• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Recipe Index
  • Puerto Rican
  • Cuban
  • About

Latina Mom Meals

menu icon
go to homepage
  • Recipe Index
  • Puerto Rican
  • Cuban
  • About
    • Email
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • Twitter
  • subscribe
    search icon
    Homepage link
    • Recipe Index
    • Puerto Rican
    • Cuban
    • About
    • Email
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • Twitter
  • ×
    Home

    Published: Aug 11, 2018 · Modified: Apr 1, 2020 by Neyssa

    Puerto Rican Kidney Beans

    Sharing is caring!

    • Share
    • Tweet
    Jump to Recipe Print Recipe

    Kidney beans is the go to beans for most Puerto Ricans. We use it in rice, add it to salads, and make it in a stew like form. Today, I'm sharing my quick Instant Pot Kidney Beans recipe that takes dried kidney beans and transforms it into a flavorful Puerto Rican habichuelas guisada recipe.

    Puerto Rican Kidney Beans in a white bowl

    How To Make Puerto Rican Kidney Beans In The Instant Pot

    I love you abuela, but I'm so glad to have an Instant Pot! I am able to safely make habichuelas guisada quickly in my Instant Pot, and they taste as good as abuela's.

    Pre-soaking is not necessary when using the instant pot, but I do like to put my dried beans, once rinsed, in a large bowl covered with water, a chunk of onion, bay leaf, garlic, and the optional smoked ham hock. I like to soak it for an hour while I get everything else (and the rice) ready to cook.

    Puerto Rican Kidney Beans

    What I love about the Instant Pot is that you have valuable stove burners available, and it still offers tons of options, like sauteing! This is where the magic happens.

    Quick tip! DO NOT ADD SALT UNTIL BEANS ARE COOKED! (Adding salt too soon keeps your beans from softening.)

    Put oil in your IP (Instant Pot) sleeve, add in your seasonings, homemade sofrito, and tomato sauce. Let the Puerto Rican , while stirring occasionally, for 4 minutes.

    Puerto Rican Kidney Beans

    Next, add in your veggies and ham hock. And then your broth.

    Puerto Rican Kidney Beans

    Puerto Rican Kidney Beans

    Next, place lid over the IP and turn the knob towards sealing, then press manual high pressure (or beans setting) for 40 minutes.

    Puerto Rican Kidney Beans

    Once the 40 minutes are up, press the cancel button and allow the Instant Pot to naturally release. (The top knob will fall down once ready to open.)

    More Bean Recipes: Cuban Navy Beans, Sausage Kale Lentil Soup, Chicken Enchilada Soup

    Puerto Rican Kidney Beans

    Recipe

    Puerto Rican Kidney Beans in a white bowl

    Puerto Rican IP Kidney Beans

    Authentic Puerto Rican kidney beans made with dried beans in less time than your grandma makes it!
    4.31 from 23 votes
    Print Pin Rate
    Course: Side Dish
    Cuisine: Puerto Rican
    Prep Time: 20 minutes minutes
    Cook Time: 40 minutes minutes
    Total Time: 1 hour hour
    Servings: 6
    Calories:
    Author: Neyssa

    Equipment

    • Instant Pot

    Ingredients

    • 16 oz dry kidney beans rinsed
    • 2 tablespoon olive oil
    • 1 smoked hamhock
    • 2 cloves garlic
    • 2 bay leaves
    • 1 chunk onion
    • ½ cup sofrito
    • 1 packet sazon con culantro
    • 1 tablespoon adobo
    • ½ tablespoon oregano
    • 2 potatoes peeled, chopped
    • 1 red pepper chopped
    • 3 tablespoon tomato sauce
    • 1 tablespoon salt
    • ½ tablespoon black pepper
    • 4 cups chicken broth low sodium
    • ¼ cup cilantro chopped
    Get Recipe Ingredients

    Instructions

    • In a large bowl, add in dried beans, hamhock, onion chunk, bay leave, garlic and water to cover. Let sit for an hour before draining.
      To the Instant Pot (IP) add in oil and set saute mode for 6 minutes. Once oil is warm, add in sofrito, seasonings EXCEPT for the salt, and tomato sauce. Mix around and let cook for 3 minutes before adding in the drained bean mix.
      Allow the beans to get coated and now add the remaining ingredients. Mix, close lid and set to sealing. 
      Place timer at 40 minutes on manual high pressure mode.
      Allow for a natural release by pressing cancel when the 40 minute timer goes off. Once depressurized, remove lid, stir and carefully taste the beans. Add salt to your liking.

    More Easy Bean Recipes

    • pantry staples such as rice, flour, and seasonings
      Puerto Rican Pantry Staples
    • garbanzos in a pot
      Puerto Rican Garbanzos Guisados
    • Refried beans in a blue bowl with pico de gallo on top
      Instant Pot Refried Beans
    • Black beans in a bowl
      Cuban Black Beans

    About Neyssa

    Neyssa is a Latina food blogger who shares her Cuban and Puerto Rican family recipes for home cooks to make.

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Ocean Dark says

      November 05, 2018 at 10:57 am

      Can you make this in a regular pot or crock pot?

