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Slow Cooker Pinto Beans

September 26, 2014 by Missy Rakes 98 Comments

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Try this easy method for cooking dried pinto beans in your slow cooker for a cheap and filling meal!

A brown bowl full of cooked pinto beans.

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Slow Cooker Pinto Beans

I normally don’t have too many kitchen mishaps, but when I do it involves dried beans. Seriously, up until about a year ago every time I tried to cook dried beans everything seemed to go horribly wrong.

I don’t now if it was the soaking part or the simmering part, but I just couldn’t seem to get it right. And to make matters worse, my husband’s favorite meal on the planet is beans and cornbread. Seriously.

*face palm*

Anyway, being the determined little wife that I am I kept on trying and failing. Then one day someone told me to use my slow cooker. And just like that my dried bean curse was broken. Brilliant.

As long as you give them enough time and make sure they are covered with water all day, then beans in the slow cooker will treat you right. I’m so glad because they are cheaper than canned beans and they freeze well. Yippee! So here is my recipe for bean success.

How to Make Slow Cooker Pinto Beans:

Cover beans with water to soak overnight.

Next morning, rinse beans and place in slow cooker,

Add water, oil and onion. Stir.

Set on low for 10-12 hrs or until soft. I checked my beans at the 6 1/2 hr mark and they were still crunchy so I turned them on high for 2 hrs to be done in time for dinner which also worked great!

Make cornbread. Because pinto beans without cornbread is just sad.

Let cool and top with all the trimmings!!

*Don’t add salt or high acid foods such as tomatoes until the end because the beans won’t soften.

Well there it is, the secret to perfectly cooked beans. I hope you will try this fabulously frugal recipe and let me know how it worked for you!

Want more recipes using beans? Here are some of my favorites:

Bean and Cheese Freezer Burritos
Super Simple Beans and Rice
Homemade Refried Beans
New Orleans Red Beans and Rice
Black Bean Brownies

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A brown bowl of cooked pinto beans.
Print Recipe

Slow Cooker Pinto Beans

See how easy it is to make pinto beans in your slow cooker!
Prep Time5 mins
Cook Time10 hrs
Total Time10 hrs 5 mins
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: American
Keyword: Slow Cooker Pinto Beans
Servings: 24
Calories: 139kcal

Equipment

  • Slow Cooker

Ingredients

  • 2 lbs dried beans
  • 1 onion chopped
  • 2-3 tbsp vegetable oil
  • 8 cups water or enough to cover by 1 inch

Instructions

  • Cover beans with water to soak overnight.
  • Next morning, rinse beans and place in slow cooker.
  • Add water, oil and onion. Stir.
  • Set on low for 10-12 hrs or until soft.
  • Let cool and top with all the trimmings.

Video

Notes

Don't add salt or high acid foods such as tomatoes until the end because the beans won't soften.
I freeze extra in quart-sized freezer bags.

Nutrition

Calories: 139kcal | Carbohydrates: 24g | Protein: 9g | Fat: 2g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Sodium: 9mg | Potassium: 520mg | Fiber: 6g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin C: 2mg | Calcium: 35mg | Iron: 3mg

Cooking beans in the slow cooker is simple and cheaper than buying canned. Plus you can freeze the leftovers for future meals!

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Filed Under: Cooking Tips & Tricks, Easy Recipes, Freezer Cooking, Frugal Living, Main Dishes, Slow Cooker

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  1. Shirley says

    May 21, 2017 at 2:50 pm

    I,personally, have never had a bad experience cooking beans. But when I was a young girl my mother was cooking pinto beans in her pressure cooker and suddenly we heard a loud noise and the beans and the bean soup shot into the air and proceeded to saturate the kitchen ceiling. Once the mess was cleaned up and we gained our composure we had a good laugh. We just hated that we were not going to have those pinto beans with our turnip greens and corn ? bread ? for supper that night.
    Reply
  2. Susan says

    May 28, 2017 at 2:44 pm

    What about salt?????
    Reply
    • Missy Rakes says

      May 28, 2017 at 4:00 pm

      Add salt to taste after the beans are cooked.
      Reply
      • Debbie says

        August 17, 2018 at 3:07 pm

        Always add when cooking so flavor gets into the beans.
        Reply
        • DebbiD says

          August 12, 2020 at 5:07 pm

          Adding the st while cooking makes the beans tough and it takes longer to cook.
          Reply
  3. Van E Ferrell says

