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These copycat Chipotle Pinto Beans are easy to make, inexpensive, and healthy! Add to burritos and salads or serve with rice for a tasty vegetarian meal.
Pinto beans are versatile and healthy, inexpensive and delicious. I remember when Chipotle used to put bacon in their beans, but they took it out because you don’t need it!
These beans flavorful on their own and perfect for adding to burritos and tostadas. Or, serve them on the side of scrambled eggs and corn tortillas for a hearty Mexican breakfast.
Table of Contents
Recipe ingredients
At a Glance: Here is a quick snapshot of what ingredients are in this recipe.
Please see the recipe card below for specific quantities.
Ingredient notes
- Olive oil: Chipotle uses rice bran oil, but olive oil is more widely available (and probably already in your pantry).
- Pinto beans: To soak dried beans overnight, pick through and sort 1 pound of dried pinto beans. In a large bowl, add beans and enough water to cover by 1 inch. Soak at least 8 hours overnight. Drain and discard soaking liquid.
- Oregano: Chipotle uses Mexican oregano, but you can use Italian oregano if that’s all that you have. They have different flavors (Mexican oregano tastes more like marjoram) but both taste great in this recipe.
Step-by-step instructions
- In a Dutch oven or large pot over medium high heat, heat oil until shimmering. Add onion and cook until softened, about 5 minutes.
- Add beans, chipotle pepeprs and adobo sauce, garlic, cumin, oregano, and bay leaf. Add enough water to cover. Bring to a boil over medium high heat.
- Reduce heat and simmer until beans are tender, about 1 ½ to 2 hours. Remove from heat.
- Remove chipotle chilies if desired and bay leaf. Stir in lemon and lime juices, and season to taste with salt and pepper.
Recipe tips and variations
- Yield: This recipe makes about 8 cups Chipotle pinto beans, enough for 16 (½ cup) servings.
- Storage: Store leftovers covered in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
- Freezer: The beans can be cooled and packed in freezer-safe containers, labeled, and frozen for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator.
- Quick soak: If you forgot to soak your beans the night before, use this method to get a jump-start on cooking them.
- Pick through and rinse 1 pound beans. To a large saucepan, add beans and enough liquid to cover them by 1 inch.
- Bring beans to boil and cook for 2 minutes. Remove saucepan from heat, cover, and let beans sit for 1 hour. Drain and discard soaking liquid.
- Slow cooker Chipotle pinto beans:
- Heat oil until shimmering and cook onions until softened. Stir in garlic until fragrant, then add beans, spices, and enough water to cover. Bring to a boil, then transfer to a slow cooker.
- Cook on HIGH for 3 to 4 hours or LOW for 6 to 8 hours. Remove bay leaves and chipotle chilies if desired. Add lemon juice, lime juice, and salt and pepper to taste.
- Substituting kidney beans: Kidney beans contain phytohemagglutinin, a type of lectin that is very toxic at high levels. To substitute dried kidney beans in this recipe, you MUST pre-soak dried kidney beans AND hold them at boiling point (212 degrees Fahrenheit) for at least 10 minutes. This means you should never cook kidney beans in a slow cooker. You won’t know for sure if the slow cooker reached 212 degrees and held it for 10 minutes. Better to be safe than sorry!
Recipe FAQs
To substitute canned beans for the dried beans, use 4 cans of pinto beans. Rinse and drain before adding to the pot in step 2, adding enough water to cover (you may only need 1 to 2 cups), and cook until heated through, about 15 to 20 minutes.
No, you don’t have to pre-soak your beans. Un-soaked beans take about 30 minutes longer to cook than soaked beans, so just keep an eye on your beans and be prepared to add more water and/or cook them longer if they go in un-soaked.
Yes, you should. If you keep and use the soaking liquid in your recipe, it might add a sour taste. But, some people think it’s wasteful to discard the soaking water, so ultimately the choice is yours.
Chipotle Bowl
Tonight, stay in and build your own Chipotle Burrito Bowl with the copycat recipes you know and love. Fluffy rice, black beans, tender chicken, sweet corn salsa, tomato salsa, and lots of guacamole. It’s great…
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Chipotle Pinto Beans (Copycat)
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil or rice bran oil (see note 1)
- 1 medium yellow onion minced
- 16 ounces dried pinto beans rinsed, sorted, and soaked overnight (see note 2)
- 2 chipotle peppers plus 2 teaspoons adobo sauce
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano (see note 3)
- 1 bay leaf
- 6 cups water (enough to cover beans)
- lemon juice
- lime juice
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
- In a Dutch oven or large pot over medium high heat, heat oil until shimmering. Add onion and cook until softened, about 5 minutes.
- Add beans, chipotle pepeprs and adobo sauce, garlic, cumin, oregano, and bay leaf. Add enough water to cover. Bring to a boil over medium high heat. Reduce heat and simmer until beans are tender, about 1 ½ to 2 hours.
