Instant Pot Bean Soup with Spinach and Pesto

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Edyta

Author at Eating European

Recipe developer, photographer and the writer behind the Eating European food blog of European and Mediterranean healthy and delicious recipes

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Latest posts by Edyta (see all)

• Instant Pot® Beef Stroganoff - May 19, 2021
• Pasta with Mussels in Spicy Tomato Sauce - April 14, 2021
• Stuffed Eggs with Ham & Cheese - March 30, 2021

This Instant Pot Bean Soup with Spinach and Pesto packs a ton of nutrients, from beans, spinach, and other veggies. But it’s not short on flavor, with the incorporation of Parmesan rind, lemon juice, and basil pesto, for a nice European twist. Making it in the Instant Pot (or other pressure cookers) will allow you to skip canned beans and cook it from scratch with super healthy dry beans. 

If you don’t have Instant Pot, don’t stress it, I’ll have for you stove top instructions as well. Keep reading.

This post may contain affiliate links. You can read my disclosure policy HERE.

Instant Pot Bean Soup – Great Idea For Using Dry Beans

I’ve recently purchased my first Instant Pot and I have been testing a couple of new recipes. I’ll be sharing others soon. I know I’m probably a little late to the game, but better late then never 🙂 And I must say, I LOVE my Instant Pot!

It’s especially useful if you want to cook with beans, lentils or tough cuts of meat that normally take hours to cook. I love beans and I know that the dried ones are much healthier than the ones from a can. But the time necessary to cook with dried beans was always something holding me back from doing so, and so I would frequently (& begrudgingly) go for the quick, canned version.

Not anymore! Ever since I bought my Instant Pot I’ve been cooking beans in it all the time. When you look at the instructions that come with the pot, you’ll notice that the producer is giving you an option to either cook soaked beans or beans without soaking.

Although cooking beans without soaking may seem convenient, it’s not a legitimate option for me. Soaking the beans helps to remove some indigestible sugars, so I always soak my beans. And once they soak overnight they’ll cook in just 8 minutes in your pressure cooker (a win-win situation). Next time I make my Breton Beans I’ll definitely be using this Pressure Cooker.

So I made this Instant Pot Bean Soup with white, cannellini dried beans. I soaked them overnight, then I rinsed them the next day, prior to cooking. In just 8 minutes of pressure cooking, the beans were soft, but not mushy. And the soup came out super delicious!

Intimidated by Instant Pot?

It may feel intimidating when you first open your new Instant Pot and read through the instructions and precautions. I totally felt that way. But hey, if so many people are already using it and claiming not to be able to live without it, this can’t be that complicated.

I found this amazing Instant Pot Guide from a great blogger, who is also a food scientist, Jessica Gavin, who broke down everything you need to know about Instant Pot and also provides some extra video resources. Go check it out and don’t feel intimidated by your new machine anymore. And most importantly, start cooking with it. You may want to start with my amazing Instant Pot Bean Soup recipe.

Grocery List for Instant Pot Bean Soup

Please see a printable recipe card below for exact measurements, instructions and nutritional information.

You may have some of the ingredients needed for this soup in your pantry or fridge already. That’s the beauty of this Instant Pot Bean Soup. It requires only simple ingredients. Here’s your grocery list:

• Dry white beans; (or canned beans – see tip below)
• Sweet Onion;
• Olive Oil;
• Marjoram;
• Potatoes;
• Carrots;
• Celery;
• Parmesan rind (this isn’t necessary, but it’s highly recommended as it adds a ton of flavor. It’s Italians’ secret to making their soups super delicious. That’s why I always buy my Parmesan cheese in a large piece, so I can grate it and use the rind for soups and sauces);
• Chicken stock (or vegetable stock, for a vegetarian bean soup);
• Spinach;
• Lemon;
• Salt and Pepper;
• Basil Pesto.

How to Make Bean Soup in the Instant Pot

The beauty of the Instant Pot is that you can saute your veggies before cooking them to give additional flavor. It’s all done in the same pot.

Step 1: As mentioned above you need to soak your beans overnight in an amount of water that’s twice as deep as the depth of your beans. The next day, simply rinse the beans under the running water;

Step 2: Chop your onions, carrots, celery, and potatoes;

Step 3: Set up your Instant Pot on saute settings. Once heated up, add oil, chopped onions, and marjoram. Cook for about 2 minutes, until the onions are translucent;

Step 3: Add carrots, celery, and potatoes to the pot and cook for another two minutes;

Step 4: Add beans, chicken stock, and Parmesan rind. Make sure that the release valve is in the “Sealing” position. Place the lid on the Instant Pot, turn and lock the lid. Press the “Manual” button on the Instant Pot and set to “High Pressure” setting. Set the timer to 8 minutes (it will take about 10 minutes for the Instant Pot to get to the pressure cooking mode);

Step 5: Once the pressure cooker is done, let naturally release for 10 minutes;

Step 6: Using the oven mittens, towel and possibly a long spoon (that’s what I like to use) switch the release handle to “Venting” position. Be very careful as the steam may splatter initially;

Step 7: Once all the pressure is released, turn off your Instant Pot and carefully open up the lid. Be very careful as the hot steam will release when you open it. Then remove Parmesan rind and add spinach and lemon juice. Let the spinach wilt before serving;

Step 8: Serve in the bowls with a dollop of Basil Pesto (you can use my recipe for Lemon Basil Pesto or use a store bought one). It tastes amazing with a piece of crusty bread.

