{"slug":"slow-cooker-anasazi-beans","collection":"recipes","is_recipe":true,"visibility":"public","title":"Slow-Cooker Anasazi Beans","description":"Anasazi beans slow-cooked from dry with red onion and baking soda on LOW for 8 hours until soft and creamy. No soaking. Serve as a side or a main.","body_md":"\nThe original form of this family recipe from Rachael: speckled Anasazi beans cooked from dry, no soaking, on LOW for 8 hours with a chopped red onion until soft and creamy. For the same beans in about 85 minutes, see **Anasazi Beans** (Instant Pot).\n\n## Equipment\n\n- 6-quart slow cooker\n- Cutting board and knife\n- Measuring spoons\n- Fine-mesh strainer\n\n## Ingredients\n\n- 400g (14oz, about 2 cups) dried Anasazi beans\n- 1 medium red (purple) onion, chopped\n- 8g (2¾ tsp) Diamond Crystal kosher salt\n- 1¾–2 teaspoons (10–12g) baking soda\n- 2 tablespoons (30ml) olive oil\n- 1.4L (6 cups) water\n\n## Instructions\n\n1. **Sort the beans:** Spread the 400g dried Anasazi beans on a light-colored surface and pick out any rocks, debris, or damaged beans.\n\n2. **Rinse:** Rinse the beans in a fine-mesh strainer under cold running water until the water runs clear.\n\n3. **Combine:** Put the beans, chopped red onion, 8g (2¾ tsp) salt, 1¾–2 tsp baking soda, 30ml (2 tbsp) olive oil, and 1.4L (6 cups) water in the slow cooker. Stir well to dissolve the salt and baking soda.\n\n4. **Slow cook:** Cover and cook on **LOW for 8 hours**, until the beans mash easily with a fork but still hold their shape.\n\n5. **Finish:** Taste and add salt as needed. If the beans are too thick, stir in warm water a few tablespoons at a time.\n\n## Notes\n\n- **No soaking required:** the baking soda makes the cooking liquid alkaline, which softens the bean skins and cell walls so they cook through and turn creamy without an overnight soak.\n- **Baking soda is on the high side.** 1¾–2 tsp for 400g of beans is well above typical guidance, and too much can turn beans mushy or soapy. This is the family recipe's amount and it has worked; if you notice a soapy note, start at the low end.\n- **Salt is Diamond Crystal kosher (3g/tsp).** The family recipe called for 1¾–2 tsp fine sea salt (11–12g). Which salt it has actually been cooked with is unknown, so 8g (2¾ tsp) is a deliberate middle starting point — taste after cooking and add more. Morton or table salt is roughly twice as dense by volume: go by weight, not spoons.\n- **Salt timing:** adding salt at the start is fine — long, gentle cooking doesn't toughen the beans.\n- **Texture:** for firmer beans, cook 6–7 hours; for very creamy beans that break down more, 9–10 hours.\n- **Altitude:** at high altitude you may need an extra 1–2 hours.\n- **Don't skip the sorting** — dried beans often carry small rocks that can damage teeth or your cooker.\n- **Scaling:** everything except the baking soda scales linearly. The family recipe used 1 tsp (6g) baking soda for a half batch and 2–2½ tsp for 1.5×; don't scale it higher. Salt from the 8g starting point and taste.\n- **Split out 2026-09-22** from the Anasazi Beans recipe, which is now the Instant Pot version. Salt restated as Diamond Crystal at the same time; nothing else changed from the original slow-cooker method.\n\n## Variations\n\n- **Southwestern style:** Add 1 teaspoon cumin, 1 teaspoon chili powder, and 2 minced garlic cloves with the other ingredients.\n- **Herbed beans:** Add a bay leaf and fresh thyme sprigs to the pot before cooking. Remove the aromatics before serving.\n- **Smoky beans:** Add 1 teaspoon smoked paprika or a few drops of liquid smoke.\n\n## Storage\n\nStore cooled beans in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days, or freeze in portion-sized containers for up to 3 months — the texture holds up well. Reheat gently on the stovetop, adding water as needed to loosen.\n","draft":false,"servings":"8","prep_time":"15 minutes","cook_time":"8 hours","total_time":"8 hours 15 minutes","source_name":"Family: Rachael","created_at":"2026-09-23T00:39:50.916164Z","updated_at":"2026-09-23T00:45:20.687017Z","categories":["Side Dish"],"tags":["Beans","Family Recipe"],"methods":["Slow Cooker"],"themes":["One-Pot Meals","Vegan"],"ingredients":[{"section":"","items":["400g (14oz, about 2 cups) dried Anasazi beans","1 medium red (purple) onion, chopped","8g (2¾ tsp) Diamond Crystal kosher salt","1¾–2 teaspoons (10–12g) baking soda","2 tablespoons (30ml) olive oil","1.4L (6 cups) water"],"parsed":[{"raw":"400g (14oz, about 2 cups) dried Anasazi beans","qty":400,"unit":"g","item":"dried Anasazi beans"},{"raw":"1 medium red (purple) onion, chopped","qty":1,"item":"medium red onion","prep":"chopped"},{"raw":"8g (2¾ tsp) Diamond Crystal kosher salt","qty":8,"unit":"g","item":"Diamond Crystal kosher salt"},{"raw":"1¾–2 teaspoons (10–12g) baking soda","qty":1.75,"qty_max":2,"unit":"tsp","item":"baking soda"},{"raw":"2 tablespoons (30ml) olive oil","qty":2,"unit":"tbsp","item":"olive oil"},{"raw":"1.4L (6 cups) water","qty":1.4,"unit":"l","item":"water"}]}],"related":[{"slug":"anasazi-beans","title":"Anasazi Beans","relation":"variant"}],"servings_int":8,"qc":{"status":"passed","last_checked_at":"2026-09-23T00:45:27.116567Z","checked_by":"robert@sigler.io","standard_version":"2026-09-06","findings_count":0,"stale":false}}