With an Instant Pot and about 1 hour, you can make perfectly cooked kidney beans every time! Let us show you how.
Instant Pot Kidney Beans
The Instant Pot is our preferred method for cooking kidney beans because it’s quick and easy (no soaking required!), and yields perfectly tender beans!
Here’s what you need to know:
- Ratio = 1 part kidney beans : 3 ½ parts water
- Cook Time = 40-45 minutes
- Release = 15 minute natural release, then release any remaining pressure
Kidney beans are versatile and go especially well in stews, soups, chili, pasta, salads, or alongside steamed or sautéed greens.
Did you find this helpful? If so, be sure to check out our Instant Pot Cooking Times Guide for perfectly cooked grains and beans every time!
If you try this recipe, let us know! Leave a comment, rate it, and don’t forget to tag a photo #minimalistbaker on Instagram. Cheers, friends!
Instant Pot Kidney Beans (Fast, Tender, No Soaking!)
Ingredients
- 1 cup kidney beans
- 3 ½ cups water (or vegetable broth for more flavor)
Instructions
- Add kidney beans and water (or vegetable broth) to the Instant Pot and stir to prevent sticking. Pressure cook on high for 40-45 minutes (40 minutes for more firm, 45 for more tender // it will take about 8 minutes for the Instant Pot to pressurize before cooking begins).
- Once the timer goes off, allow to naturally release for 15 minutes, then release any remaining pressure. Carefully remove lid once steam has fully escaped and strain off any excess cooking liquid.
- Enjoy immediately in stews, soups, chili, pasta, salads, or alongside steamed or sautéed greens. Store cooled leftovers in the refrigerator up to 5 days or in the freezer up to 1 month. Reheat in a saucepan on the stovetop, adding a little water, as needed, to prevent sticking.
Notes
*Total time includes active cook time, release time, and the time it takes for the Instant Pot to heat up (~8 minutes).
Danielle Keller says
I did 2 cups of dried beans and 7 cups of water per the recipe. They came out absolutely perfect! Thank you!
Support @ Minimalist Baker says
Amazing! Thank you for sharing, Danielle! xo
Holly says
I followed the instructions precisely, and the beans turned out perfectly! Tomorrow I’ll try Great Northerns. Thank you so much!
Support @ Minimalist Baker says
Yay! Thank you for sharing, Holly!
Kate says
Unfortunately I read the comments after making my beans and I too ended up with kidney mush. Normal sized beans that are over a year old, no soak, 40 min cook time with 15 min NPR and immediate draining – complete mush. Bummer.
Support @ Minimalist Baker says
Sorry that happened, Kate!
Chef says
Incorrect information. The instant pot manual clearly states 25-30mins for kidney beans. 45mins equals mush beans.
Support @ Minimalist Baker says
Hi, sorry you had a negative experience with it! We’re aware of what’s in the Instant Pot manual and created this recipe differently because there were several things in the manual that didn’t work out for us. Is it possible you were using beans that were already soaked in water? That would cause them to cook much faster.
JT says
I needed to make a large pot of beans for a party. Did one 16oz package of pinto beans and one 16oz package of kidney beans. I used 12 cups of water because that’s all my IP could take. I’ve made beans before and done 45 to 50 min but they never come out as tender as I like them. I cooked these for 1 hour and my beans came out perfect!
Support @ Minimalist Baker says
Lovely! Thanks so much for sharing, JT.
Betty says
Turns beans to mush! Try 20 mins for unsoaked. My beans are very old and 40+ mins in the cooker basically turns them into refried beans. Struggled w this recipe until I found other suggestions. Usually my recipes from here are a hit – this one isn’t right.
Support @ Minimalist Baker says
Hi Betty, sorry this one didn’t turn out for you! Ours were still very hard at 20 minutes. Perhaps size of the beans could make a difference? We’ll do some additional testing and see if we can figure out what might be causing the difference!
James says
Okay, finished cooking my first batch of red kidney beans. 2-1/2 cups of beans with 8-1/2 cups of water for 45 minutes. Slightly too big a combo for my Instant Pot and had some boil over. They came out great for my purposes. The bottom beans were a little mushy and the top ones were somewhat tender. The mushy beans are now making a great bean sauce while the tender ones finish softening. Next time I’ll use less beans and water. Thanks for the recipe.
James says
I am about to try this recipe to cook the beans. They look a little dry in the photos. I will transfer the cooked beans to a pot where I will add herbs & spices and more water to create a sauce. Secret ingredient: Culantro. (Not cilantro).
