2009.10.19
The easiest soup
A black bean soup that looks like mine did before I cleaned the bowl.
We had friends over Saturday night to watch football, and it seemed like perfect night to make a big pot of something hot. One friend is a vegetarian, and since I'd had black bean soup on the brain for some reason, that seemed like a good option.
By the time I made up my mind that I wanted to make black bean soup, however, it was too late to start soaking dried beans. I decided to go the easiest route and start with canned beans. You can throw any number of things in a black bean soup, depending on the mood - bacon or ham, green chiles, bell peppers, salsa, tomatoes, hot sauce, lime juice, cilantro - you get the picture.
From a vat big enough to feed a small Army, we had one serving left. After last night, we don't even have that!
Here's how I made my version. What would you do differently?
Easy Black Bean Soup
5 cans black beans, juice and all
1 can vegetable broth (or chicken broth)
1 can water
1 large green pepper, diced
1 medium onion, diced
1 jalapeno, minced
3 cloves garlic, crushed
2 bay leaves
2 tsp. cumin
1 tsp. chili powder
Kosher salt and pepper to taste
Cilantro (optional)
Sour cream (optional)
1. Dump everything into a big pot. Bring to a simmer.
2. Simmer for an hour, or until all of the vegetables are tender. Remove bay leaves and garlic and discard.
3. Either remove about 1 1/2 cups of beans to a blender and puree, then return them to the soup OR use an immersion blender to puree an equivalent amount right in the pot. Just don't puree all of the beans with the immersion blender. The idea here is to thicken the soup, not blend up all of the whole beans.
4. Serve with chopped cilantro and sour cream on top.
Wow, I made bean soup on Sunday! Guess it is the weather. Not everyone is as in love with black beans as I am so, I use:
1 can kidney beans
1 can great northern beans
1 can black beans
1 can corn
1 can pinto beans
1 can vegetable broth
add in 3 tbsp brown sugar
and 1/2 cup ketchup
easy as falling off a log and delicious I promise.
BTW, do any of you also love the black bean hummus at Isaacs Restaurant? Anyone seen it in the grocery?
It is delicious and even better the next day for lunch.
Comment by Sandi Saunders — October 19, 2009 @ 10:36 am
Your soup sounds delicious and I would not change a thing except ditch the bay leaves and add a tablespoon of brown sugar but that is purely me.
Comment by Sandi Saunders — October 19, 2009 @ 10:43 am
I have an easier version, courtesy of Weight Watchers:
1 med onion, chopped
4 garlic cloves minced
3 15 oz cans black beans (juice & all)
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
1 tsp ground cumin
14 1/2 oz low sodium chicken or veg. broth
10 oz can Rotel
11 oz can corn, drained
1. In a large pot, sautee the onions and garlic in some olive oil until tender, but not brown.
2. In a blender, add 1 can of beans, the onion & garlic mixture, the red pepper and cumin. Blend until smooth, about 30 second. Pour mixture into pot.
3. Add a second can of beans to blender and blend until smooth. Add to pot.
4. Stir in the 3rd can of beans (left whole), the Rotel, and the corn in the pot with the pureed beans. Bring to a boil, the lower heat to simmer 20 - 25 minutes. Yields about 1 1/2 cups per serving, for a total of 8 servings.
I like to add turkey kielbasa, and top with sour cream and cheese.
I find there's less mess when I puree the beans before they are hot.
Comment by Lori — October 19, 2009 @ 11:23 am
Lori, your version looks easier for folks who do not have an immersion blender. But it doesn't get much easier than sticking the blender in the pot and pushing the button for a couple of seconds. Zip, zip! And you are done!
If anyone who does not have an immersion blender is currently making a holiday gift list, I'd add that to the list. It has been an invaluable addition to my kitchen.
Comment by Lindsey Nair — October 19, 2009 @ 11:28 am
Thanks for this recipe, Lindsey. I absolutely adore the smooth dark black bean soup at Carlo's Brazilian - I would love to get ahold of THAT recipe, if anyone has any clues or suggestions...
Comment by Kimberly — October 19, 2009 @ 12:44 pm
thanks for the awesome recipe lindsey! i'm gonna have to invest in an immersion blender soon since i have all the ingredients on hand.
any particular brand name you recommend? i'd hate to buy one and it break-down on me in a matter of months.
the dish (in the pic) looks tasty!