    May 30, 2017 at 12:50 am

    What no fried potatoes must be fried in a cast iron skillet
    Reply
  4. Kim Beals says

    June 2, 2017 at 10:22 pm

    Does anyone have a great cornbread recipe to share? One that isn't too sweet please.
    Reply
    • Missy Rakes says

      June 3, 2017 at 8:56 am

      I use the one from the red and white Betty Crocker Cookbook. It's good.
      Reply
    • Jeannie says

      August 23, 2019 at 9:36 am

      Cornmeal, egg, buttermilk little bit of water cook in cast iron skillet that is very hot with small amount of oil. Bak at 350 for 40 minutes.
      Reply
    • Judy says

      July 25, 2020 at 7:53 am

      Kim Beals:. My cornbread is done with white cornmeal, egg, milk or buttermilk and add this to a hot iron skillet with butter crisco in it. It turns out buttery and GOOOOOD! To me the Butter Crisco does the trick!

      4 stars

      Reply
  5. Sherry Williams says

    June 3, 2017 at 10:27 pm

    Your beans look delicious. I wanted to tell you how I have made my beans for years. I never soak my beans. I simply wash my dried beans and cook them on the stovetop. I add a few thick slices of salt pork, a couple of tablespoons of bacon grease, a couple teaspoons of chopped garlic, a medium sized chopped onion, a teaspoon of seasoned salt, a half tsp black pepper. I also brown a lb of smoked sausage. Chop that up and add to beans. I cover them in water by 3 to 4 inches. I simmer on low for several hours. Probably four to five hours. If they are too thin when done, I add some cornstarch to thicken. I serve them over rice. My beans are always soft. Being from Louisiana, I sometimes spice them up even more with Cajun seasoning. Try them sometime when you feel...spicy!
    Reply
    • Missy Rakes says

      June 5, 2017 at 8:55 am

      Thanks for sharing. Sounds good!
      Reply
    • Morgan says

      July 9, 2018 at 10:27 pm

      I am making those soon. Thanks for sharing your recipe too.
      Reply
  6. Ruth says

    June 7, 2017 at 6:34 pm

    I soak my beans overnight, rinse then cook covered with water is a saucepan on the stove top fir 30-40 minutes. Drain, cool and freeze in portion size snap lock bags. Perfect for large chick peas.
    Reply
  7. Kim says

    June 11, 2017 at 7:58 pm

    I always add salt when I start cooking them. They're bland to me without seasoning them from the start. I just drop the dried beans straight into the crock pot cover them with an extra 2 inches of water, add a palmful of salt and cook on high for 4 hours. Perfect every time. For my veggie chili I add black, pinto, and kidney beans the same way and drop in a jar of salsa and the chili seasoning. Also comes out perfect. I'm curious why you mentioned not adding salt or acidic foods. I've never had any issues with them. Thanks!!
    Reply
  8. Barry says

    October 2, 2017 at 1:37 pm

    I seriously never thought anyone could not cook dried beans. I clean the beans, removing small rocks, bits of dirt, rotten looking beans. Rinse under faucet, or if rinsing in the pot, at least three washings. I have never soaked beans. Use a pot big enough for them to expand. Cover with about 3-4 inches water. Medium heat, until beans are just simmering. If you needed to keep beans covered, add hot, boiling water. Cook until tender. If you cook them too slow, they turn dark and remain hard. People used to add a bit of salt pork, jowl or belly meat, to beans or peas. The super-market salt pork will work, but it's not the same. Too salty, for one thing. You can soak it in milk awhile to remove some salt. For some real goodness, buy an un-cooked smoked ham. Don't forget, this ham meat needs to be cooked. Slice the meat off for cooking later. (Fried ham, eggs and hot biscuits.) You will have chunks left that are too small to slice, but save them to cook in beans. Then boil the bone and trimmings in plenty of water. Remove the bone and trimmings. Let the broth cool, then skim and discard the fat. Freeze pints of this broth to cook beans in. One pint of broth for 1 cup of beans. About an hour before beans are done, add some of the chunks of ham from when you sliced the ham. If the ham is cooked too long, it loses it's flavor. I package the chunks enough for one pot of beans and freeze them. This works wonders for white beans, such as Great Northern. I have only been cooking for 75 years or so.
    Reply
  9. Linda Boughton says