Tip: If you want to use canned beans, you can still make this soup. Simply cook the vegetables as instructed above and add canned beans at the same time you would add spinach. They are fully cooked and only need to be warm up.

Stove Top Version of this Bean Soup

Step 1: To make this Bean Soup on a stove top you will have to first boil your pre-soaked beans in unsalted water for about 1.5 or 2 hours (depending on the beans) until they’re cooked through but not mushy. You can some salt at the end;

Step 2: Chop all your vegetables. Using a heavy pot, like a dutch oven, heat up olive oil, add onions with marjoram and cook for about 2 minutes, add other vegetables and cook for another 2 minutes;

Step 3: Add chicken stock with Parmesan Rind, cover and cook for 3o minutes, until the vegetables are soft. Then remove the rind;

Step 4: Once your beans are cooked, rinse them and add them to the pot (here is an option to use canned beans instead of dry ones);

Step 5: Add spinach and lemon juice. Let the spinach wilt before serving;

Step 6: Serve with a dollop of basil pesto and crusty bread.

Equipment Needed to Make Instant Pot Bean Soup

• Instant Pot
• Cutting Board
• Set of Knives
• Soup Bowls
• Ladle
• Soup Spoons

Other Popular Soups to Try

• Chunky Potato Leek Soup
• Slow Cooker Cabbage Soup
• Dill Pickle Soup
• Greek Lentils Soup
• Greek Chickpea Soup
• Tomato Red Lentils Coconut Soup

Here is your printable recipe:

Instant Pot Bean Soup with Spinach and Pesto

This Instant Pot Bean Soup with Spinach and Pesto packs a ton of nutrients from beans, spinach, and other veggies and a ton of flavor from Parmesan rind, lemon juice, and basil pesto for a nice European twist. Making it in the Instant Pot (or other pressure cookers) will allow you to skip canned beans and cook it from scratch with super healthy dry beans.

5 from 6 votes

Print Pin Rate

Course: Soup

Cuisine: European

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 15 minutes

Pressurizing: 20 minutes

Total Time: 25 minutes

Servings: 8

Calories: 238kcal

Author: Edyta

Ingredients

• 1 lb Dry white beans or 2 cans of white beans
• 1/2 Large Sweet Onion chopped
• 1 tbsp Olive Oil or other cooking oil1
• 1/2 teaspoon Marjoram
• 3 Potatoes medium, chopped
• 2 Carrots medium, chopped
• 1 Celery stick
• A Piece of Parmesan Rind
• 6 cups Chicken Stock or vegetable stock
• 2 cups Spinach fresh
• 1 tbsp Lemon Juice fresh
• Salt and Pepper to taste
• 3 tbsp Pesto to serve 1/2 tablespoon per bowl

Instructions

• Soak your beans overnight in a double amount of water than the amount of beans. The next day simply rinse the beans under the running water.
• Chop your onions, carrots, celery, and potatoes;
• Set up your Instant Pot on saute settings. Once heated up, add oil, chopped onions, and marjoram. Cook for about 2 minutes until the onions are translucent;
• Add carrots, celery, and potatoes to the pot and cook for another two minutes;
• Add rinsed beans, chicken stock, and Parmesan rind. Make sure that the release valve is in the "Sealing" position. Place the lid on the Instant Pot, turn and lock the lid. Press the "Manual" button on the Instant Pot, set to "High Pressure" setting. Set the timer to 8 minutes.
• Once the pressure cooker is done, let naturally release for 10 minutes;
• Using the oven mittens, towel and possibly long spoon (that's what I like to use) switch the release handle to "Venting" position. Be very careful as the steam may splatter initially.
• Once all the pressure is released turn off your Instant Pot and carefully open up the lid. Be very careful as some more hot steam may be released when you open it. Then remove Parmesan rind, add spinach and lemon juice. Let the spinach wilt before serving.
• Serve in the bowls with a dollop of Basil Pesto. It tastes amazing with a piece of crusty bread.

Notes

• Cooking time above does not include soaking the beans overnight. 
• Total time included pressurizing and pressure release time of about 20 minutes total, however, sometimes it may take longer for the Instant Pot to come to the pressure cooking mode. 
• If you want to use canned beans, you can still make this soup. Simply cook the vegetables as instructed above and add 2 cans of beans at the same time you would add spinach. They are fully cooked and only need to be warm up.

Stove Top Version of this Bean Soup

Step 1: To make this Bean Soup on a stove top you will have to first boil your beans in unsalted water for about 1,5H or 2 hours (depending on the beans) until they are cooked through but not mushy. You can some salt at the end.

Step 2: Chop all your vegetables. Using a heavy pot, like a dutch oven, heat up olive oil, add onions with marjoram and cook for about 2 minutes, add other vegetables and cook for another 2 minutes;

Step 3: Add chicken stock with Parmesan Rind, cover and cook for 3o minutes until the vegetables are soft. Then remove the rind;

Step 4: Once your beans are cooked, rinse them and add them to the pot (here is an option to use canned beans instead of dry ones);

Step 5: Add spinach and lemon juice. Let the spinach wilt before serving.

Step 6: Serve with a dollop of basil pesto and crusty bread.

Nutrition

Calories: 238kcal | Carbohydrates: 34g | Protein: 11g | Fat: 6g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 5mg | Sodium: 334mg | Potassium: 840mg | Fiber: 8g | Sugar: 4g | Vitamin A: 3365IU | Vitamin C: 14.2mg | Calcium: 92mg | Iron: 4.6mg

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