A delicious Moroccan white beans stew, popularly known as loubia, made in Instant Pot! Serve this zesty and spicy, vegan, and gluten-free loubia with bread or rice or relish it as is.
The season of soups and stews is here, and today I am sharing an easy Moroccan stew with white beans that you can make in under 30 minutes of active cooking time in Instant Pot. It’s a saute and dump-and-go recipe. It’s super easy and a perfect beginner-friendly recipe!
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Being a food lover, I love to travel and explore different cuisines. And I love to recreate the vegetarian version of some of the famous international dishes. But there are so many vegetarian recipes from the global cuisine, and this week, I will share some of our favorite international vegetarian recipes.
Moroccan stew
This Moroccan stew has been on the to-try list for quite some time. Recently started making it, and it has become one of our staples these days. It’s like Indian rajma but with cannellini beans. :-) You can find several recipes online, and I went through quite a few and came up with my spice measure to our taste preference and made it in Instant Pot.
I didn’t use any unique spice blend for this recipe. The Moroccan spice blend is very similar to the Indian spice blend, and these spices are readily available in all the groceries.
Ingredients required
Oil, onion, and garlic: Olive oil works best for this recipe. And we also need some chopped onions and garlic. Like any other onion and tomato-based curry, we saute onion and garlic first.
Tomatoes and tomato paste: Tomatoes add flavor and depth to the gravy, and we need close to 300 grams of ripe tomatoes. We also need some paste for that color and flavor but feel free to skip it.
Spices: We need paprika (you can use chili powder), ground turmeric, ground cumin, and ground pepper. As I mentioned before, these are very easy to source.
Broth: Cooking the stew in broth enhances the flavor. You can use homemade broth or store-bought. IF using store-bought broth, depending upon the sodium level, adjust the salt.
Cannellini beans: I used one can (15.5oz) of cannellini beans. You can use dried beans too. In that case, soak the beans for 8 hours, drain the water, and follow the same cooking procedure as mentioned below. But add 2 cups of water and cook the stew for 25 minutes and release the pressure naturally. Instead of cannellini beans, you can use navy beans or great northern beans.
Dietary specifications and serving suggestions
This Moroccan loubia is vegan, gluten-free, and nut-free by nature.
While it is traditionally served with Moroccan bread Khobz, I served it with rice, and we love it with rice. You can serve with any bread of your choice or relish it as a stew.
This stew freezes well, and you can make it in bulk and freeze for an easy weeknight dinner.
How to make loubia in Instant Pot?
- Set the Instant Pot in saute mode. Add the 1.5 tbsp of oil and, when the oil is hot, add the chopped onion and garlic. Saute until the onion turns soft and tender or for about 3 to 4 minutes. Now turn off the Instant Pot. Turning it off after sauteing onion helps to prevent the burn signal in the newer Instant Pot models.
- Now add the tomatoes on top, followed by the spices and salt.
- Next, add the beans, tomato paste, and broth. Do not mix.
- Close the Instant Pot. Make sure the vent is in the sealing position. Select manual/pressure cook and set the time to 2-minutes at high-pressure mode. When the cooking is complete, wait for 10 minutes, then quickly release the remaining pressure. Carefully open the lid after releasing the pressure.
- Now add the cilantro, gently mix the stew, and simmer for 3 to 5 minutes in saute mode. Check for seasoning and adjust at this stage. This simmering step is optional. But it helps the sauce to thicken a bit.
- Turn off the Instant Pot and serve the Moroccan white bean stew warm with bread or rice or relish it as is.
Recipe notes
- You can use cannellini or navy, or great northern beans for this recipe.
- Make sure to rinse the canned beans well before using.
- Do not over mix the beans in the Instant Pot. While pressure cooking, leave the beans as a top layer. As the canned beans were already soft, we don’t want to over mix and make them mushy.
- As always, adjust the spices and salt to your taste. For a spicy stew, add up to 2 tsps of chili powder.
- Instead of fresh tomatoes, you can use canned tomatoes too.
More Instant Pot Vegetarian Recipes
📖 Recipe
Moroccan White Beans Stew | Instant Pot Loubia
Equipment
- Instant Pot
Ingredients
- 1.5 tbsp olive oil
- ½ onion 200 grams, chopped
- 2 garlic 6 grams, chopped
- 3 tomatoes 320 grams
- 1 tsp paprika
- ¾ tsp turmeric
- 1.5 tsp cumin powder
- ½ tsp ground pepper
- 1.5 tsp salt
- 15.5 oz cannellini beans drained and rinsed
- ¾ cup broth
- 1 tbsp tomato paste
- 2 tbsp cilantro or parsley chopped
Instructions
- Set the Instant Pot in saute mode. Add the 1.5 tbsp of oil and, when the oil is hot, add the chopped onion and garlic. Saute until the onion turns soft and tender or for about 3 to 4 minutes. Now turn off the Instant Pot. Turning it off after sauteing onion helps to prevent the burn signal in the newer Instant Pot models.
- Now add the tomatoes on top, followed by the spices and salt.
- Next, add the beans, tomato paste, and broth. Do not mix.
- Close the Instant Pot. Make sure the vent is in the sealing position. Select manual/pressure cook and set the time to 2-minutes at high-pressure mode. When the cooking is complete, wait for 10 minutes, then quickly release the remaining pressure. Carefully open the lid after releasing the pressure.
- Now add the cilantro, gently mix the stew, and simmer for 3 to 5 minutes in saute mode. Check for seasoning and adjust at this stage. This simmering step is optional. But it helps the sauce to thicken a bit. Turn off the Instant Pot and serve the Moroccan white bean stew warm with bread or rice or relish it as is.
Notes
- You can use cannellini or navy, or great northern beans for this recipe.
- Make sure to rinse the canned beans well before using.
- Do not over mix the beans in the Instant Pot. While pressure cooking, leave the beans as a top layer. As the canned beans were already soft, we don’t want to over mix and make them mushy.
- As always, adjust the spices and salt to your taste. For a spicy stew, add up to 2 tsps of chili powder.
- Instead of fresh tomatoes, you can use canned tomatoes too.
Nutrition
I am not a nutritionist. The nutritional information is provided as a courtesy and is an estimate only. It varies depending upon the product types or brands.
Loved this recipe?
If you try this Moroccan bean stew, please don’t forget to comment and rate this recipe. If you have any questions, please leave a comment, and I will get to it ASAP. Make sure to follow me on my Pinterest or Instagram or join my Facebook Group for recipe updates and simple Indian meal ideas.
This bean stew sounds quick and easy one. The dish is similar to Indian bean gravies as you mentioned and the flavors used here are ones the Indian palates are accustomed to.
Oh yeah it was more like rajma.
That is such a quick and easy recipe to make using the canned beans.
Absolutely. Thanks Harini.
This is a delicious curry which is often made in our home too! The flavors are very much similar to Indian Rajma and your stew looks and sounds awesome!
Yeah it’s very similar to rajma. :-) Thanks Radha.