Easy Homemade Black Bean Soup
A delicious way to put black beans to use! Our Easy Homemade Black Bean Soup is made with simple ingredients, a ton of flavor, made creamy without cream, and can be finished with everything from avocado to tortilla chips!
We love a creamy cream-free soup around here, and this Easy Homemade Black Bean Soup is another delicious one to add to that list! My 6-year-old loves black beans and has been asking for a black bean soup from scratch for a while now, and I’m happy to say that this passed her test! It’s packed full of flavor, and plenty of plant-based protein, this vegetarian soup is one that’s perfect if you’re wanting an easy dinner that can add more beans or cut-out meat.
Ingredients Needed
- Black Beans – Dried or canned, whichever you have! See below and our recipe card on how to use dried black beans.
- Green Bell Pepper – To add just a little bit of earthy, vegetal flavor to the soup.
- Onion, and Garlic – Staples!
- Roma Tomatoes – Delicious for in the soup and to top!
- Spices – Cumin, paprika, celery salt (one of my favorites to add to soup), oregano, salt, pepper, and just a touch of chili powder for a kiss of heat.
- Lime Juice – To finish the soup with to add just the right amount of acidity.
- Cilantro, Cotija Cheese, Avocado – To top your soup with! Tortilla chips are another great choice!
Dried vs. Canned Beans
You can use dried or canned black beans for this recipe, it really just depends on what you have/what kind of time you have.
The main benefit of dried beans is that they are much more economical than canned beans. And canned beans (unless specifically labeled) have added sodium.
The main benefit of canned beans is of course convenience. There’s no soaking or cooking time required, and you can rinse the beans or purchase “no salt added” canned black beans.
Either canned or dried can be used for this easy homemade black bean soup, just check out the recipe card for instructions on how to use both.
Easy to Make
Saute Veggies
Use your favorite dutch oven (our is our cast iron from Finex!) and saute up the garlic, onions, and pepper. Add the spices to coat and toast, add tomatoes, black beans, and vegetable stock.
Blend
Then it’s just a blend in your Vitamix, blender, or immersion blender and you have a creamy, flavorful, black bean soup!
Top this Easy Homemade Black Bean Soup with some fresh cilantro, diced avocado, tomatoes, and some creamy cotija cheese. Or add a little crunch with some tortilla chips!
Our Other Creamy Soups
- Creamy Asparagus Soup
- Creamy Curried Cauliflower Soup
- Roasted Butternut Squash Soup
- Roasted Parsnip and Potato Soup
- Crock Pot Broccoli Cheddar Soup
Recipe Tips
This black bean soup is a great one to make ahead and freeze! It’s especially great if you’re using dried black beans, you can make a big batch of beans, a big batch of soup, and then store it in your freezer. It freezes really well and will store in the freezer for up to 3 months. Take out of the fridge the night before to thaw and then reheat in a pot.
Go crazy with your toppings! Add some sour cream, chips, cilantro, or even some sliced jalapenos!
Serve it with some of our homemade crackers or bread like Saltines From Scratch, Easy Homemade Dinner Rolls, Easy Crusty French Baguette, or Garlic Naan.
Depending upon the size of your blender, you may want to blend this soup in batches. Also, if you want a little added texture and not a full-on creamy soup, you can leave some of the black beans whole.
Enjoy! As always, if you make this recipe or any of my others, I love to hear what you think! Leave a comment below, email me, or you can find me on Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest!
If you want to see more, be sure to sign up for my 5 Easy Ways to Start Cooking From Scratch!
Easy Homemade Black Bean Soup
Equipment
- dutch oven or large stock pot
Ingredients
- 1/2 lb dried black beans or 1 1/4 cup dried, about 3 cups cooked, or 2 cans.
- 1 tablespoon olive oil or butter
- 1 white onion diced
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 1/2 green bell pepper diced
- 1 cup diced roma tomatoes
- 4 cups vegetable broth
- 2 teaspoons cumin
- 1/2 teaspoon paprika
- 1/2 teaspoon oregano
- 1/4 teaspoon celery salt
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 tablespoon lime juice
Garnish
- fresh cilantro
- diced tomatoes
- diced avocado
- cotija cheese
- tortilla chips
Instructions
Cook Dried Beans
- Rinse the dried black beans. Add the beans to a medium-sized bowl and cover with water. Let soak overnight (or at least 6 hours).
- Rinse and then add to a stock pot with at least 4 cups of water. Heat on high and bring to a boil and let cook for 10 minutes before reducing the heat and simmering for 60 – 90 minutes, until beans are tender.
Soup
- Add olive oil to a dutch oven or other large pot and heat on medium. Add onions, garlic, and pepper and saute for 3-4 minutes.
- Add spices, turn to coat onions and peppers in spices and cook to toast spices for another 60 seconds.
- Add tomatoes and black beans and stir. Add stock and bring heat up to medium-high until it reached a boil. Reduce heat to let simmer for 20 minutes.
- Gently add soup to a blender (you may need to do this in batches), or use an immersion blender right in your pot, to blend until creamy.
- Top with fresh cilantro, additional diced tomatoes, diced avocado, cotija cheese (or your other favorite cheese), or tortilla chips. Enjoy!