Support @ Minimalist Baker says
Hi James! We drained the beans for the photos, there will be extra liquid left over. We hope you enjoy!
Deborrah says
Discovered I had no canned beans for my chili, but I did have dried kidney beans. So I followed these directions using organic low sodium beef broth vs water, threw in a bay leaf and a shallot I cut in half. Cooked for only 30 minutes as they would have some additional cooking time in the chili. Delish! People actually picked out the beans to smack on. LOL!
Support @ Minimalist Baker says
Yay! Thanks so much for the great review, Deborrah!
Karen says
These cooked perfectly! I did the 45 minute cook, since I wanted a softer texture for some chili. Of course, if I were making a salad with them, I would do 40 minutes instead.
I tried this after using your black bean instant pot recipe that also turned out perfectly. You are my respected authority on instant pot bean making!
Bonus Note: I’m sure I’ve had my kidney beans on hand for at least a year, maybe longer, and they still turned out perfectly.
Support @ Minimalist Baker says
Yay! We’re so glad to hear this worked, even with year old beans. Thanks for the review, Karen!
Carol says
My beans are mush!
Support @ Minimalist Baker says
Hi Carol, so sorry they didn’t turn out right! Is it possible your beans were a smaller variety than the ones in our pictures? Or that they were super fresh or soaked? Most readers have had success with this recipe, but one other reader did report a similar result to you. We’d love to help figure out what the difference might be!
Kat says
Thank you for this straightforward recipe/instructions on how to get my dried beans edible in under an hour. I truly appreciate that you did not include the history of the kidney bean, why it’s your families favorite bean and wrap it all up with a heart felt story of memories of eating kidney beans and cornbread on your grandpas back porch. I just needed some basic instructions without any fluff. THANK YOU!
Recipe worked beautifully!
Support @ Minimalist Baker says
Ha! We’re so glad you enjoyed it, Kat. Thanks so much for the lovely review! xo
Shelia Burk says
I 2nd this! I don’t understand why so many add all of the extra fluff. When we are looking for a recipe, we want to know how to cook something, not a history lesson or a novel.
I very much appreciate the format.
However, I am from Louisiana and we appreciate the gravy made from “mushy” beans and serve it over rice. We usually accomplish this with more water and an extended amount of cook time beyond just making the beans edible.
How do I know how much more time to add? And how much liquid does 3½ cups water per cup of beans yield?
Support @ Minimalist Baker says
Hi Shelia, 3 1/2 cups will just barely be covering the beans once cooked. We’d suggest playing around with adding 5-10 minutes more at a time to reach your desired consistency. Hope that helps!
Julie Schaper says
Absolutely delicious!!! Ended up with a lot of water, is that normal??
Support @ Minimalist Baker says
Hi Julie, yes, that’s normal! You need enough to fully cover the beans, otherwise they will cook unevenly. You can drain it off or save for other uses.
Julie Schaper says
Thank you, they are beyond tasty!! Used some of the extra juice in my chili!!!
Fran says
Made this 2 times now. 1st time I doubled the recipe. The 2nd time I tripled it. Both times went from dried kidney beans to fully cooked. Set pot for 50 minutes with release. Then added them to slow cook in a chicken masala recipe. This recipe works! (You don’t need to slow cook). They are good after the initial cook. My guess is people who have a hard time with them not being cooked have really old beans?
Support @ Minimalist Baker says
Thank you for sharing your experience, Fran! We’re so glad the recipe has worked well for you.
John says
I did 40 minutes on high as directed with the 15 minutes of natural release for 2 cups of dried kidneys in 7 cups of water. The beans are way over cooked, to the point that they came out as a creamy mush. Next time I will follow all the other recipes I’ve found since ruining the beans that say to cook them for 30 minutes
Support @ Minimalist Baker says
Hi John, sorry to hear that was your experience! In our experimentation, we found 30 minutes wasn’t long enough to fully cook the beans. Depending on the age of the beans and quality of water (hard vs. soft), the cook time can vary a little. Hope the next one goes better for you!
Pam says
I wouldn’t exactly say that the beans were ruined. Place them in your food processor with spices and cilantro to make easy refried beans that work well with wraps or rice and vegetables.
Lindsay says
I bought some white kidney beans and every time i cook them by all methods they are too mushy. I did the no soak method this time for 40 minutes and again mush. Do white kidney beans cook less time than other beans? I heard the fresher the beans are the less time they need to cook. Is this the problem? Maybe I need to soak and boil conventionally and keep trying them for when they are cooked?
