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    Home » Recipes » Instant Pot Bean Recipes

    Instant Pot Cannellini Beans (Marcella Beans)

    Published: Aug 8, 2023 · Modified: Dec 30, 2024 by Mike Vrobel · This post may contain affiliate links · 13 Comments

    Jump to Recipe
    A bowl of cannellini beans with a sprig of rosemary on top and a spoon on the side

    Instant Pot Cannellini Beans. Pressure cooker dried beans are a killer application of my Instant Pot. Dried cannellini beans are so much better than canned, and pressure cook in about an hour.

    I’ve posted a few recipes with Cannellini beans, Italy’s famous white bean. It’s the bean that makes Tuscan bean soup, and I love it with tomatoes and pancetta. But I’ve never done straight up cannellini beans in an instant pot, like I would for make ahead beans or as a simple side dish. Today we’re going to fix that. (Does it have anything to do with finding a bag of Rancho Gordo Marcella beans in my pantry? Who can possibly say?)

    A bowl of cannellini beans with a sprig of rosemary on top and a spoon on the side

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    Jump to:
    • 🥫Ingredients
    • How to Make Instant Pot Cannellini Beans
    • 💡Tips and Tricks
    • 🥘 Substitutions
    • 🛠 Equipment
    • 📏Scaling
    • 🤨 Soaking cannellini beans?
    • ☃️ Storage
    • Instant Pot Cannellini Beans Recipe
    • 🤝 Related Posts
    • 💬 Comments

    🥫Ingredients

    This is a simple dried bean recipe, so the ingredients list is pretty basic

    • Dried Cannellini beans (Marcella beans are particularly good)
    • A sprig of rosemary
    • A few cloves of garlic

    See recipe card for quantities.

    How to Make Instant Pot Cannellini Beans

    Sort and rinse the beans

    Sort the Cannellini beans, removing broken beans, stones, and any other non-bean material. Put the beans in a strainer, rinse the beans, and set them aside to drain.

    Everything in the pot

    Pour the beans into an Instant Pot or other pressure cooker. Stir in 8 cups of water and 1 teaspoon of fine sea salt, then add the rosemary sprig and unpeeled cloves of garlic

    Pressure Cook for 35 minutes with a quick release

    Pressure cook on high pressure for 35 minutes in an electric pressure cooker (“Manual” or “Pressure Cook” mode in an Instant Pot), or 30 minutes in a stovetop PC. Quick release the pressure in the pot.

    Serve or Save

    Remove the rosemary and garlic cloves and discard. Serve the beans as-is in their broth, freeze in their broth for later, or drain and use them as directed in another recipe.

    💡Tips and Tricks

    • Salt your bean water! “Salt toughens beans” is a myth. Salting before cooking helps season the beans all the way through as they cook.
    • If your beans are still tough when the cooking time is over, especially any “floaters” at the top of the pot, give the beans a stir, lock the lid, and pressure cook for another five minutes. Older beans take longer to cook, and if the beans have been sitting in the shelf at your store for a while, they may need extra time.
    • Simmer to thicken: If you have the time, and want thicker bean liquid, simmer the beans for 20 minutes after pressure cooking. I set my Instant Pot to Sauté mode adjusted to low, set the timer to 20 minutes, and leave the lid off to let the broth evaporate.

    🥘 Substitutions

    Don’t have rosemary or garlic? You can substitute a bay leaf for the rosemary (or skip it), or a peeled onion for the garlic (or skip it). And, as I said above, Rancho Gordo’s Marcella beans are my favorite variety of cannellini beans, but they’re not the only cannellini bean out there - dried beans from any source with good turnover will work.

    Don't have cannellini beans? Great Northern beans are similar, though not as creamy, and cook with these same instructions. (Or check out my Instant Pot Great Northern Beans recipe).

    🛠 Equipment

    A 6-quart pressure cooker. Pressure cooking dried beans are one of the reasons I love my Instant Pot. Try them - you’ll never go back to canned beans. (OK, maybe you will, for convenience - but see the Storage section for tips on make ahead freezer beans.)

    📏Scaling

    This recipe scales down easily - cut everything in half if you don’t need as many beans, or have a 3-quart pressure cooker. Scaling up runs into space issues; if you have an 8-quart pressure cooker, you can double this recipe, but it’s too much to fit in a 6-quart pressure cooker.

    🤨 Soaking cannellini beans?

    I get the “to soak, or not to soak?” question all the the time. I don’t soak my cannellini beans in this basic recipe. They don’t need an overnight soak, and cook to tenderness with 35 minutes at high pressure.

    That doesn’t mean you can’t soak the beans. They turn out fine, though pre-soaking means the bean broth isn’t quite as full bodied. Soaked beans cook faster, 12 minutes at high pressure. I use that when I’m cooking the beans with other ingredients, where the shorter cooking time keeps me from overcooking the whole dish just to get the beans tender.

    ☃️ Storage

    A 2-cup container of cooked cannellini beans, with cooking liquid, replaces a 15-ounce can of beans from the grocery store. They’ll last in the refrigerator for a few days, and freeze for up to 6 months. I always make extra beans, and freeze the leftovers for use in other recipes. Freezer beans are ready to use with about 5 minutes in the microwave, and are so much better than canned.

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    A bowl of cannellini beans with a sprig of rosemary on top and a spoon on the side

    Instant Pot Cannellini Beans Recipe


    5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star

    5 from 4 reviews

    • Author: Mike Vrobel
    • Total Time: 55 minutes
    • Yield: 6 cups cooked beans 1x
    Print Recipe
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    Description

    Instant Pot Cannellini Beans. Pressure cooker dried beans are a killer application of my Instant Pot. Dried cannellini beans are so much better than canned, and pressure cook in about an hour.


