cooking Liquid: Use a combination of water and low-sodium homemade chicken stock or vegetable broth. This will help to flavor the beans, without adding too much salt, which can interfere with the beans ability to soften.
- Spices: To flavor the refried beans, use a combination of paprika, cumin, chili powder, onion powder, and garlic powder, which is very similar to the spices found in taco seasoning. However, you want to wait to salt your beans until after they are pressure cooked, as salt can interfere with the beans softening.
- Added For Flavor: A yellow onion, jalapeno, garlic cloves all work to season the refried beans. I recommend removing the ribs and seeds of the jalapeno to control the spice level or leaving them in for spicy refried beans.
- Vinegar: The vinegar really helps the flavors pop and helps the beans to break down. Use apple cider vinegar or white distilled vinegar.
Let's Make Instant Pot Refried Beans
The following tips are provided to help you achieve perfect results. You will find the detailed instructions in the recipe card at the bottom of this post.
- Rinse the Beans. Place dry beans in a strainer/colander and give them a good rinse as they often can have residual dirt on them. Be sure to check for broken beans or rocks and discard them. You would be surprised how many times I find a small pebble in my beans, so don't skip this step!
- Add Ingredients to the Inner Pot BUT hold the salt! Combine the rinsed and sorted dried beans, water, stock, garlic, onion, jalapeno, cumin, chili powder, garlic powder, onion powder, and paprika in the inner pot of your pressure cooker. Don't add the salt until after pressure cooking, as that can interfere the beans ability to soften.
- Pressure Cook. Place lid on Instant Pot and set cook time for 50 minutes. This is DOUBLE the cooking time that dried beans require, but this is so the beans get SUPER tender and are really easy to blend.
- Let Pressure Release Naturally. Once the cooking time has elapsed, let pressure NATURALLY release. This can take up to 30 minutes. It is really important to NOT do a quick release, as this will change the texture of the beans. If you are short on time, wait at least 15 minutes before doing a quick pressure release.
- Reserve Cooking Liquid. After pressure has been released, ladle out about 2 cups of the cooking liquid into a glass measuring cup or bowl. You will use this to thin the refried beans to the desired consistency. Drain off the remaining liquid using a large colander and return the beans to the inner pot.
- Mash or Blend. Add the vinegar and salt and then using an immersion blender, blend the beans, adding ½ cup of cooking liquid at a time to reach your desired consistency for refried beans.
How to Serve Refried Beans
Instant Pot Refried Beans make the obvious side dish for entrees like Chicken Enchiladas or Instant Pot Carnitas. Frankly, I can make a meal out of these Instant Pot refried beans alone--they are THAT good! Add some Instant Pot Mexican Rice to the mix, and now we are really talking!
However, Instant Pot Refried Beans are not only a tasty side dish, they are also a star ingredient in the following recipes:
Storage Instructions
- Refrigerate: Store leftover cooked beans in the refrigerator in an airtight container for up to 5 days
- Freeze: Allow the refried beans to cool fully and then transfer them to freezer-safe bags/containers in 1 to 2-cup portion. Store in the freezer for up to 3 months, defrosting overnight before heating.
- Reheat: You can opt to reheat your refried beans in a heat-safe bowl in the microwave to warm OR you can fry your beans, making them technically re-fried beans! Simply heat some oil in a cast iron skillet over medium-high heat, add in the refried beans and fry, stirring often, until warmed through. This will add a bit of texture to your fried beans.
Commonly Asked Questions
I love using an immersion blender for this recipe and many other recipes like, Instant Pot Butternut Squash Soup and Instant Pot Tomato Soup, as it makes quick work of mashing the beans. If you don't have an immersion blender, you can mash the beans by hand using a potato masher, a food processor, or high-power blender. If using a blender let the cap vent prevent steam from building inside your blender.
This recipe for Instant Pot Refried Beans works as written in a 6 or 8-quart pressure cooker. If you have a 3-quart model, you will want to cut the ingredients in half but keep the cooking time the same.