    October 19, 2017 at 10:32 pm

    Honey, you forgot to say to pick &sort the beans to remove any debris & bad beans and then rinse three times to remove dirt first !! This has to be done Before you soak ! Not everyone knows to do that ! And if you bring them to boil and let them boil about 5 minutes, then turn off and soak overnite, they will cook faster.
    Reply
  10. Katie says

    November 30, 2017 at 1:06 am

    I've just discovered your blog today and am probably addicted! I'm a grandmother with a great grand daughter on the way. I raised my family on an organic farm and we were mainly vegetarian, I grew about 90% of our fruits and vegetables as well as grinding our grains and baking twice a week. (18 loaves of bread at a time) Your frugal but delicious and healthy suggestions are wonderful and give me a stroll down memory lane, which is about half a world away as I now live in New Zealand. Best regards to you and yours, Katie
    Reply
    • Missy Rakes says

      December 1, 2017 at 7:44 pm

      Thanks for letting me know and I'm so glad you are enjoying the blog. :)
      Reply
  11. Melissa says

    January 2, 2018 at 5:50 am

    My worse kitchen failure was due to beans. One Friday afternoon, I put a bowl of beans in water to soak overnight planning to make a bean stew the next day but not long after putting the beans in the water we were invited away for the weekend. I thought that the beans would be fine left to soak but Boy was I wrong. When we came home Sunday night we could barely enter the house due to the most horrific stench. The culprit was the now fermenting beans!
    Reply
  12. Susan says

    January 7, 2018 at 8:36 pm

    Do the beans not need salt?
    Reply
    • Jeannie says

      August 23, 2019 at 9:45 am

      Absolutely put salt in at the last 30 minutes of cooking.
      Reply
  13. Ellen says

    January 20, 2018 at 6:38 pm

    I put relish on my beans as well. When I was a kid, mom canned chow-chow and we used that on our beans. Mom would use ham, bacon or bacon fat in her beans. If she didn't have any of those, then she would use plain oil. Beans were always served with cornbread and greens, my favorite was turnip greens with a little vinegar sprinkled on top. Oh, we always had onions. To go with it. That was some good eatin'!!
    Reply
  14. D. Sutton says

    February 15, 2018 at 7:51 pm

    My Mom and Grandma taught me to add 1 or 2 T of baking soda to the soaking water. It reduces the amount of gas produced by eating beans. Just be sure to rinse them well before continuing cooking and adding the rest of your ingredients.
    Reply
  15. Karen says

    March 1, 2018 at 3:49 pm

    Where's the seasonings?
    Reply
    • Missy Rakes says

      March 2, 2018 at 9:28 am

      You can add more seasonings after the cooking is done.
      Reply
  16. lyle devitt says

    March 1, 2018 at 6:35 pm

    Do you use the liquid the beans cook in?
    Reply
    • Missy Rakes says

      March 2, 2018 at 9:27 am

      Yes, I just add the beans, liquid and all to recipes.
      Reply
  17. Jill Tucker says

    March 22, 2018 at 8:19 pm

    I guess I make these little different from everyone else. First, you have to make sure thete are no rocks, dirt or bad beans in the bafmg. Rinse at least 3 times. Put the beans in a Dutch oven or slow cooker. Cover with water so that the beans are submerged about 2 inches. I used to add salt pork, but have found bacon works just as well. I add about three strips of bacon and salt and pepper. I cook them on top of the stove about three hours, or until the beans are very soft and a nice soup has formed. In a slow cooker, I cook them about 6 hours on low or 4 hours on high. Onion is served on the side, a long with corn muffins and crispy fried potatoes and some spinach. They are so good. I also don't soak the beans. I have not noticed a difference in them whether I do or not.si I just don't bother.
    Reply
  18. douglas mosier says

    June 23, 2018 at 8:26 am

    DON'T try this with kidney beans! They have a toxin n the (phytohemagluttanin) that causes severe digestive distress (I won't go into details but it ain't pretty!). AL beans have these substances but kdney beans have the hghest concentraton by ar. To be safe, though, the following procedure has been recommended by the PHLS (Public Health Laboratory Services, Colindale, U.K.) to render kidney, and other, beans safe for consumption: * Soak in water for at least 5 hours. * Pour away the water. * Boil briskly in fresh water for at least 10 minutes. * Undercooked beans may be more toxic than raw beans.
    Reply
    • Leanne says

      December 18, 2018 at 2:28 am

      I've never heard of this and I cook kidney beans in my crock pot all of the time. We've never gotten sick or had any stomach issues from them. I'm in the U.S. if that makes any difference.
      Reply
  19. Martha says