Comment by jason — October 19, 2009 @ 12:51 pm
Immerision Blender, one of my favorite kitchen tools.
Issac's Hummus is all home made,
Black beans
Lemon Juice
Olive Oil (little amount)
Chickpeas
It seems that would be about it, trick is to use fresh not canned beans.......
Sub, the red pepper, spinach, etc. to change it up.
Their's is wonderful, though.
Comment by Rocc — October 19, 2009 @ 1:05 pm
Lindsey,
My recipe matches yours except that I also add the juice of one lime.
win
Comment by Win — October 19, 2009 @ 1:23 pm
yum black beasn are awesome, try this recipe with fried plantains..
strip down the peeling, leave intact as you will use it later. Place thickly sliced plantains in hot olive oil, brown lightly and turn. Once lightly browned on both sides, take each piece and squeeze it between the peeling to smash it a bit, then back in the oil for a few minutes, drain, blot and serve...yummmmmmm
Comment by pammala — October 19, 2009 @ 1:48 pm
Jason, let me look and see what brand mine is when I get home. I know that it is white with several attachments, one of which is the blender attachment. It also came with a whisk attachment and a small food processor attachment. I have never had much use for the whisk- would rather do that by hand.
I haven't had problems with mine, but I notice that many of the styles I see on the Internet have stainless steel sticks instead of plastic.
Comment by Lindsey Nair — October 19, 2009 @ 2:01 pm
Puree all the beans and give it a bit of sherry to finish it. Good stuff.
Comment by Henry — October 19, 2009 @ 2:40 pm
I agree with you on the ease of the immersion blender, especially when you already have a sink full of dishes and you don't want to lug out the blender! My only issue is splatter, especially when you have a big pot of soup or sauce that is almost full.
Pammala, the plantains sound wonderful!
Comment by Lori — October 19, 2009 @ 2:49 pm
Best black bean soup is Montano's, then Panara Bread.
Comment by david speight — October 19, 2009 @ 5:36 pm
My father says marjoram is "the bean spice." Claims it's good in any bean dish. Of course, I learned this after I made the soup.
Win, I wanted lime! But all I had was a half-rotted half-lemon.
Jason, my blender is a Braun. It's similar to the one pictured here: http://www.amazon.com/Braun-MR5550CA-Multiquick-Professional-Blender/dp/B00006I4YF
I like that the shield up around the blender at the end of the stick part is broad. I think it helps to prevent the splatter Lori mentioned.
Comment by Lindsey Nair — October 19, 2009 @ 7:24 pm
Hi Lindsey! Sounds good, I'll try it. This question sounds picky, but I'm not really trying to be. In number 2 you say simmer, then remove the bay leaves and garlic and discard. I don't see garlic in the list of ingredients..am I missing it? So my question is to see how much garlic you are using?
Best "restaurant" black bean soup in the valley is at Paradiso (sp) in the Market Square Bldg.!
Comment by Dennis — October 19, 2009 @ 9:36 pm
I love black bean soup! I usually use dry beans and add epazote, a delicious Mexican herb that also helps cut down on certain bean-related digestion issues.
I also begin with a sofrito, often add rum, and end with lime juice.
Comment by Emma — October 19, 2009 @ 10:53 pm
I had the good fortune of eating some of this soup and it's great! The fresh cilantro is a nice kicker, and the soup is healthy but filling - perfect for someone on a diet like me.
Comment by Charles — October 20, 2009 @ 7:22 am
What garlic are we supposed to remove?
Comment by Brian — October 20, 2009 @ 7:25 am
Hmm, mine is not as nice. It has a small shield, but it does not look as broad. Might have to add that one to the wish list!
Last night I made a big pot of lentil soup using a recipe from Giada De Laurentis I found on Food Network. It was wonderful! The recipe says it serves 6, but I had enough for my husband to have 2 bowls, there are 3 tupperware containers in the fridge for lunch, and I have 2 more ball freezer jars of soup in the freezer. She must be serving the soup in a bucket!
Comment by Lori — October 20, 2009 @ 9:43 am
Good catch, Dennis and Brian. Thank you. I had inadvertently omitted the three cloves of crushed garlic.
It's fixed now.
Comment by Lindsey Nair — October 20, 2009 @ 11:12 am