More Tasty Instant Pot Tex-Mex Recipes
If you tried this recipe for Instant Pot Refried Beans, I would love for you to leave a comment and review below.
Instant Pot Refried Beans
Ingredients
- 1 pound dried pinto beans ~2 cups
- 4 cups low-sodium chicken stock or vegetable broth
- 2 cups water
- 1 small yellow onion peeled and quartered
- 3 cloves garlic peeled
- 1 small jalapeno seeded and de-stemmed (optional)
- 2 teaspoons chili powder
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- ½ teaspoon cumin
- ½ teaspoon onion powder
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar or white distilled vinegar
- 1-2 teaspoons kosher salt to taste
Instructions
- Using a fine-mesh strainer, rinse dried beans under running water and remove any rocks or broken beans.
- Place the rinsed beans in the inner pot of your electric pressure cooker. Add in the broth, water, onion, jalapeno, garlic cloves, chili powder, paprika, cumin, onion powder, and garlic powder.
- Close the Instant Pot and be sure the valve is turned to "seal." Set to cook on high pressure for 50 minutes. Hit manual or pressure cook and use +/- buttons to adjust cook time to 50 minutes. Once the cooking time has elapsed, allow pressure to release naturally for at least 15 minutes.
- Open the Instant Pot, and using a ladle, scoop out 2 cups of the cooking liquid into a large glass measuring cup. Drain the remaining contents of the inner pot, over a large colander, discarding the remaining liquid, and transfer the beans back to the inner pot.
- Add 1 teaspoon of salt and the vinegar if using. Blend with an immersion blender, adding ½ cup of the reserved liquid at a time until beans are smooth and the desired consistency is reached. Taste and adjust seasoning/salt if needed. Alternatively, use a potato masher, blender, or food processor to process the beans with the reserved cooking liquid.
Equipment Needed
Notes
Nutrition
Sheena
Great recipe! I have tried a couple other refried beans recipes, before coming across yours, and they were "ok". But these were great and will be a keeper for the next time I need to make refried beans. Big hit for my family. We also loved the flavor of the beans before mashing them, so I may also use this for regular pinto beans as well (just without mashing lol)
Kristen Chidsey
YAY! I actually do that as well--I adore the flavor in tacos or burritos at times. And thank you so much for taking the time to share your review.
Laurie
Used this recipe for bulk prepping refried bean burritos (also from this site.) This recipe makes about 2x the refried beans you would need for the burritos. I add the onion, garlic cloves and liquids in the amounts specified for this recipe. I double the spices from this recipe, except for the salt, which I don't add until the beans are cooked. I toss the beans, salt, and vinegar from this recipe, along with a can of pumpkin puree from the burrito recipe, into the blender. The pumpkin really complements the flavor of the beans for just about any use, whether it's for a hot side dish, a delicious cold dip, or for a massive assembly line of bean burritos. This way, I only need to measure and add the spices one time. Saves work!
Kristen Chidsey
Thank you so much, Laurie for taking the time to leave a review and sharing what you did 🙂
Joni Sauers
These beans are savory, creamy and oh so good!! My new favorite bean recipe, thank you! I used dehydrated onions instead of fresh. I don't like onion but still wanted some of its flavor. I used very little of the drained liquid to mix in with the beans and they were a wonderful consistency. I will revisit this recipe many times In sure!
Kristen Chidsey
Thank you so much for sharing, Joni! Using onion flakes was a great idea 🙂
Jenni
I love this recipe! This is my go to recipe ! But what happened to the black bean cooking time conversation? Thanks
Kristen Chidsey
Oh sorry about that Jenni! It is in the recipe notes 🙂 Black Bean Refried Beans: Cut the cooking time to 45 minutes if using dried black beans.Â
Scott Williams
I have been trying different recipes, but this one is fantastic. I’ve already the Spanish rice, which was also delicious. Looking forward to trying other recipes of yours. Thank you very much.
Kristen Chidsey
Thank you so much, Scott! I love hearing you are enjoying my recipes and I hope you find many more recipes to enjoy!