    August 15, 2018 at 10:00 am

    I use 2 Tablespoon of bacon grease. My mother used it in her beans.
    Reply
  20. Debbie says

    August 17, 2018 at 3:06 pm

    Better yet, after soaking all night. Rinse well. Cook in sauce pot for at least an hour then put in crock pot on medium all day. Broth will get nice and thick. Mom always does this.
    Reply
  21. Sheree Hyde says

    August 20, 2018 at 7:05 am

    I really enjoy your recipes. Would this recipe be suitable for canning?
    Reply
    • Missy Rakes says

      August 20, 2018 at 8:17 am

      I haven't canned beans, but I know that you can with a pressure canner.
      Reply
  22. Bev says

    August 25, 2018 at 4:12 pm

    I actually soak mine in salt water and they cook just as fast. When I was working I did the crock pot thing now I put them on the stove for a couple of hours. Waala. You might find it surprising but try adding a couple tablespoons of creamy peanut butter and you get just a touch of nutty flavor. Handed down from me from one of those grandmas.
    Reply
  23. Lynn says

    November 17, 2018 at 10:17 pm

    I make beans in slow cooker with beer. Also par cook bacon and add it with drippings. At the end I add can of Rotel and cilantro. I like cheddar cheese on my beans. ( Salt and pepper at the end to taste)
    Reply
  24. Mia says

    January 14, 2019 at 11:18 am

    What size slow cooker do you use for the 2lb bag of beans? Would it make a difference if a med size crock pot is used?
    Reply
    • Missy Rakes says

      January 30, 2019 at 9:38 am

      I need to measure my slow cooker because I'm not sure, but I believe that it is a 7 qt.
      Reply
  25. douglas says

    July 1, 2019 at 8:41 pm

    This method works for any dried bean; however, if you do kidney beans (light or dark and also white, aka cannellini) you MUST boil them for at least 10 minutes before you put them in the crock pot, in order to destroy the harmful lectins in them. (I also cook them on high) Canned ones are cooked enough.
    Reply
  26. Angel says

    August 7, 2019 at 8:57 am

    Do you happen to have a fried cornbread recipe my Grandma always had fried cornbread punch of this and handful of that and she used buttermilk she used white cornmeal don't have a recipe if you have one I would love to have it
    Reply
    • Missy Rakes says

      August 7, 2019 at 9:22 pm

      I use the cornbread recipe from Better Homes and Gardens.
      Reply
    • Diane says

      August 25, 2019 at 9:31 am

      I make 'Fried Cornbread' all the time frpm my Grandmother. easy but I find it only works using Dixie Lily self rising cornmeal not the mix and any self rising flour. Mix equal parts cornmeal and flor with water till a dough forms. heat oil in skillet to very hot. Wet your hands and put a golf ball size piece of dough in you hand and pat to about finger thickeness. Carefully lay in hot oil and fry untill golden brown about 2to 3 minutes,flip over and brown other side. Lay on some paper towel to remove excess grease.
      Reply
    • Ymanwfarr says

      November 5, 2020 at 6:59 am

      There are a lot of Hot Water cornbread recipes on Pinterest just look for Hot Water cornbread.
      Reply
  27. Judy says

    July 25, 2020 at 8:02 am

    Missy: The way I cook Pinto Beans in a Crockpot is I take the dried beans, wash them real good then put into Crockpot with a chunk of Jowl Bacon, Salt, and enough water to cover then put on Low and cook all night and into the next day until we eat Supper! I do not pre-soak the beans at all! Then when we get ready to eat we just crumble up some cornbread (see my comment below with Kim Beals on how I make it) pour some beans with some bean juice over it then we chop up some sweet onion and then add Squash Relish on top. I sometimes only add Miracle Whip Salad Dressing over the cornbread and beans and mix up all! It's GOOOD!

    4 stars

    Reply
  28. Jennifer Eveleigh says

    September 9, 2020 at 7:48 am

    I am making for 2nd time. Soooo good and easy. Of course I made cornbread to go with it.
    Reply
  29. Jennifer H says

    September 15, 2020 at 1:31 am

    I’ve never made these before! Or any beans like this! What are some good suggestions for toppings!?
    Reply
    • Missy Rakes says

      September 17, 2020 at 9:55 am

      Ham, onion, cheese, relish, sour cream, salsa, candied jalapenos. All kinds of stuff goes with pinto beans.
      Reply
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