HOW TO COOK DRIED BLACK BEANS

Rich, hearty, healthy and delicious! No matter what you call them, Black Beans, Turtle Beans and Frijoles Negros are all the same glorious bean that you can have on the table fast (in terms of dried beans) with a kick tail ton of flavor if you follow my simple instructions for how to cook dried black beans!

WHY THIS RECIPE WORKS

• Beans are tender!
• Dried black beans are affordable, healthy and TASTY!
• Black beans add a lovely color to any dish you choose to use them in!
• You’ll have hearty bean combined with bright onion and garlic, smoky meat, a little bit of fat to tickle the tongue and a touch of acidity to top it all off.

In this recipe I’ll show you how to:

• • jazz up simple dried black beans
  • get the most possible flavor out of your beans and
  • find satisfied bellies around your table!
  • I’ll be sure to share with you all the ways to cook your black beans too!

Here’s How To Cook Dried Black Beans

STEP 1.

Start with your bag of dried beans, cut the bag open and place the beans into a container to be rinsed and then soaked.

How to Cook Dried Black Beans

STEP 2.

Remove any damaged or bad beans that you find

STEP 3.

Cover the beans with cold water you will cook with 1-2″ of water.

STEP 5.

Heat to a simmer for the cooking process. Allow to simmer for 2-3 minutes. Then drain into a colander in the sink. 

STEP 6.

Melt the butter in the sauce pan and cook onions and garlic until softened.

STEP 7.

Add the presoaked beans to the onion mix and cover with water again.

STEP 8.

Add the seasonings and broth concentrate

STEP 9.

Finally add any meat or bone you will use for seasoning as well. 

The Many Ways to Cook Dried Black Bean Recipes

HOW TO COOK DRIED BLACK BEANS IN THE CROCKPOT AND SLOW COOKER.

To Cook your dried black beans in the crockpot or the slow cooker, follow the recipe below with the following changes…

1. Rinse the beans.
2. Soak the beans by either the quick soak or the overnight soak method,  
3. Drain the beans as indicated.

Then, you can do either of the following:

1. You can simply add all of the ingredients to the crockpot / slow cooker, put the lid on and set it on low. Come back in 8 hours and your dinner will be done. It is fine to put the raw bacon in the container as it will cook and add flavor to the beans during the day. No worries. The liquid in the beans should cover the beans by 1-2 inches but not more. Dip some out if it is more than that.
2. If adding raw bacon to something freaks you out or if you want a more crispy bacon in your beans (it won’t be crispy at the end of cooking all day anyway), then precook the bacon in a frying pan and add everything to the crockpot as written. The liquid in the beans should cover the beans by 1-2 inches but not more. Dip some out if it is more than that.

HOW TO COOK DRIED BLACK BEANS IN THE PRESSURE COOKER OR INSTANT POT

• Follow the recipe as written below for the rinsing and presoak.
• Add everything to the pressure cooker or instant pot. Bring to pressure and cook at full pressure for 10 minutes. Allow to come back to normal pressure naturally.
• Do NOT QUICK RELEASE beans. It can cause the beans to explode and then you’ll just have a pot of mush.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ’s) 

How Do You Cook Dried Black Beans Fast?

The quickest way to cook dried black beans is to use the quick soak method and then to cook in a pressure cooker or instant pot.

If you don’t have a pressure cooker or instant pot, the next quickest and fast method is to cook on the stovetop and then will take (at best) One hour and 15 minutes.

Do I Have to Soak Black Beans Before Cooking Them?

No You do not have to soak black beans before cooking them, you can use the rapid cook method! It’s easy, just check out the recipe below!

How To Cook Dried Black Beans Without Soaking

If you want to cook dried black beans without soaking them, just put them on to cook. However, you will likely need to cook them for quite a bit longer. You will also be cooking with the water that softened the outside skin.

I don’t recommend this.

How to Cook Dried Black Beans After Soaking

To cook dried black beans after soaking, simply follow the recipe as written in the recipe card below.

How to Use Dried Black Beans

You can use the completed black beans as follows:

• Just eat a heaping bowl full as you dinner!
• Add some to your burrito
• Sprinkle over your salad
• Use in your soup!
• Make Chili!

HOW DO I SOAK MY BLACK BEANS?

Soaking the beans is a necessary evil in cooking beans. This helps to soften the hard dried outside of the bean.

Often, people ask if they can’t just cook the beans longer or they will say, “I never soak mine and they always come out right”.

My response is, do you really want to take a chance? Beans take a while to cook and I don’t want to risk it, personally.

Make sure to pour off the soaking liquid.

How Long Does It Take To Cook Black Beans?

You will cook your black beans initially for 10 minutes if you do the quick soak method. Then, when they actually begin cooking they will need about 1-2 hours before they are ready to eat.

It could take a little longer, if you like your beans softer.

CAN I COOK MY BLACK BEANS FAST OR QUICKLY?

Yes, you can use the quick soak method described in the post below and they will be ready (on the stove top in under 3 hours). They could even be ready in less than 2 hours!

