There is truly nothing better than a hearty and delicious one pot meal that requires little prep. This Mexican Charro Beans recipe will be your new whole food plant-based and salt, oil, and sugar free favorite for packed lunches and trips! These beans are so tasty especially topped with fresh pico and enjoyed with homemade tortilla chips, give this one a try today!

You likely have all the necessary ingredients in your kitchen already, which makes this recipe even better! Make a big batch of this and enjoy it all week just like Dillon did when he first began his plant-based journey. So get that Instant Pot out and ready because it is time to set it and forget it!

This version of the recipe is perfect for a 6 quart Instant Pot. We are just going to throw everything in the pot, there is no need to sauté first unless you want to be extra fancy! We are going to begin by doing just a little bit of chopping. Dice the yellow onion and red bell pepper into bite size pieces and throw it into the Instant Pot. You can always use a green or yellow bell pepper instead if you prefer.

The next item we are going to add to the pot are the diced jalapeños. We highly suggest adding them in especially if you are a fan of Mexican food. Although if you really don’t want any spice at all simply omit the jalapeños. If you are really in a pinch the canned chiles are a great option just know that they are generally very high in salt!

Now let’s give this dish some flavor! We are going to start by adding the chili powder right into the Instant Pot. Don’t worry if you can’t do spice as it is very mild, unless you are using spicy chili powder. Then toss in the ground cumin and dried oregano. Now, add in the minced garlic to the pot. You can use the jarred minced garlic like we did, garlic powder, or mince up some fresh garlic! Don’t forget to add in the bay leaves too!

For the liquid, we are adding in a couple cups of veggie broth to the Instant Pot which adds extra robustness to the dish. If you are all out you can simply use water in place of it. Then, pour in the tomato sauce as well. We recommend finding no-salt added tomato sauce because most tomato sauce is very high in sodium. The sauce we used is WinCo brand, but you can also find no-salt added tomato sauce at Kroger or Whole Foods!

It is time to add the most important ingredient…the beans! Throw the dry pinto beans right into the pot, there is no need to soak them unless you prefer to do so. The last thing we need to add to the pot is the water to the fill line, which is about 5 cups. We suggest using hot boiling water as it helps the Instant Pot heat up faster. Give everything a good stir and place the lid on. Now, all you have to do is set it to high pressure for 45 minutes with a 15 minute natural release for al dente beans or high pressure for 1 hour and 15 minute natural release for softer beans.

While everything is cooking in the Instant Pot, we like to prepare a quick and refreshing pico de gallo to top these beans when serving. To make our pico we dice up tomatoes, jalapeño, red onion, and add it all to a mixing bowl. Normally, we use roma tomatoes, but all we had on hand were grape tomatoes and it worked great! We also chop up fresh cilantro and squeeze in fresh lime juice. Then, we just give it a nice big stir and keep it in the fridge to use all week! Click HERE for our full pico blog!

Once the beans are done cooking, give it a couple of good stirs, add a big scoop to your bowl, and top with the fresh pico for that added pizzazz! Homemade tortilla chips are a great way to enjoy these beans as well, although this recipe is delicious all on its own! Throw the leftovers in a thermos to keep it warm all day like Dillon used to do and have a healthy and hearty meal anywhere!

That is all for these amazing Mexican Charro Beans that are sure to keep you full and satisfied. We hope you love this recipe as much as we do. We would love to see how you enjoy this recipe! Make sure to share your creations in our Facebook Community or tag us on Instagram!

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Mexican Charro Beans

Make a big batch and enjoy this recipe all week long!

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Ingredients:

• 1 yellow onion, diced
• 1 red bell pepper, diced
• 2 jalapeños, seeded and diced
• ¼ cup chili powder
• 2 teaspoons ground cumin
• 1 tablespoon dried oregano
• 1 tablespoon minced garlic
• 3 bay leaves
• 1 15 oz. can tomato sauce
• 2 cups veggie broth
• 2 lbs. dry pinto beans
• water, to fill line (about 5 cups or so)
• pico de gallo, to serve
• tortilla chips, to serve

Instructions:

Add all of the ingredients to a 6-quart Instant Pot or pressure cooker. Set to high pressure for 45 minutes with a 15 minute natural release for al dente beans. Set to high pressure for 1 hour with a 15 minute natural release for softer beans.

Top with fresh pico and enjoy with homemade tortilla chips to really take it up a notch. Enjoy!