    Ingredients

    Scale
    • 1 pound dried cannellini beans (aka Marcella beans), sorted and rinsed
    • 8 cups water
    • 1 teaspoon fine sea salt
    • 1 sprig Rosemary

    • 2 cloves garlic, unpeeled

    Instructions

    1. Sort and rinse the beans: Sort the Cannellini beans, removing broken beans, stones, and any other non-bean material. Put the beans in a strainer, rinse the beans, and set them aside to drain.
    2. Everything in the pot: Pour the beans into an Instant Pot or other pressure cooker. Stir in 8 cups of water and 1 teaspoon of fine sea salt, then add the rosemary sprig and unpeeled cloves of garlic
    3. Pressure Cook for 35 minutes with a quick release: Pressure cook on high pressure for 35 minutes in an electric pressure cooker (“Manual” or “Pressure Cook” mode in an Instant Pot), or 30 minutes in a stovetop PC. Quick release the pressure in the pot.

    4. Serve or Save: Remove the rosemary and garlic cloves and discard. Serve the beans as-is in their broth, freeze in their broth for later, or drain and use them as directed in another recipe.

    Equipment

    6-Quart Pressure Cooker

    Buy Now →

    Fine Mesh Strainer

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    Notes

    Simmer to thicken: If you have the time, and want thicker bean liquid, simmer the beans for 20 minutes after pressure cooking. I set my Instant Pot to Sauté mode adjusted to low, set the timer to 20 minutes, and leave the lid off to let the broth evaporate.

    • Prep Time: 5 minutes
    • Cook Time: 50 minutes
    • Category: Side dish
    • Method: Pressure Cooker
    • Cuisine: Italian

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    🤝 Related Posts

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    Comments

    1. Caryn Hart says

      September 06, 2023 at 9:19 pm

      Thanks for all of your great recipes, Mike. I made this recipe with Rancho Gordo Marcella beans and discovered that they really required a natural release. I did a quick release and the beans were under-done. I quickly brought the beans back to pressure and allowed for a quick release and then they came out great.

      Reply
    2. Stacey Reinhorn says

      March 07, 2023 at 12:07 pm

      Delicious! I did add carrot, celery and onion just because I needed to use them up. Mike I really appreciate your timing recommendations for various bean types. These are the missing link between my Breville Fast Slo Pro and beloved Rancho Gordo beans and have saved me hours of trial and error. Thank you and consider me a die-hard fan.

      Reply
      • Mike Vrobel says

        March 08, 2023 at 10:53 am

        You're welcome!

        Reply
    3. Mary Ann says

      September 17, 2022 at 5:13 pm

      I'm having trouble making beans in the Instant Pot. I followed your directions exactly. 35 min, quick release and my beans were hard. Did not soak. Cooked on high another 8 minutes, quick release - better but still kinda hard. I used the Rancho Gordo Marcella beans and they weren't old - at least the package said use by 2024. This has happened before and I am clueless on what I'm not doing right. Any thoughts?

      Reply
      • Mike Vrobel says

        October 02, 2022 at 1:49 pm

        It sounds like you may have hard water, if this has happened before. Try adding ½ teaspoon of baking soda with the water - it will help soften the beans.

        Reply
    4. Ellen says

      May 02, 2022 at 11:22 am

      It's fun seeing your recipes for Rancho Gordo beans as I recently bought a box. They recommend a 15 minutes SR for all their beans. Have you tried that and find it's unnecessary? Would it change how long you recommend cooking the Marcella beans at high pressure? Thank you!

      Reply
      • Mike Vrobel says

        May 02, 2022 at 1:10 pm

        I do it both ways - natural release and quick release. Quick release roughs up the beans a bit more, so I use that to get a thicker broth.
        If you want a Natural Release on this (or any of my) bean recipes, cut the pressure cooking time back by 5 minutes, then use a Natural Release. (Or vice versa - to speed up the beans that I NR, add 5 minutes to the pressure cooking time, then QR the beans.)

        Reply
        • Nicole says

          February 17, 2025 at 5:27 am

          Curious what to do if I already soaked the beans… is there generally a standard time change for pressure cooking in that scenario? And if not, is there one specifically for the RG Marcella beans?

          And thanks so much for all the IP tips on RG beans. I haven’t closed your website window on my phone since I found your site!

          Reply
          • Mike Vrobel says

            February 19, 2025 at 6:42 am

            From my "Soaking" section, above: Soaked beans cook faster, 12 minutes at high pressure. In general, they take about half the time to cook when soaked.

            Reply
    5. Charlie DeSando says

      October 06, 2021 at 3:58 pm

      Great recipe, looks wonderful!

      Reply
    6. Mike Vrobel says

      October 05, 2021 at 2:37 pm

      Hooray for Rancho Gordo beans!

      Reply
    7. Michelle C says

      October 05, 2021 at 12:54 pm

      Toss in a piece of parm rind during the cook for flavor (fish it out when done cooking) - it goes particularly well with cannellini beans.

      Reply
      • Mike Vrobel says

        October 05, 2021 at 2:40 pm

        Great tip - I use a parmesan rind in my Tuscan Bean soup, but I never thought to add it to the "beans only" cook. Thanks!

        Reply

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    Welcome to Dad Cooks Dinner!

    I'm Mike Vrobel, a dad who cooks dinner every night. I'm an enthusiastic home cook, and I write about pressure cooking, rotisserie grilling, and other food topics that grab my attention.

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