Black Bean Soup

Black Bean Soup

1 onion, chopped
6 cloves garlic, chopped
1 large carrot, diced
2 stalks celery, chopped
1 t oil
2 bay leaves
1/2 t smoked salt (not too much because the ham is salty)
1 t black pepper
2 t ancho chili pepper
1 t ground coriander
1 t ground cumin
several grinds of South African Smoked Pepper
1 ham bone with some meaty bits still attached
5 c pre-soaked beans
1 carton of chicken broth
water to meet the fill line

Leave the lid off and hit the sauté button on the Instant Pot. Add oil and heat for a minute. Add the veggies to the Pot and sauté for 3-4 minutes. Add seasonings and fry until fragrant. Add beans and ham bone, broth and water. Make sure sauté function is off. Put on lid and seal. Make sure the valve is closed. Hit the soup function and set for 30 minutes. It will take some time for the pot to come to pressure and then normalize after cooking.

Serve with rice, cilantro, and sour cream

Pre-Soaking Beans - Instant Pot

One of the best things abut the Instant Pot is preparing dried beans. Here is my method and quantities for my eight-quart Instant Pot.

5 C rinsed and sorted black beans
10 C hot water
5 t salt

Seal the lid of the Instant Pot, make sure that the pressure valve is closed, and hit the pressure cook button. Set at 4 minutes (when you push the button and set the time, wait for a few seconds and it will beep and will say "On"). It will turn off and it will automatically turn on the "Keep Warm" function. Let it run for 10 minutes and then turn the pot off. Let the pressure normalizes naturally or you will spray bean juice all over your kitchen.

Note: Only fill the Instant Pot half full for cooking beans because they expand when they cook.

Rinse beans and use in your favorite recipes (soups, salads, etc) for the week. You can freeze them for later as well.

Instant Pot Cooking - Another feature for the new year 2018

I just got an 8-quart Instant Pot so I will be recording the recipes that I try on this blog as well.