If you really want your beans done quickly, then you will want to invest in a pressure cooker or an instant pot. Those directions are in this post as well.

HOW CAN I MAKE MY BLACK BEANS MEXICAN STYLE?

Mexican style beans often include a sofrito. A sofrito is a sauce made of onions, peppers, garlic and tomatoes as well as various herbs.

My recipe here does not include a sofrito, but an excellent option for Mexican style black beans is to add the following…

Just after the onions and garlic add….

• 1 chopped green pepper
• 4 Tbs Tomato paste
• 2 bay leaves (remove the bay leaves after the beans are done cooking)
• ½ tsp cumin
• ½ tsp oregano

Then follow the rest of the recipe as written.

CAN I COOK MY BLACK BEANS ON THE STOVE?

Absolutely! The recipe for stove top beans is in the recipe box below!

HOW LONG DO I COOK MY BLACK BEANS AFTER SOAKING?

After soaking your beans, you will cook them for 1-2 hours or longer if you prefer softer beans.

Allow to simmer for 1-3 hours until the beans are the softness that you prefer, serve and garnish with onion slices or fresh parsley…

What Goes with Black Beans?

We love our black beans with Chicken Pie and dear heavens it’s good with Liver Pudding! 

Tips and Tricks for Perfect Black Beans

• I use bacon in this recipe because it is readily available. If you have a ham hock, smoked turkey leg, turkey tail or other large beef or pork bone you can add, then skip the part about the bacon, add the other ingredients, spices, herbs, salt and pepper and once you have added the water, place your meat flavoring agent (bone,hock, etc) into the pot to cook with the beans. You won’t be sorry!
• Feel free to vary the garlic. I LOVE garlic, but if you don’t then feel free to leave it out.
• It is fine to substitute garlic and onion powder if you don’t have the actual ingredient. Go with 1 ½ tsp of onion powder and 1 tsp garlic powder.
• If you are using table salt instead of kosher, you only need half of what is called for in this recipe. Table salt is a smaller grain and therefore, you use less.

Substitutions

• The amount of cayenne added to this recipe will NOT make your beans so hot that you can’t eat them. It is just a little something interesting for your mouth to experience. If you are totally opposed to heat, then leave it out. However, I recommend you try this tiny little bit of cayenne because a tiny tad of heat is something you will probably want in delicious home cooked authentic dishes like this.
• I recommend using the broth concentrate. The brand I use is the Better than Bouillon brand. If you don’t have that, instead use either chicken broth instead of the water OR you can add a couple of bouillon cubes. If you decide to go with bouillon cubes, then do not add the salt until the end where you are able to taste it first.
• If you don’t have apple cider vinegar, then add white vinegar (or really any vinegar that you have). If you don’t have vinegar then add an equal amount of lemon juice. The dish simply needs a little acidity to top off the taste. This is VERY important and will give your entire dish an oomph!
• Taste the beans before you serve them. You will likely need to add more salt and pepper.

If You Enjoyed These Black Beans, You Might Also Enjoy…

Pinto Beans on the Stove Top

The Secret to Southern Pinto Beans

How to Cook Canned Navy Beans

What To Fix With Pinto Beans

YA’LL HELP ME OUT NOW, YA HEAR?

Please leave me a 5 star 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟  comment below in the comment section, all right? I would LOVE to know if you made this recipe or even if you are planning to! Of course, head on over to Pinterest, Facebook and Instagram and tag me with some photos of your creation!

I can’t wait!

Ya’ll know I love your comments!! ❤

How To Cook Dried Black Beans

This is a basic and tasty recipe for how to cook dried black beans with ingredients you probably already have in your kitchen

5 from 2 votes

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Course: main

Cuisine: American

Keyword: how to cook dried black beans, black beans

Prep Time: 15 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 2 hours hours

Total Time: 2 hours hours 15 minutes minutes

Servings: 8 servings

Calories: 274kcal

Author: Wendi Spraker

Ingredients

• 16 oz dried black beans
• 2 Tbs butter
• 4 strips of bacon
• 1 small onion chopped
• 4 cloves garlic minced
• ½ tsp ground cayenne pepper
• 1 tsp kosher salt
• 1 tsp ground black pepper
• 6-8 Cups water
• 1 Tbs Chicken broth concentrate see notes
• 1 Tbs Apple Cider Vinegar see notes

Instructions

For Quick Soak Method: The fastest way to cook these dried beans

• Rinse the beans in a colander in your sink.  Remove any that look shriveled or have spots or are discolored.  Throw those away.
• Place the remaining rinsed beans in a large 6-8 quart soup pot.
• Cover the beans with 2 inches of water (6-8 cups).
• Place on the stove top on medium high heat and bring to a boil.  Boil for 2 minutes.
• After 2 minutes, remove the pot from the heat, put the lid on and leave them alone for an hour.  The continue with the cooking instructions noted below.

For the Overnight Soak:  The low and slow way to prepare beans.