      Reply
      • Latina Mom Meals says

        November 05, 2018 at 11:13 am

        Yes, in a slow cooker, I'd say go on high for 4 hours, or low for 6. (Be sure there's enough liquid in there.)

        For the regular pot, yes, cook for about 2-3 hours, or until beans are soft.

        Thank you for visiting. 🙂

        Reply
    2. Yolanda Melendez says

      December 11, 2018 at 2:26 pm

      Do you have a cookbook? If so what is the title? I would like to purchase it.

      Reply
      • Latina Mom Meals says

        December 11, 2018 at 7:28 pm

        Oh man! Nope, not yet, but I would love to make some! Thank you for the reminder. 🙂

        Reply
    3. Kenya says

      December 28, 2018 at 3:51 pm

      5 stars
      Thanks so much for your knowledge and love Neyssa! I’m in the process of making these beans for dinner tonight with pork chops and coconut rice. Being between New York and philly, I grew up with a lot of people from PR (my brother in law, born and raised there as well) and so I have a love for Puerto Rican cuisine. Haaa you know how something looks and sounds right ?, I didn’t even question your recipe! Well it’s a rainy friday here in philly, can’t wait to eat lol

      Reply
      • Latina Mom Meals says

        December 28, 2018 at 8:06 pm

        Aww Kenya! Yes, there is a distinct Northeast taste to my cooking lol. And you're a neighbor! I'm 10 minutes from Philly! I hope you enjoyed the beans. 🙂

        Reply
    4. Danny says

      July 19, 2019 at 10:58 pm

      Do you cook the ham hocks first?

      Reply
      • Latina Mom Meals says

        July 20, 2019 at 11:17 am

        I always use smoked hamhocks, which are precooked. If you are using raw hamhocks, I would not soak them with the beans, but you can certainly add them to the Instant Pot and they will cook with the beans. Let me know how it comes out!

        Reply
    5. Ralph M Rodriguez says

      October 31, 2019 at 3:20 am

      You need to be sure to say no salt until beans are cooked, followed directions and put salt before cooking. I hope it doesn't ruin it.

      Reply
      • Neyssa says

        October 31, 2019 at 12:59 pm

        I'll update it now so it stands out. Thank you for letting me know! Tell me, how did it come out?

        Reply
    6. Deb says

      March 15, 2020 at 11:23 am

      Do you cook the smoked ham hock in the IP, with the beans? Thank you.

      Reply
      • Neyssa says

        March 15, 2020 at 10:35 pm

        I do. 🙂

        Reply
    7. Liz says

      April 19, 2020 at 1:01 pm

      5 stars
      Flavorful and super easy to prepare.

      Reply
    8. Amber Garcia says

      October 13, 2020 at 10:35 am

      I’m wondering which instant pot size and model you use? There are so many options and I don’t know which to buy, I can’t wait to try your recipe out.

      Reply
      • Neyssa says

        March 18, 2024 at 11:37 pm

        There are so many, you're best bet is to go on their website and see which one fits the needs of your family best.

        Reply
    9. Arlene says

      October 28, 2021 at 4:13 am

      Do you chop the onion and garlic?

      Reply
      • Neyssa says

        March 18, 2024 at 11:36 pm

        YEs.

        Reply
    10. Sonia Colon says

      November 08, 2021 at 9:53 pm

      5 stars
      Thank you. My mother was hankering for Puerto Rican beans. This satisfied her yearnings. It was delicious. Thank you. Please make more Puerto Rican dishes especially for the Instapot. Gracias.

      Reply
      • Neyssa says

        March 18, 2024 at 11:36 pm

        Glad it helped and will do!

        Reply
    4.31 from 23 votes (20 ratings without comment)

    Leave a Reply Cancel reply

    Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

    Recipe Rating




    This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

    Primary Sidebar

    Neyssa is a Puerto Rican and Cuban self-taught home cook who lives right outside of Philly and is on a mission to share recipes that are inspired by her Cuban and Puerto Rican heritage.

    More about Neyssa →

    Latest Recipes

    • Close up shot of coquito in a glass cup with cinnamon on the rim and a Puerto Rican flag.
      Classic Coquito with Tea
    • Tea for coquito is inside of a glass cup with a gray and blue background, spices, and Puerto Rican flags.
      Spiced Tea for Coquito
    • Close up shot of freshly made loose yellow rice and green pigeon peas in a silver pot.
      Arroz con gandules
    • A close up shot of crema de maiz inside of a bowl with a spoon, topped with fresh berries.
      Harina De Maiz: Cornmeal Porridge

    Winter Favorites

    • pernil | roasted pork shoulder
      Cuban Pernil
    • rice and shrimp stew in a blue plate
      Asopao de Camarones | Shrimp Stew
    • Instant Pot Puerto Rican Sancocho Recipe
      Sancocho
    • Homemade Puerto Rican Salami Soup | Sopa de Salchichon estilo Boricua
      Puerto Rican Salami Soup

    Footer

    Copyright © 2025 Latina Mom Meals All Rights Reserved

    PRIVACY POLICY + TERMS OF USE | ABOUT & CONTACT

    Rate This Recipe

    Your vote:




    A rating is required
    A name is required
    An email is required

    Recipe Ratings without Comment

    Something went wrong. Please try again.