41 Bean Recipes to Make the Most of Pantry Staples
If you have a few cans of beans in the pantry and a few great bean recipes, you are well on your way to a satisfying meal. More of a bean bag person? Get to know how to soak beans (plus, our favorite ways to cook up a big batch), then get ready to pile ’em on toast, simmer them in chili—or just throw them in the oven until they’re crispy and eat out of hand or sprinkle over a salad. Not sure what to make with white beans, chickpeas, or that can of pintos? Scroll down to find our favorite bean soups, bean salads, and cozy bowls of tender, creamy beans paired with veggies, braised meats, or succulent seafood.
Photo by Joseph De Leo, Food Styling by Anna Stockwell1/41Saucy Beans and Artichoke Hearts With Feta
Photo by Chelsea Kyle, Food Styling by Ali Nardi2/41Creamy Pinto Bean Dip
This hearty dip is also a delicious addition spread to tacos or quesadillas. You can also use it as a base when building the Ultimate Nachos.
Photo by Chelsea Kyle, Food Styling by Simon Andrews3/41Big-Batch Instant Pot White Beans
Consider this your baseline bean recipe. Make a big batch of these creamy, perfectly-cooked beans in the Instant Pot and freeze them in their broth. Defrost to stir into soups and stews, bake into casseroles, sauté for dinner, or marinate for an easy bean salad.
Photo by Chelsea Kyle, Prop Styling by Beatrice Chastka, Food Styling by Rhoda Boone4/41Smoky Beans and Greens on Toast
Photo by Alex Lau, Prop Styling by Megan Hedgpeth, Food Styling by Rebecca Jurkevich7/41Ham Hock and White Bean Stew
Photo by Chelsea Kyle, Food Styling by Chris Morocco10/41Baked Feta and Greens With Lemony Yogurt
Looking for new 30-minute meals? Warm feta, crispy garbanzo beans, and wilted hearty greens become a fork-and-knife entrée in just about half an hour. The final touch on this vegetarian dish? A dollop of seasoned Greek yogurt.
Photo by Chelsea Kyle, Food Styling by Olivia Mack Anderson14/41Escarole with Italian Sausage and White Beans
Photo by Alex Lau16/41Coconut Rice and Peas
If you opt for canned instead of dried beans in this recipe, they won’t turn out quite as creamy, but you’ll save yourself some time. Serve alongside some jerk chicken and you have yourself a feast.
Photo by Chelsea Kyle, Food Styling by Olivia Mack Anderson17/41White Bean Salad With Lemon and Cumin
A lemony cumin dressing transforms dried beans into a summery supper that happens to be budget-friendly.
Photo by Chelsea Kyle, Food Styling by Jennifer Ophir18/41Very Versatile Baked Beans With Cabbage
Onions, garlic, cabbage, and tomatoes melt into a luscious blanket for these hearty baked beans. For an added dose of vegetables, throw in a handful of spinach at the end.
Photo by Alex Lau, Prop Styling by Elizabeth Jaime, Food Styling by Sue Li19/41Lemony Salmon and Spiced Chickpeas
Photo by Joseph De Leo, Food Styling by Judy Haubert20/41Breakfast Burritos With Bacon, Egg, and Cheese
Creamy black beans team up with cheesy scrambled eggs and crisp bacon in the ultimate breakfast burrito. We'll also show you how to roll it up, step by step.
Photo by Alex Lau, Food Styling by Sue Li, Prop Styling by Elizabeth Jaime21/41Spring Minestrone Verde With Pistachio Pesto
This bright and tasty minestrone is filled with Tuscan kale, cannellini beans, and sugar snap peas. Serve it with pesto-topped toast for even more fresh green flavor.
Photo by Chelsea Kyle, Prop Styling by Beatrice Chastka, Food Styling by Anna Stockwell23/41Spiced Turkey Chili with Spaghetti Squash
Spiced with cinnamon, allspice, and cocoa powder, this warming bean and turkey chili is piled on top of roasted spaghetti squash for a naturally gluten-free dinner.
Photo by John Lee25/41Bean Lavash Triangles
Serve this Armenian dish of mashed beans wrapped in flatbread and pan-fried until crisp as an appetizer, or alongside a big green salad for lunch or dinner.
Photo by Joseph De Leo, Food Styling by Drew Aichele26/41Quick Chana Masala
This quick dinner from Epi contributor Keya Wingfield headlines our Vegetarian Comfort Food Meal Plan.
Photo by Chelsea Kyle, Prop Styling by Astrid Chastka, Food Styling by Anna Hampton27/41Shrimp with Herby White Beans and Tomatoes
Photo by Christina Holmes30/41Nachos With All the Fixings
Nachos for dinner? Always a good idea. If you like to make your nacho fixings from scratch, bookmark this epic recipe. It calls for homemade Beer-Braised Carnitas and Charred Tomatillo Salsa or Dried Chile Salsa. After preparing those key ingredients, you'll layer a baking sheet with chips, carnitas, black beans, onions and shredded cheese and set them in the oven for 20 minutes.
Photograph by Isa Zapata, Food Styling by Pearl Jones, Prop Styling by Dayna Seman34/41Homemade Refried Beans
Top these extra-savory beans with pico de gallo and queso fresco, and serve with tamales or slather into a breakfast taco.
Photo by Emma Fishman, Food Styling by Rebecca Jurkevich, Prop Styling by Sophie Strangio36/41Creamy Braised Beans With Charred Pickles and Croutons
Photograph by Emma Fishman, food styling by Micah Morton, prop styling by Stephanie Yeh37/41Bean and Vegetable Salad With Potlikker Vinaigrette
Chef Carla Hall uses her Country Ham Potlikker as an umami-rich base for this spicy vinaigrette, which gets its silky texture from blended cannellini beans.
Photo by Chelsea Kyle, Food Styling by Kat Boytsova38/41One-Pan Chicken Drumsticks with Rice and Beans
Photo by Joseph De Leo, Food Styling by Erika Joyce39/41Persian Rice With Fava Beans and Dill (Baqala Polow)
Frozen fava beans make easy work of this fragrant rice dish. Serve at Nowruz or whenever you're craving something bright and fresh.
Photo by Paul Petrowsky40/41Classic BBQ Baked Beans
Sweet and smoky barbecue beans are an essential barbecue side dish.
Photo by Joseph De Leo, Food Styling by Michelle Gatton41/41Chickpea-Potato Chaat
A lot of the easiest bean recipes start with canned beans, but this one doesn't even require that you cook them. Just toss chickpeas with tender simmered potatoes, cilantro-mint chutney, tamarind chutney, and yogurt and top with chiles, onions, tomatoes, and chaat masala for the perfect low-cook meal.
