The Best Black Bean Soup
This hearty and delicious Black Bean Soup is a quick and easy dinner recipe made from canned black beans, pasta, bacon, and vegetables. It is perfect for taking care of leftovers, and you can easily adapt it to make it vegetarian!
- Prep time
- 15 min
- Cook time
- 12 min
- Yield
- 6 servings
- Difficulty
- MEDIUM
Ingredients
Quantities are shown as originally provided.
- 5 strips of thick smoked bacon
- ½ large yellow onion (chopped ( or use white onion))
- ⅓ cup diced carrots (if using baby carrots, simply slice them into rounds)
- ⅓ cup diced celery
- 30 ounce can of black beans (or homemade black bean leftovers (or 2 cans of 15 ounces each))
- 4 cups beef stock (or vegetable stock for a vegetarian recipe)
- 1 cup canned diced tomatoes (and their juice)
- Salt and pepper to taste
- 1 cup mezzi rigatoni pasta
- 1 bay leaf
- Chopped cilantro or parsley (or green onions)
Instructions
- 1
Cook the bacon: In a medium to large non-stick saucepan, cook the chopped bacon over medium heat for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the onions and sweat them for about 3 to 5 minutes in the bacon fat.
- 2
Sauté the veggies: Add the onions and sweat them for about 3 to 5 minutes in the bacon fat. Add the carrots and celery and cook over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally, for 3 to 5 minutes.
- 3
Add the other ingredients: Add the beans, beef stock, tomatoes and their juice, salt, and pepper to taste, pasta, and bay leaf.
- 4
Simmer: Bring to a boil over medium-high heat; then cover, reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer for about 10 to 12 minutes (or until pasta is cooked). Remove the bay leaf and adjust the salt and pepper if necessary. Serve hot, sprinkled with chopped cilantro/parsley, and serve with bread. Enjoy!