Carpino Holly
Hi there I love your refried pinto bean recipe. My family loves it as well. Just wondering if I could double it do I keep the same liquid ingredients ratio?
Kristen Chidsey
Hi Carpino!! I am so glad you enjoy thee refried beans! For a double batch, you would need to double all the ingredients, but keep in mind to be sure not to fill your Instant Pot more than 2/3rds full. The cook time will remain the same, it will just take longer to come to pressure.
Claudia
The best beans, hands down!! The thought of going back to canned makes me cringe.
Kristen Chidsey
My family feels the same way! Thank you for sharing.
Dawb
Made this a few days ago. I had to switch out the jalapeno for a medium spicy Hatch Chile because that's what I had. Otherwise made as written. 45 minutes was a little too soon. Next time maybe 50-55? I was on the fence about adding the vinegar but I'm so glad I did. The vinegar really adds to the flavor. Thank you for this recipe.
Kristen Chidsey
Thank you for sharing your review! Feel free to cook the beans longer if you really want them soft.
Karen
The written recipe says to add the vinegar with the salt after the beans are cooked. Above the recipe and in the video it says to add the vinegar with the broth. Can you correct the recipe for those of us who jump straight to the recipe. Made it with black beans and it was tasty even without the cider vinegar. Thanks fit the easy recipe.
Kristen Chidsey
Hey Karen! The video adds the vinegar when the beans are in the blender and the written recipe above the recipe card states the same. I am sorry if it was confusing in some way, but I appreciate you pointing it out in case something needed changed 🙂
Lisa
I had leftover dried pintos from making chili so I searched a bunch of recipes for refried beans which I’ve never made before. So many of them require lard and/or bacon fat. I don’t keep those in the house and wanted to try to be more healthy. I came across your YouTube video and made the beans exactly as directed except I used 1 full teaspoon of salt. They were delicious in a lunch burrito and I can’t wait to try making tostadas with them tonight. One comment for anyone else trying this is I noticed a lot of the spices ended up in the bottom of the bowl with the discarded cooking water. Next time I’ll try to scoop from the bottom when I add back the reserved water. Thanks and I look forward to trying your other recipes!
Kristen Chidsey
YAY! I love hearing you enjoyed Lisa and this recipe was exactly what you were looking for. I hope you find many other recipes to enjoy here.
Bob
This has been our go-to recipe for refried beans for months now. Really tasty and easy. If we wanted a double batch, would we use total of 12 cups liquid or just be careful to stay under the max line?
Thanks!
Kristen Chidsey
Hi Bob! I am so happy to hear you enjoy these beans so much! For a double batch, you would need to double the water--be sure not to fill your Instant Pot more than 2/3rds full. The cook time will remain the same, it will just take longer to come to pressure.
Cody Gerlach
So wonderful! I was skeptical when throwing the dry beans without soaking first, but this blew my mind. Perfect creamy refried beans that hands-down beat anything you'd get in a can. Delicious!!!!
Kristen Chidsey
I am so happy you enjoyed Cody! We love them so much as well.
Jan
How would I adapt this recipe for cooking in a crockpot?
Kristen Chidsey
Hi Jan! Without soaking the beans, this is not a recipe I would recommend using the slow cooker for. The pressure cooking helps to soften the beans. To make this recipe work, I would soak the beans in 8 cups of cold water overnight. Drain the beans and place them into the slow cooker with 4 cups of stock, onion, jalapeno, and seasonings. Omit the water, and cook for 10-12 hours on low, or until the beans are super tender, and then process as recipe directs
Amy
Hi Kristen, I have cranberry dried beans, do I cook them for less time? Thank you!
Kristen Chidsey
Hi Amy! I would keep the cooking time the same 🙂
Amy
These were delicious! I was hesitant about the vinegar at the end but it gave them the slightest tang!
Kristen Chidsey
Thanks Amy! I am glad you gave the vinegar a try--it really does make the flavors "pop."