Instant Pot Tomato White Beans

Instant Pot tomato white beans are made in a fraction of the time by using a pressure cooker. It’s a hearty winter meal perfect over some toasted sourdough bread.

I bought the Instant Pot last summer and while I’ve made a handful of meals in it (and shared this recipe for Instant Pot sweet potato steel cut oats), I still don’t feel like I’ve gotten my money’s worth so to speak.

It’s not yet become a ‘go-to, can’t live without it’ kind of appliance but, I’m determined to get it to that point if it’s going to sit in my cabinet taking up all that space.

Today’s recipe for Instant Pot tomato white beans is one step closer to that realization.

*This post is sponsored by RedPack Tomatoes. All content and opinions are my own.

Dry beans are not something I really ever bother with.

I can count the amount of times I’ve used them instead of canned on one hand, these ricotta fava bean grilled pita bites being one of them and this Instant Pot bean soup another.

They’re just a bit time consuming, you know?

The whole soaking, sometimes even overnight and then the hours and hours of cooking.

Unless it’s a lazy Sunday and I actually happened to have my act together and planned for it the day before (hi, that’s never), I’m just really not down with all that.

Dry beans are just too high-maintenance for me.

Enter the Instant Pot.

If there’s anything a pressure cooker is good for it’s dried beans and big, tough cuts of meat.

Which brings me to a little point I’d like to make…

Instant Pot recipes are all the rage right now. Not a day goes by I don’t see a new one in my feeds on social media.

My issue with that? People are making the dumbest crap in the Instant Pot.

The whole point of a pressure cooker is to reduce the amount of time it takes to cook something by doing it under pressure instead of cooking on your stove or in your oven for hours.

When you go ahead and make a recipe that uses something like chicken breasts or eggs or even chili, it ends up taking longer to do in the pressure cooker because of the time it takes to come to pressure and release pressure than it would if you just made the damn thing the normal way!

This literally drives me insane.

So here’s a general PSA: Stop using pressure cookers for dumb things!

Although, I would’ve thought cooking asparagus in the Instant Pot was dumb before but after trying it, I’m actually hooked. It’s so easy it’s kind of ridiculous.

It’d actually make a great side dish to these saucy white beans but I digress.

Ok, now that that’s out of the way, let’s move on to these beans.

I don’t normally think of a bean dish as a main course.

Although, I do love this dandelion greens + beans skillet.

I’ll admit, the lack of animal protein throws me off (vegetarians everywhere are currently rolling their eyes at me, I see you).

These Instant Pot white beans with tomato sauce though are as hearty as they come and have fully changed my mind on beans being an acceptable complete meal.

Granted, there is a little bacon going on in there…

With limited ingredients, the key to this dish is quality.

You taste few things in this recipe (basically beans and tomatoes) so they all need to be the best.

I used RedPack whole peeled plum tomatoes (voted best canned tomato by Epicurious) along with their tomato paste in these beans because they are, in my opinion too, the best tasting.

Take a look at the video and check out what the tomatoes actually look like straight out of the can going into the Instant Pot – TOMATOES.

I know, weird concept, right? Tomatoes looking like tomatoes…

But, unfortunately it’s the truth.

Of all the whole peeled canned tomatoes I’ve opened over the years, RedPack Tomatoes are the best.

They’re the deepest, red color and they’re always whole and intact, no mushy ends, flattened pieces or rogue peels.

Not to mention their taste, none of that weird metallic canned aftertaste, just delicious ripe tomato flavor packed in NON-BPA lined cans.

When I use canned tomatoes to make tomato soup instead of fresh (like this favorite – copycat Panera tomato soup or my easy creamy roasted tomato soup), I always make sure it’s from a quality brand that actually tastes good. It’s so important in the final outcome!

The tomatoes are what make this pressure cooker white bean recipe.

With the creamy cannellini beans, their flavor, deepened by the sautéed onions and bacon just brings a cozy, comfort to each bite.

With crumbled feta and pop of brightness from the fresh oregano, a heaping ladleful of these tomato white beans on a crusty piece of toasted sourdough bread is winter food perfection.

FYI- they’re also delicious in a breakfast egg scramble as leftovers. Or, serve them as a side dish to something like air fryer brats for a simple meal!

Looking for a more traditional baked beans recipe? Try these Instant Pot baked beans or make this ham and beans recipe which offers a great way to use up pork neck bones.

Love this Instant Pot Tomato White Bean recipe?

More RedPack/RedGold/Tuttorosso (they’re all the same brand of tomatoes!) recipes all great for winter:
Italian Tomato Pasta Soup
Turkey Sausage Spaghetti Squash Baked Ziti