Instant Pot Pinto Beans & Ham Hocks

Ingredients:

1 (1-pound) package Camellia Brand Pinto Beans
1 large smoked ham hock
1 large yellow onion, finely chopped
2 large cloves garlic, minced
2 dried red chile peppers, or ¼ teaspoon red chile flakes
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
6 cups water or chicken broth
1 bunch green onions, chopped

Total time:: 50 minutes
Prep time:: 10 minutes
Cook time:: 40 minutes
Yield:: 6

Directions:

Rinse and sort beans.
Put the beans and ham hock in the Instant Pot with onion, chiles, salt, pepper, and water or broth. Twist to lock the lid, and turn the valve to sealing.
Cook at high pressure 40 minutes, and then let the pressure release naturally for 20 minutes.
Turn the valve to venting. Unlock lid, and remove ham hocks with tongs. Discard skin, bones and cartilage. Chop or shred ham and stir back into beans.
If desired, to make beans creamier, put a ladle or two into a small bowl, and mash with a potato masher or fork. Stir back into the pot. Serve sprinkled with green onions.

Tips:
• Refrigerate beans overnight. The next day, the liquid will have thickened, and fat can be removed from the surface.
• Reheat beans by the bowlful in the microwave, or in a saucepan on top of the stove over medium heat until steaming.
• Freezes well.

Recipe adapted from the stovetop version featured in the cookbook Field Peas to Foie Gras: Southern Recipes with a French Accent by Jennifer Hill Booker, photography by Deborah Whitlaw Llewellyn (Pelican Publishing, 2014).