Fresh borlotti have a green and fresh flavor that no amount of soaking could ever put back into dry. If you happen to see fresh beans at the market grab them and rush home to make this salad! The pods weigh almost as much as the beans inside – there is no need for any precision in this recipe – but if your goal is a pound of beans to cook, get around two pounds of un-shelled fresh beans.
Pressure Cooking Fresh Beans
Leave the beans in their pods, and pop them out shortly before cooking to keep them fresh and tender. And all those little baby- or weird looking beans? They won’t look good in the bean salad, so set them aside and toss them into your next pressure cooker stock.
How long to pressure cook fresh beans? Just as long as soaked beans – for a more al dente bean, such as this one that will be used in a salad, shave a minute off the recommended pressure cooking time and then rinse the cooked beans as soon as you get them out of the pressure cooker to stop them from continuing to cook.
Pressure Cooker | Accessories | Pr. Cook Time | Pr. Level | Open |
---|---|---|---|---|
6 L or larger | none | 6-9 min. | High(2) | Natural |

- ¼ small red onion, very thinly sliced
- 1 tablespoon white wine vinegar
- 2 pounds fresh Borlotti beans, shelled (or 1 cup dried, soaked overnight)
- 4 cups water
- 2 garlic cloves, smashed
- 1 bay leaf
- 3 anchovies, finely chopped (optional)
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- a few twists freshly ground black pepper
- 1 teaspoon salt
- Put sliced onions in serving bowl and drizzle with the vinegar - set aside.
- To the pressure cooker add shelled beans, garlic, bay leaf and water.
- Close and lock the lid of the pressure cooker. Pressure cook for 7-9 minutes at high pressure.
- When time is up, open the pressure cooker with the Natural release method - move the cooker off the burner and wait for the pressure to come down on its own. If after 10 minutes, all of the pressure has not dissipated release the rest using the valve.
- Strain the beans (save the cooking liquid to use in another recipe ) and rinse under cold water to cool off.
- Mix beans with onions (and their vinegar), anchovies, oilve oil, black pepper and salt.


Hello from Tucson! I am new to this site and pressure cooking alltogether. Im impressed with the format and all the work that has gone into this site. Does anyone have an interesting recipy for thirteen bean soup? Id love to hear from you. Ciao!
Hello Laura…It’s Jennifer from the way-back SFPUC days. Greetings from San Francisco.
These beans just showed up in our local farmers market a couple of weeks ago, and after seeing this recipe on your site, I decided to give these beans and pressure cooking a try. This recipe is lovely, no one was hurt in the making of it, and I will definitely be making it again (as long as the beans are still available). By the way, they were called Tongue of Fire shelling beans, here. Thanks for introducing me to a new way of cooking.
One question, what other recipe can I make with the bean liquid? You mention to save it, but don’t say for what. Thanks again!
Oh Jennifer-mistress-of-all-things-tech!
You can use the bean cooking liquid for making risotto, as the base of a soup, for steamed rice, even as the braising liquid for meats – basically anything you might use stock for, you can use the liquid – or make-up part of the stock for the liquid. You can even toss it into your next stock.
Here are a few ideas for re-using the cooking liquid…
Classic Risotto:
http://www.hippressurecooking.com/pressure-cooker-risotto-in-7-minutes/
Farro Risotto:
http://www.hippressurecooking.com/pressure-cooker-book-review-the-new-fast-food-the-veggie-queen-pressure-cooks-whole-food-meals-in-minutes/
Pork Chops & Cabbage:
http://www.hippressurecooking.com/20-minute-pressure-cooker-pork-chops-and-cabbage/
Pressure Cooker Polenta:
http://www.hippressurecooking.com/polenta-five-ways-pressure-cooker-recipe-technique/
If you get a chance to come to the SF Bloomie’s demo in Wednesday evening would love to see you!!!
Ciao,
L