Instant Pot Butter Beans with Roasted Tomatoes (Gigantes)

Jenny Skrapaliori-Graves | Last Updated: October 20, 2026

Gigantes beans with roasted tomatoes, two sage leaves in a bowl and a spoon.

These Instant Pot butter beans are what I make when I want gigantes on a weeknight and don’t have three hours for the oven. Soaked beans go into the pressure cooker with onion, broth, and sage, while a pan of cherry tomatoes and whole garlic cloves roasts until blistered and jammy. Fold the two together and you have a brothy, Greek-style butter bean stew with creamy beans and sweet, charred tomatoes. It’s vegan if you use vegetable broth, and even better the next day.

If you love these, try my slow-baked Gigantes Plaki with Sausage and Graviera, Fasolada – Greek White Bean Soup, and Lemony Chicken and Beans Stew!

Overview

Why you will love this recipe

Weeknight gigantes. The Instant Pot turns soaked giant beans creamy in 25 minutes, with no par-boiling and no long bake.
Two textures in one bowl. Silky beans in their own broth, plus roasted tomatoes and sweet garlic that bring the char and depth.
Pantry-friendly. Dried beans, a carton of broth, cherry tomatoes, garlic, and herbs.
Naturally vegan and Lenten with vegetable broth.
Make-ahead friendly. The broth gets richer overnight.

Beans like these are what Greeks eat most nights. Find more in my Greek Mediterranean diet dinner recipes.

Butter beans vs. gigantes: which beans to buy

In Greece we call these fasolia gigantes, “giant beans.” They’re a large white runner bean grown mostly in northern Greece, and they’re the bean behind classic gigantes plaki (here’s my slow-baked version with sausage and graviera).

In the US, the easiest substitute is large lima beans, often labeled “butter beans.” They’re a different species but cook up just as creamy, with a slightly softer, less meaty bite. Look for the large white ones, not baby limas, which cook much faster.

I use Greek-brand gigantes from the supermarket, and that’s what this recipe is tested with. Whichever you buy, skip any beans that look yellowed or wrinkled. Old beans never soften properly, no matter how long you cook them.

Here is what you need

A bowl full of multi color cherry tomatoes, a head of garlic, a red onion, a bottle of olive oil, a bowl with giant beans, a box of chicken broth at the back and some fresh herbs at the front.

You need a package of dried gigantes or large lima (butter) beans, a carton of vegetable or chicken broth, mixed cherry tomatoes, a whole head’s worth of garlic cloves, fresh thyme and sage, a large onion, extra virgin olive oil, salt, and pepper.

How to make Instant Pot butter beans

Soak the beans. Cover with plenty of water, stir in 1 teaspoon salt, and soak overnight. Drain and rinse.
Roast the tomatoes. Heat the oven to 400°F / 200°C. Toss the tomatoes and garlic cloves with 2–3 tablespoons olive oil, the thyme and sage, salt, and pepper. Roast for 30 minutes, until blistered and jammy.
Sauté the onion. Set the Instant Pot to Sauté, add 2–3 tablespoons olive oil, and cook the onion until translucent.
Pressure cook the beans. Add the beans, broth, 2–3 sage leaves, salt, and pepper. Cook on High Pressure (or the Bean/Chili setting) for 25 minutes, then let the pressure release naturally.
Fold it together. Gently fold the roasted tomatoes, garlic, and all their oil into the beans. Serve with fried sage leaves and a pinch of chili flakes.

Two plates with Greek gigantes beans, roasted tomatoes and sage leaves and some spoons.

Pro tips

Keep it under the half line. Beans foam under pressure. In a 6-quart pot, don’t fill past the halfway mark.
Let the pressure release naturally. A quick release can make the beans split and spit foam through the valve.
Use all the tomato oil. The olive oil from the roasting pan, with the garlic and herbs, is the flavor base, so scrape every bit into the beans.
Short on time? Use canned. Warm two 15-ounce cans of butter beans with their liquid and ½ cup broth (more if you like it brothy). Season, simmer about 10 minutes until slightly thickened, then fold in the roasted tomatoes. Don’t rinse the beans; the liquid gives the broth body.

Storage and leftovers

Store the cooked beans in the fridge for up to five days.
If you have leftovers, freeze them for up to six months. When you’re ready to eat them, let the beans thaw in the fridge overnight and then warm them on the stovetop until they are heated through.

Great side dishes for gigantes beans

Bread– Crusty bread like our peasant bread loaf is a great side that complements the flavors of beans.
Greens– Greek boiled wild greens or a salad like a maroulosalata and a traditional Greek salad add a nutritious and flavorful touch.
Fried zucchini and eggplant– Crispy and savory, they complement beans beautifully.
Skewers– Try our pork skewers or our chicken thigh skewers.
Burgers– Traditional Greek bifteki is great with gigantes.
Rice– Our lemon rice is terrific side as well as our pilafi with raisins and pinenuts.
Make it a meal. Serve with feta, olives, and crusty bread, the way we eat beans in Greece.

FAQ

Soaked gigantes take 25 minutes at High Pressure plus a natural release. I’ve tested this with Greek gigantes. Large lima (butter) beans are smaller, so they’ll likely be done sooner. If you use them, check after the release and simmer a few more minutes on Sauté only if they need it.

For this recipe, yes. Soaking overnight gives you evenly creamy beans that hold their shape, which matters with beans this big.

Yes. See the tip above. It’s a 15-minute version.

Yes, with vegetable broth.