Support @ Minimalist Baker says
Hi Lindsay, you can find our instructions for white kidney beans (cannelini beans) in the notes section of this Instant Pot White Beans recipe. Hope that helps!
Diana says
This worked perfectly! Yes there’s extra liquid at the end of the process, but I simply drained it off. The result was delicious tender beans!
Support @ Minimalist Baker says
Amazing! Thank you for sharing, Diana! xo
Ellen Gale says
This recipe worked perfectly and the beans tasted so much better then canned!
Support @ Minimalist Baker says
Yay! Thanks, Ellen!
Julie Schaper says
I am going to add some of that extra liquid to my chili, yummy!!!
Erin says
Hi! I’ve got soaked kidney beans. Any chance anyone knows the ratio soaked to water? They appear to have tripled in size just from soaking, but I don’t remember how many I soaked.
Support @ Minimalist Baker says
Hi Erin, with the Instant Pot, you’ll need to cover them by at least 1/2 inch and then drain off any excess water. We’d suggest a 1:3 ratio to ensure even cooking. Hope that helps!
casiel1969 says
I’d reduce the water by at least a third. With this much water it’s basically soup. I reduced it by a bit and it was still far more liquid than it took to cook them. I threw a diced medium yellow onion in ours, 4 tablespoons of garlic, and pieces of pan browned pork roast (3 inch squares). Pork helped flavor the beans.
Support @ Minimalist Baker says
Hi, with the Instant Pot, we find that using less water causes the beans at the top to not cook through.
Sharon says
Even a few undercooked beans in your pot is surprisingly unhealthy.
Ace says
If i want to make a bean dish and cook multiple types of beans including kindey beans can i do all of them for 45 mins?
I would rather not cook them individually since that would take a lot of time and use more electricity
Support @ Minimalist Baker says
Hi Ace, it will depend on the types of beans you’re using other than kidney beans. If they are beans that have a similar cook time (+/- about 10 minutes), we think it should be fine. You can find that information here. Hope that helps!
D. J. Womack says
I made these tonight and it was easy using the Insta Pot, since I had not decided on beans until it was too late to soak them. But I found that 45 minutes with 15 minutes for natural release wasn’t enough for tender beans. I ended up repressurizing for another 15 minutes. They were delicious. I cook beans in the Insta Pot from now on. Here’s a tip. If you add 1/4 tsp of baking soda to the recipe before cooking, it will take the “wind” out of the beans. Just cut back a bit on the salt… or not.
Support @ Minimalist Baker says
Thank you for sharing your experience and tip, D.J!
Scott says
How would you adjust the time if you want to go totally minimalist and use dry beans LOL? Thanks.
Support @ Minimalist Baker says
Hi Scott, no changes are needed. This recipe is written for using dry beans. Hope that helps!
Laurie says
Worked perfectly! I used broth and cooked for 40 minutes and the flavor was terrific.
Laurie
Support @ Minimalist Baker says
Woohoo! Thanks for sharing, Laurie! xo
Barb says
Thanks for sharing. I still soak the beans which I believe is helpful for digestion and then put in instapot – no issues at all! Can’t wait to try your other bean recipes once these are done!
Support @ Minimalist Baker says
Love that! Thanks for sharing, Barb! xo
Meg says
Please look up red kidney bean poisoning. Kidney beans should be soaked, then boiled for 10 minutes, to be made safe for consumption.
Support @ Minimalist Baker says
Thanks for sharing, Meg! It sounds like raw kidney beans are the issue. If the beans get fully cooked, they should be safe to consume. We definitely wouldn’t recommend eating them if they don’t cook through.
Pearl says
That’s what I’m researching right now since my husband came home with about 10 bags of them during the pandemic shortage. My fault. I said get as many beans and rice bags as you can find and they were out of almost everything else. Now I know why these were left :D
Anyway, the pressure cooker “boils” them for far longer than 10 minutes, so I’m going to start cooking them up!
Marilyn says
I want to make more than one cup (dry). Should do double the liquid or leave it at 3.5 cups?
Support @ Minimalist Baker says
Hi Marilyn, you can adjust the number of servings and the amount of beans/water will adjust accordingly. Hope that helps!
Sharon says
The problem extends to using the water rather than draining it, and also using too little water so that some are undercooked. Just as few as four uncooked kidney beans can be toxic, but a batch with a few undercooked kidney beans can also result in PHA poisoning.
Boomer says
You might want to read this. Highly doubt it pertains to pressure cooked beans- https://www.foodnetwork.com/healthyeats/healthy-tips/are-red-kidney-beans-toxic