These Crock Pot Pinto Beans cook low and slow until tender, creamy, and full of flavor. Enjoy them over rice, stuffed inside tacos or burritos, added to grain bowls, or as a simple side dish. If you’re someone who loves to meal prep, these slow cooker pinto beans are going to become one of your new favorites!
Recipe Summary
- Minimal prep: Just 10 minutes of rinsing and chopping.
- Slow-cooked goodness: Beans turn out tender, creamy, and flavorful.
- Budget-friendly: Makes a big batch from one bag of dry beans.
- Versatile: Use in tacos, burritos, nachos, bowls, or as a side.
- Meal-prep friendly: Stores 5 days in the fridge or 3 months in the freezer.
This recipe makes a large batch, so you can keep your family fed all week or freeze some of the beans for later. These tasty beans are a great side to pair with your favorite main dishes like hamburgers or bbq chicken thighs.
They’re also perfect for adding to Mexican-inspired dishes like tacos, nachos, or burritos, and make a tasty, protein-packed addition to grain bowls. The best part is they’re incredibly easy to make with minimal hands-on time! For more ways to enjoy beans, check out my 15 bean soup and three bean salad next.
Why You Will Love This Recipe
- Budget-Friendly: Dry beans are one of the most affordable pantry staples, and this slow cooker pinto beans recipe makes a big batch that you can use for multiple meals.
- Easy Cleanup: Everything cooks together in one pot, making cleanup a breeze. You can even use a crockpot liner to make it even easier.
- Versatile: Simply serve these slow-cooked pinto beans over rice with a drizzle of avocado hot sauce for a tasty lunch, or use them to create other dishes like tacos, burritos, nachos, grain bowls, and more. The options are endless!
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Ingredients
- Pinto Beans: Be sure you are using dry beans, not canned. You’ll need a 1-pound bag for this crock pot pinto beans recipe.
- Broth: You can use either chicken broth or vegetable broth (for a vegetarian or vegan version) to cook the beans.
- Aromatics: Onion and garlic add depth of flavor to the beans.
- Seasonings: I used cumin, paprika, salt, pepper, and a bay leaf to season the beans.
See the recipe card below for exact ingredient amounts, nutritional information, and detailed instructions.
Variations
- Smoky & Spicy: Use smoked paprika instead of regular paprika and add some hot sauce or cayenne pepper
- Subtly Sweet: Mix in a touch of honey, agave, maple syrup, brown sugar, or coconut sugar to add a little sweetness.
- With Bacon: Stir in some chopped, cooked bacon just before serving to make crock pot pinto beans with bacon.
How to Make Pinto Beans in a Crock Pot
To get started making pinto beans in the crockpot, sort and pick through the beans, removing any broken pieces or small stones. Then, give the beans a good rinse to wash away any dust or dirt.
Step 1: Soak the beans. Place the dry beans in a large bowl and cover with water. Allow the beans to soak for 8 hours or overnight. Drain and rinse.
Step 2: Add everything to the slow cooker. Add the broth, onion, garlic, cumin, paprika, salt, pepper, pinto beans, and bay leaf to the crockpot. Stir to combine the ingredients.
Step 3: Cook. Cover and cook for 8-10 hours on low or 5-6 hours on high.
Step 4: Adjust and serve. Remove the bay leaf and then give the beans a taste. Adjust the seasonings as desired and serve.
Expert Tips
- Use a fresh bag of beans: Old beans may never fully soften even after cooking for a long period of time. Therefore, it’s best to start with a new bag when making pinto beans in a crock pot.
- Spray or line the crockpot: Lightly coat your slow cooker with cooking spray or use a crockpot liner to prevent sticking and make cleanup easy.
- Storing and reheating: Allow the beans to cool before storing them in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days or in the freezer for up to 3 months. Reheat on the stovetop or in the microwave with a little extra broth if needed. If frozen, thaw in the fridge overnight before reheating.
Serving Suggestions
- Make these beans as part of a family dinner alongside these air fryer chicken wings and these crockpot collard greens.
- Bring these slow cooked pinto beans to a potluck along with some homemade honey cornbread for dipping.
- Stuff them in tacos or burritos, or use them on nachos and serve with some pineapple habanero salsa or fresh mango salsa.
Recipe FAQs
Yes! Because of the long cooking time, you don’t really need to soak them. However, soaking is said to help with digestion, so if you're short on time, you could always quick-soak the beans instead. Add the beans to a pot and cover them with water. Then, bring to a boil and cook for 2 minutes. Remove the pot from the heat and let the beans sit in the hot water for 1 hour. Drain and rinse.
Sure! Add the beans (unsoaked), broth, seasonings, onion, and garlic to the instant pot. Cook on high pressure for 45 minutes, and then allow a natural release for at least 15 minutes.
Did you try this recipe? Please leave a star rating in the recipe card right below! You can also write a review in the comment section further down the page I always appreciate your feedback. And don’t forget to tag me @freshcoasteats in your photos on social media, I'd love to see your results!
Slow Cooker Pinto Beans
Ingredients
- 1 lb dry pinto beans sorted and rinsed
- 6 cups vegetable or chicken broth
- 1 small onion chopped
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- ½ teaspoon paprika
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
Instructions
- Optional: Soak pinto beans in water overnight or for at least 8 hours, then drain and rinse before cooking.
- Prepare the slow cooker by coating with a light coating of cooking spray.
- Add the pinto beans, chicken broth, chopped onion, minced garlic, cumin, paprika, bay leaf, salt, and pepper to the slow cooker and stir to combine.
- Cover and cook on low for 8–10 hours or on high for 5–6 hours, until beans are tender and creamy.
- Remove the bay leaf, taste and adjust seasoning as needed before serving.
Notes
- Use fresh beans for the best results, as older beans don’t turn out as tender.
- If you don’t have time to soak the beans overnight, you can quick-soak them. Boil them in a covered pot of water for 2 minutes. Then, remove them from the heat and let them soak for 1 hour before draining and rinsing.
- Leftover beans can be stored in an airtight container for up to 5 days in the refrigerator and up to 3 months in the freezer.
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