Dried beans are one of the best choices for a healthy, filling meal when you are on a budget. A batch of cooked black beans costs pennies and have great flavor when you make them yourself. Of course, canned black beans are also affordable and great in a pinch.
Cooking beans in your slow cooker eliminates the need to soak them overnight. It is also nice that you do not have to babysit a pot on the stove. You literally combine all of the ingredients and let it cook for 6-8 hours on low.
When making black beans, I use a lot of aromatics to add a lot of flavor. I use my black beans for soups, chili and Mexican dishes so the aromatics lend themselves to the dishes. If you are looking to use your black beans for desserts (yes, this is totally a thing), you may want to omit everything but the salt.
This same process can be used for almost any dried bean or lentil. How will you use your Slow Cooker beans?
PrintSlow Cooker Black Beans
Slow Cooker Black Beans are incredibly easy, affordable and delicious. The bay leaves, onion and garlic impart amazing flavor.
- Prep Time: 5 min
- Cook Time: 6-8 hrs
- Total Time: 6-8 hrs + 5 min.
- Yield: 6 cups 1x
- Category: Side
- Method: Slow Cooker
Ingredients
- 1 lb Dried black beans, rinsed
- Water, enough to cover by 2-3 inches
- 3 Bay leaves
- 2 tsp. Salt
- 4 Garlic cloves, chopped
- 1 Red, Yellow or White onion, roughly chopped
Instructions
- Combine all ingredients in the slow cooker. Stir to combine. Cook on low 6-8 hrs. The black beans should be soft when done. Remove the bay leaves after cooking.
- At this point, you can drain the black beans, but I like to reserve some of the liquid for Black Bean Soup or to serve over rice.
- Black beans will keep in the fridge for 1 week or in the freezer for 2-3 months.
Notes
You can crush the garlic and cut the onion into quarters if you would like to remove them after cooking. You will still get the flavor.
Keywords: black beans, slow cooker
Leave a Reply