Soups

December 20, 2021

Smokey Black Bean Soup

Smokey Black Bean Soup is an easy, one-pot meal to warm up with on a cold winter’s night. 

I love a black bean soup. For years, I made one that started with bacon, but since becoming a vegetarian, I’ve been looking to replicate that depth of flavor and richness. With smoked paprika and Worcestershire sauce, this soup is deep and smokey. I’ve added chipotle powder for added smokiness and heat, and you can feel free to adjust the level of heat by decreasing or increasing the amount of chipotle powder. As written, it’s a nice medium heat - just enough to get the sinuses going in the winter chill! 

I also like to load up my black bean soup with toppings. My favorites are crushed tortilla chips, plain Greek yogurt, diced avocado, and lots of fresh cilantro. A squeeze of lime juice is also a nice addition, to brighten things up. 

My favorite part of this soup is that it comes together fast and easy. These ingredients are pretty reliable pantry staples for me, and I love that I can go to my pantry to pull a few cans out and have dinner ready in about 30 minutes. During the busy holiday season, there’s nothing better! I wanted to be sure to make the third and final soup in my holiday soup-and-cookies series another easy and simple recipe, one that you can rely on any time life gets busy!

Ingredients assembled for Smokey Black Bean Soup
Assemble your ingredients.

Stages of making the Smokey Black Bean Soup
This soup comes together in about 30 minutes - just a few vegetables to saute, then spices, then simmering tomatoes and black beans in broth until heated through. I like to puree the soup just a bit to make it thicker.

A bowl of Smokey Black Bean Soup garnished with sliced avocado and fresh cilantro
Serve Smokey Black Bean Soup garnished with tortilla chips, diced avocado, fresh cilantro, and a dollop of plain Greek yogurt or sour cream.

Smokey Black Bean Soup

Smokey Black Bean Soup is an easy, one-pot meal to warm up with on a cold winter’s night.

Author:

Kira Freed - The Joyful Plateful

Prep:

5

min

cook:

30

min

total:

35

min

Ingredients

2 Tbsp. avocado oil

1 medium red onion, diced

4-6 cloves garlic, peeled, minced

1 Tbsp. smoked paprika

2 tsp. ground cumin

1 1/2 tsp. kosher salt

1/2 tsp. dried oregano

1/2 tsp. chipotle powder

1/2 tsp. ground black pepper

1 14.5-oz. can fire-roasted diced tomatoes

3 15-oz. cans black beans, drained and rinsed

4 cups low-sodium vegetable broth

1 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce


For serving: 

Tortilla chips

Diced avocado

Chopped cilantro 

Plain unsweetened Greek yogurt or sour cream

Instructions

  1. In a large heavy-bottomed pot such as a Dutch oven, heat avocado oil. Add diced red onion, and saute until translucent, about 7-8 minutes. 
  2. Add minced garlic and saute an additional minute or so. 
  3. Add spices and saute about 45-60 seconds, until spices are fragrant. 
  4. Add diced tomatoes, and stir, making sure to scrape up any bits stuck to the bottom of the pot. 
  5. Add the black beans, vegetable broth, and Worcestershire sauce to the pot, and stir to combine. Cover, and bring to a boil. 
  6. Reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer the soup for 20 minutes uncovered. 
  7. Remove the pot from the heat and use an immersion blender to partially puree the soup. (You can make it completely smooth, or leave it fairly chunky, your preference!) Alternatively, if you do not have an immersion blender, you can blend about 2 cups of the soup in a blender until smooth, and then return it to the pot with the remaining soup. 
  8. Serve immediately, garnished with tortilla chips, diced avocado, chopped cilantro, and plain Greek yogurt (or sour cream). 
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