- Remove from heat. Remove chipotle chilies if desired and bay leaf. Stir in lemon and lime juices, and season to taste with salt and pepper.
Recipe Video
Notes
- Olive oil: Chipotle uses rice bran oil, but olive oil is more widely available (and probably already in your pantry).
- Pinto beans: To soak dried beans overnight, pick through and sort 1 pound of dried pinto beans. In a large bowl, add beans and enough water to cover by 1 inch. Soak at least 8 hours overnight. Drain and discard soaking liquid.
- Oregano: Chipotle uses Mexican oregano, but you can use Italian oregano if that’s all that you have. They have different flavors (Mexican oregano tastes more like marjoram) but both taste great in this recipe.
- Yield: This recipe makes about 8 c. Chipotle pinto beans, enough for 16 (½ c.) servings.
- Storage: Store leftovers covered in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
- Freezer: The beans can be cooled and packed in freezer-safe containers, labeled, and frozen for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator.
- Quick soak: If you forgot to soak your beans the night before, use this method to get a jump-start on cooking them.
- Pick through and rinse 1 pound beans. To a large saucepan, add beans and enough liquid to cover them by 1 inch.
- Bring beans to boil and cook for 2 minutes. Remove saucepan from heat, cover, and let beans sit for 1 hour. Drain and discard soaking liquid.
But the real ones have pork ingredient.
Nope they don’t, not since like 2013.
Hi there, if you use canned beans do you still add water?
Hi Alissa, I would still add some water. I don’t know yet exactly how much, I’m going to test these today to find out. I’m thinking 1 cup or so. The reason would be make sure all the seasonings are evenly distributed and to help the beans cook evenly. Plus Chipotle’s beans are in liquid at the restaurant; they use a slotted spoon to drain them if I remember correctly. So you want some liquid in there, just not 6 cups. If you are anxious to start, try 1 cup and see what you think, you can always add more. I’ll respond with my definitive findings after testing and update the post with that info.
Also – I think 1 pound of dried beans is equal to 3 cans.
Thanks! -Meggan
I have the same question about the lime & lemon juices. There’s no amount listed for either – Thanks!
Hi,
Do the beans need to be soaked over night or can I can make them straight out of the bag after rinsing.
Hi Reina, in this recipe I don’t have you soak the beans in advance. It’s totally fine if you do, and that will help reduce the cooking time. But here I didn’t, I just added them straight to the recipe after rinsing. If you soak them, I suggested discarding the soaking water (sometimes it adds a sour taste). I’ll clear this up in the recipe notes so nobody else has to ask the question. I appreciate you! Thanks -Meggan
perhaps old wives tale, but hear that overnight soak and rinse before cook reduces the amount of…. gas production… from eating beans.. less music in the fruit.
Can you do this in a crockpot too?
Hi Lynh, I’m sure you can. I’ll have to test it to see what the exact cooking times would be, if you’re interested. Off the top of my head I don’t know. But I am certain you can cook the recipe in a crockpot. I just can’t offer the specifics this second. Thank you! -Meggan
I’m not a bean lover, I make them for my husband. But this recipe, I could have everyday. It’s delicious , not a boring bean by any means . thanks so much for sharing
Wow, thanks so much Patricia, this makes my day! -Meggan
Side of saute onions? No instructions on when to ADD onions INTO beans. Please Update. Thank you
Hi Rae, sorry for the confusion. You add the beans INTO the onions. You cook the onions first, then add in everything else. You never take the onions out. I’ve updated the instructions to from “to the pot add….” to say “to the pot with the onions add….”
I hope that helps. -Meggan
My beans taste soo spicey .. I only added the two chile peppers and the sauce like it stated… is there anything I can do to adjust the spiceyness?
Hi Sabrina, I’m so sorry this happened to you. I am going to change the recipe to address this and recommend people use fewer or even NO chipotle chiles, if spicy food is an issue. Part of it depends on the size of the chiles, mine always end up being tiny but maybe yours were bigger. Or maybe you have a lower tolerance for spicy food. In any case, at this point the best way to help with the spice is to add more beans. If you used dried, you could add some cans since they are already cooked. That will dilute the spice (1 or 2 cans of pintos). You can also add more lemon and lime juice, that should help tone down the overall spiciness. Last, serve the beans with bland foods (like rice or tortillas) and if you like toppings, sour cream, cheese, and avocado can help you eat the beans without setting your face on fire. I’m so sorry again. I’ll fix the recipe! Thanks! -Meggan
This are absolutely excellent! I have made them several times and LOVE them. Thanks so much for the recipe!
Absolutely the best bean recipe ever. I’m n not a fan of pinto beans but this one has me hooked. I make cheesy garlic quick bread to accompany the beans and it’s delicious