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It was the first snowfall of the winter here in DC yesterday which means it was a perfect day to stay inside and make a pot of soup. I found an old recipe card of mine titled *Best Black Bean Soup* so I thought it was time to make it again and see if I still thought it was the best Black Bean Soup around.
I have to say it’s a damn good recipe! I’m not sure how long ago I wrote the recipe down and I have no idea if I made it up or used another recipe. I’m convinced it was a very long time ago. Most likely from my vegetarian days during the early 1990’s. Here’s the original recipe card:
Don’t Forget the Garnishes – They’re Important!
Black Bean Soup
A delicious vegetarian black bean soup topped off with a variety of garnishes for the perfect bowl of soup!
Ingredients
- 1 pkg. dried black beans (about 3 cups)
- 4–6 C. stock or water (I used chicken stock, to keep it vegetarian, use vegetable stock)
- 2 Tbls. olive oil
- 1 lg. onion, diced
- 1 stalk celery, diced
- 1 lg. carrot, diced
- 1 red bell pepper, seeded and diced
- 1 jalapeño, diced (opt. if you don’t want that much spice)
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- salt & pepper
- 2 tsp. cumin
- 1 tsp. coriander
- 1/2 tsp. chipotle chili powder
- 1/4 tsp. cayenne
- 1/2 C. orange juice
- 1 Tbls. dry sherry
- 1 lime, juiced
- 1 – 2 tsp. liquid smoke (opt.)
Suggested toppings (use what you like)
- chopped cilantro
- crumbled mexican cheese
- lime slices
- avocado
- sour cream
- sliced green onions
Instructions
- Soak beans according to package directions. Drain and rinse. Add to large soup pot.
- Add stock to beans in pot and bring to boil. Reduce heat and simmer, covered about 1 1/2 hours to cook the beans.
- In large sauce pan, heat oil over medium heat. Add onions, celery, carrots, bell pepper, garlic (be sure to not let garlic burn) some salt and pepper (hefty pinch) and cook veggies until they soften.
- Add cumin, coriander, cayenne, chipotle powder and cook another minute.
- Add veggies to pot with beans. Continue to simmer until veggies and beans are soft and flavors have combined (I simmered mine about another hour)
- Prior to serving, add orange juice, sherry, lime juice and if, desired, liquid smoke. Stir to combine.
- Blend soup with immersion blender (or in batches in regular blender) to desired texture. If you want a chunky soup, just blend some of it, not all.
- Top individual servings with desired toppings.