Slow Cooker Refried Beans, no soaking required! This easy homemade refried beans recipe cooks dry pinto beans in the slow cooker!
Slow Cooker Refried Beans Recipe
I love refried beans. Not only do they make the perfect side to pair with your favorite Mexican meal (for us, usually tacos!), but they also make for a pretty great meal by themselves too! Have you ever had a bowl of perfectly cooked refried beans with a little shredded cheese on top? So delicious!
This is an easy recipe because it’s a simple as dumping dry beans into your slow cooker, cooking them, and coming back later for delicious refried beans!
Most refried beans recipes call for soaking beans overnight, but to be honest, I can never remember to do that! Usually I decide what’s for dinner in the morning or early afternoon and by that time, I can’t soak the beans, so instead I came up with this easy recipe that doesn’t require soaking the beans!
What type of beans are used to make refried beans?
These homemade refried beans are made from dry pinto beans. Dry beans are not only super cheap, but in my opinion make the best refried beans.
Did you know growing your own dry beans in the garden is easy too? These refried beans are extra special to me because they are made with our own beans we grew in the garden last Summer!
Feel free to use regular dry pinto beans or yellow eye beans for this recipe, they both make delicious refried beans.
How long do beans take in the slow cooker?
Pinto beans take about 6-7 hours on LOW in the slow cooker. Cook them until the beans are soft.
How to make slow cooker refried beans
Start by putting all of the ingredients in a slow cooker and stir.
Note: I prefer using bouillon cubes/powder as it’s more economical than buying boxes of broth, but you can use boxed chicken or vegetable broth if you’d like. If you are using broth, you can skip the bouillon.
Cover and cook on LOW or until beans are tender.
Once beans are cooked, transfer them to a food processor or use an immersion blender to purée until beans are creamy.
Top with any favorites. I love shredded cheese, diced avocado and fresh salsa!
Ways to serve homemade refried beans
Want to put these refried beans to good use? Here are some meal ideas:
- As a side dish to any of our favorite taco recipes, like Black bean Tacos or Pepper Steak Tacos.
- On Chicken Nachos.
- Along some moist buttermilk cornbread! Yum!
- As a topping on my Cheesy Jalapeño Omelet.
- Straight out of the bowl with Roasted Tomatillo Salsa on top!
Pin for later:
Slow Cooker Refried Beans
PrintIngredients
- 2 cups dry pinto beans
- 6 cups water
- 1 tablespoon powdered chicken or vegetable bouillon
- 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
Instructions
- Put all the ingredients in a slow cooker and stir. Cover and cook for 6-7 hours on LOW or until beans are tender.
- Transfer the beans to a food processor or use a immersion blender to puree until pinto beans are creamy!
- Serve and enjoy!
Patricia Yarian says
Will definitely try this,my question is, should work in the pressure cooker too right? I will have to use salt sub and nosalt chicken bouillon-diet restrictions-but using the can version is out because sodium content!! Thanks for the recipe–P/
Pamela says
This will absolutely work in the pressure cooker too. Enjoy Patricia!
Megan E. says
I’m having a big party tomorrow and was wondering if doubling the recipe eill be possible? Do you think it will will fit in my average size crockpot and do you think the time will be much different?
Pamela says
Hey Megan, you can definitely double the recipe and the time will remain close to the same. Enjoy the beans!
Theresa says
Thanks for sharing this at the Inspiration Spotlight party. These look good. Pinned & sharing
Cierra says
These are the most authentic refried beans recipe I ever tried – thank you! My family loves them, will add to our dinner rotation!
Pamela says
Thanks for commenting Cierra, I’m so happy you liked them!
Kat @ Kat's 9 Lives says
I LOVE refried beans, but I always buy them in a can. This crockpot recipe would be a great way to save money and eat a little closer to the earth.
Sheri says
Yum, I love refried beans. Thanks for sharing in our To Grandma’s House We Go DIY, Crafts, Recipes and more link party! Hope to see you next week.
Leslie says
Mmmm. I LOVE refried beans. (Though my kids disagree…they just don’t get it yet). Can’t wait to give this a try. Thanks so much for sharing at the #happynowlinkup!
Roseann Hampton says
My husband loves refried beans but I’ve never made them! I’ll have to give these a try! Thanks for linking up with us at The Blogger’s Pit Stop! Roseann from This Autoimmune Life
Cat | Curly's Cooking says
What a great and simple way to make refried beans. Thanks for sharing, I’ll have to give this a go 🙂
Antonia (Zoale) says
Yummy! Thanks for sharing over at Fiesta Friday!
Judith Graber says
I love refried beans but never made my own. Sounds like a great recipe for the slow cooker…
cakespy says
I bet I would love homemade refried beans. The canned flavor is ok but I’m imagining great things from the homemade version. This is such an easy to follow recipe – thanks!
Shashi at SavorySpin says
Pamela, I’ve never used pinto beans to make refried beans…but…I need to back up…I’ve actually never made my own refried beans – these look so good and so easy too! Thanks for sharing, friend!
JoyS says
We like our refried beans to be pretty thick. Are these “soupy”?
Pamela says
Hey Joy, that’s the great thing about this recipe, when using a immersion blender or food processor you will blend until your preferred thickness! So if you like them thick, only pulse a couple times. Enjoy!
Brenda says
I’m definitely going to try this, but I have a question.
Those don’t look like the pinto beans we have here. Do you know more details about the kind of bean?
Here are our pinto beans. I tried to attach a picture, but it won’t work. Google pinto beans. You will see what ours look like. They do not look like yours. I have never seen beans like yours. They look more like yellow eye bean https://www.ranchogordo.com/products/yellow-eye-beans. I am curious to know what they are.
Pamela says
Hey Brenda. Yes, the beans pictured are kenearly yellow eye beans – which make great refried beans too! Feel free to use regular dry pinto beans or yellow eye beans. Enjoy!
Brenda says
Yep, I see that above now. I skimmed the article, all that jumped out at me was pinto beans. I have never seen or heard of yellow eye beans. My pintos are in the crockpot now. I added onions and garlic because I always have to have them. I cut the liquids back a little. Can’t wait to try these. Thanks.