Description
Instant Pot Cannellini Beans with Tomatoes and Pancetta. A hearty Italian-inspired pressure cooker side dish (or bean stew) with cured pork and tomatoes.
Ingredients
Scale
- 1 pound cannellini beans, sorted, rinsed, and soaked
- 4 ounces diced pancetta (or diced bacon)
- 2 cloves crushed garlic
- 1 teaspoon dried Italian seasoning (or a sprig of fresh rosemary)
- pinch red pepper flakes
- 3 cups water
- ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
- 15-ounce can crushed tomatoes
Instructions
- Sort and rinse the beans: First sort the beans, discarding any stones, dirt, or broken beans. Rinse the beans, then do an overnight or a quick soak.
- Overnight soak: Cover the beans by an inch with water. Leave the beans to soak at least 8 hours, or overnight. Drain and discard the soaking liquid.
- OR: Pressure Quick Soak for 1 minute with a 30 minute rest: Put the beans and 8 cups of water in the pressure cooker pot. Pressure cook at high pressure for 1 minute (“Manual” or “Pressure Cook” mode in an Instant Pot for 1 minute), then let the beans sit for 30 minutes. Drain and discard the soaking liquid.
- Sauté the pancetta and spices: Spread the pancetta on the bottom of the cold pressure cooker pot. Turn on sauté mode adjusted to high in the Instant Pot (medium-high heat in another PC), and cook the pancetta, stirring often, until it crisps up, about 8 minutes. Stir in the crushed garlic, Italian seasoning, and red pepper flakes, and let them sizzle until you smell garlic, about 1 minute.
- Everything in the pot: Stir in the drained beans, pour in the 3 cups of water, sprinkle with the ½ teaspoon salt, and stir. Pour the can of crushed tomatoes over the top, but do not stir. (The tomatoes can burn on the bottom of the pot, and we want the water and beans to act as a buffer.)
- Pressure Cook the beans: Lock the lid and pressure cook at high pressure for 12 minutes, then quick release the pressure in the pot. (Use “Manual” or “Pressure Cook” mode set to 12 minutes in an Instant Pot. Cut the cooking time back to 10 minutes for a stovetop PC.)
- Serve: Carefully remove the lid - tilt it away from you to avoid the hot steam. Stir the beans to mix in the tomatoes and serve.
Equipment
Buy Now → Notes
Vegetarian version: Replace the pancetta with a diced onion.
This is either a side dish or a main course, depending on my mood. I served it as a side dish for a roast, and then ate the leftovers as a lunch later in the week.
Tools
6 quart or larger pressure cooker (I love my Instant Pot electric pressure cooker)
- Prep Time: 1 hour
- Cook Time: 30 min
- Category: Side Dish
- Method: Pressure Cooker
- Cuisine: Italian