• Rinse the beans in a colander in your kitchen sink. Remove any that look shriveled or have spots or are discolored.  Throw those away.
• Place the remaining rinsed beans in a large 6-8 quart soup pot.
• Cover the beans with 2 inches of water (6-8 cups).
• Allow the beans to sit in the water overnight or for at least 8 hours.

COOKING INSTRUCTIONS

• Drain the beans in a colander in the sink (whether you used the overnight or the quick soak method).
• While the beans are sitting in the colander, rinse out the soup pot very well and return to the stove top.
• Set burner on medium and melt the butter in the pot. When the butter is melted, add the pieces of bacon and allow them to cook. (see notes below if you are using a ham bone, ham hock, turkey wing or tail or any other cut of meat for flavoring)
• Once the bacon is cooked, add the onion.  As the onion begins to soften, add the garlic and let it cook for 1 minute.
• Add the cayenne, salt and pepper and immediately add the water and chicken stock concentrate and then immediately add your soaked beans.  The amount of the liquid should cover the beans by an inch or two. If it doesn’t add more water until it does.
• Stir well and bring the pot up to a simmer (not a full on rolling boil, just a gentle little simmer). If you have a piece of meat to add to your beans (see notes) this is the time to add that.
• Cook this way (by simmering) for 1-2 hours. Test your beans to see that they are the softness that you desire.  Some people like theirs more firm and others soft. It’s entirely up to you. If you like yours more soft, then cook longer.  The longer you cook, the softer they will get.
• Add the apple cider vinegar before tasting for salt (see note)
• Taste your beans for the level of salt.  If they don’t taste quite right, chances are that you haven’t added enough salt.  Add salt by the half teaspoonful, stir, wait for a minute or two, stir again and then taste. Keep doing this until they are salted the way you like. Do the same with the pepper.

Notes

• I use bacon in this recipe because it is readily available.  If you have a ham hock, smoked turkey leg, turkey tail or other large beef or pork bone you can add, then skip the part about the bacon, add the other ingredients, spices, herbs, salt and pepper and once you have added the water, place your meat flavoring agent (bone,hock, etc) into the pot to cook with the beans.  You won’t be sorry!
• Feel free to vary the garlic.  I LOVE garlic, but if you don’t then feel free to leave it out.  
• It is fine to substitute garlic and onion powder if you don’t have the actual ingredient.  Go with 1 ½ tsp of onion powder and 1 tsp garlic powder.
• If you are using table salt instead of kosher, you only need half of what is called for in this recipe.  Table salt is a smaller grain and therefore, you use less.
• The amount of cayenne added to this recipe will NOT make your beans so hot that you can’t eat them.  It is just a little something interesting for your mouth to experience. If you are totally opposed to heat, then leave it out.  However, I recommend you try this tiny little bit of cayenne because a tiny tad of heat is something you will probably want in delicious home cooked authentic dishes like this.
• I recommend using the broth concentrate.  The brand I use is the Better than Bouillon brand.  If you don’t have that, instead use either chicken broth instead of the water OR you can add a couple of bouillon cubes.  If you decide to go with bouillon cubes, then do not add the salt until the end where you are able to taste it first.
• If you don't have apple cider vinegar, then add white vinegar (or really any vinegar that you have).  If you don't have vinegar then add an equal amount of lemon juice.  The dish simply needs a little acidity to top off the taste.  This is VERY important and will give your entire dish an oomph!
• Taste the beans before you serve them.  You will likely need to add more salt and pepper.  

Nutrition

Nutrition Facts

How To Cook Dried Black Beans

Amount Per Serving

Calories 274 Calories from Fat 72

% Daily Value*

Fat 8g12%

Saturated Fat 4g20%

Cholesterol 15mg5%

Sodium 409mg17%

Potassium 889mg25%

Carbohydrates 38g13%

Fiber 9g36%

Sugar 2g2%

Protein 14g28%

Vitamin A 145IU3%

Vitamin C 2mg2%

Calcium 81mg8%

Iron 3mg17%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

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***This recipe first appeared on the pages of Loaves and Dishes on December 29,2018 and has been updated with standard organizations, new FAQ’s, updated recipe information, substitutions and more information***

A VERSE TO SHARE

Every time that I eat beans I think about the story of the prodigal son. The verse says that when he goes off and squanders his father’s fortunes, he takes a job working in a farmer’s field and he is so hungry that he would gladly eat what the pigs were eating (bean shells). He had fallen a long way by that point. 

I’m always glad when he decides to go home and ask that his father forgive him enough to allow him to work in the field for his father.

It’s never a surprise that the brother is angry about this. That’s human, isn’t it.

I also think about this story when I am feeling jealous of someone else. It’s proof that I need to walk my own path and keep my nose in my own business. I need to be glad for others when there is something to be glad about. 

God loves me and gives to me in his time, not mine. It isn’t really any of my business what someone else is getting even when it is obvious that I have worked harder, longer or better.

Amen.

Luke 15: 15-16 

So he went and hired himself out to a citizen of that country, who sent him to his fields to feed pigs. He longed to fill his stomach with the pods that the pigs were eating, but no one gave him anything.