I love black bean soup like I love chili. It’s great on its own, but it’s also fun to get creative with toppings and turn it into a bowl full of fun (okay, maybe I get too excited about food). This awesomely flavorful and easy slow cooker black bean soup practically makes itself, which is perfect for hot summer days like this when you don’t want a pot of soup boiling away on the stove making your whole kitchen extra steamy.
What else is awesome about this soup? Wellll…. It’s vegan, super filling, low cal, high fiber, high protein, full of veggies, and costs next to nothing. Need I say more?
And about those awesome fun toppings? I ate mine with a dollop of sour cream, but you could do crispy tortilla strips, green onions, cilantro, pepitas, cheddar or pepper jack cheese, or even a scoop of cooked rice. Actually, just about anything that goes good in a taco would probably go awesome on top of this soup. Go wild!
Slow Cooker Black Bean Soup
Servings 6 1.5 cups eachIngredients
- 2 cloves garlic ($0.16)
- 1 yellow onion ($0.41)
- 2 ribs celery ($0.33)
- 2 carrots ($0.28)
- 1 lb. black beans (uncooked) ($1.75)
- 1 cup salsa ($0.85)
- 1 Tbsp chili powder* ($0.30)
- 1/2 Tbsp ground cumin ($0.15)
- 1 tsp dried oregano ($0.05)
- 4 cups vegetable broth ($0.53)
- 2 cups water ($0.00)
Instructions
- Mince the garlic, dice the onion and celery, and grate the carrots on a large holed cheese grater. Rinse the black beans in a colander under cool running water and pick out any stones or debris.
- Combine the garlic, onion, celery, carrots, black beans, salsa, chili powder, cumin, oregano, vegetable broth, and water in a 5-7 quart slow cooker. Stir well.
- Place the lid on the slow cooker and cook on high for 6-8 hours (you want the beans to get VERY soft). Once the beans are very soft, use an immersion blender** to blend the soup until it is thick and creamy (leave some beans whole if desired). Taste the soup and add salt if needed (this will depend on the brand of vegetable broth used).
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Notes
Nutrition
How to Make Slow Cooker Black Bean Soup – Step by Step Photos
Rinse the dry beans under cool water to remove any dust and dirt. If there are any pebbles or other debris, pick them out.
Add the beans to a 5-7 quart slow cooker along with 2 cloves of minced garlic, one onion (diced), 2 stalks celery (diced), 2 carrots (grated on a large holed cheese grater), 1 cup salsa, 1 Tbsp chili powder, 1/2 Tbsp cumin, and 1 tsp oregano. Add to that 4 cups of vegetable broth and 2 cups of water. Stir well, place the lid on top, and let it cook on high for 6-8 hours (the goal is VERY soft beans).
After 6 hours on high (it can go 8 hours if needed), the beans will be soft and floating around in a bunch of liquid. You want this to be a thick soup, so you’ll need to purée some of the beans (or all if you want it to be a super smooth soup). The easiest way is to use an immersion blender, but if you don’t have one, it can be done with a regular blender. If using a regular blender, let the soup cool until it’s no longer hot (warm is okay). blend about half of the soup in batches for a slightly chunky soup, or all of the soup for a smooth soup. When blending warm liquids it’s always a good idea to throw a towel over the top of the closed blender to catch any spray if it does build pressure and burst out the top. Never, NEVER, blend hot liquids. (speaking from experience).
I blended about half of my soup and left some beans whole for texture. Blending the beans also thickens up the soup considerably. Once it’s blended, give it a taste and see if you need to add salt. I used Better Than Bouillon soup base for my vegetable broth, which tends to be on the salty side, so I didn’t need to add any. If you’re using a low sodium broth, you’ll probably need to add a pinch to make the flavors pop.
And then go crazy with toppings! Woot!
Made this last night. This is really tasty! A keeper in my book. Both my husband and myself really enjoyed it. Thanks for the recipe!
We made this last week and it was a huge hit. Had some leftover guac in the freezer, so used guac ice cubes to cool it down. :)
How long will it keep in the fridge?
thanks! keep up the good cookin!
Probably about 5 days in the fridge, but it also freezes REALLY well (I ate a reheated bowl from the freezer today for lunch!) :)
We made this and I really liked it, but I felt like I needed some chips to go with it. It kind of felt like I was eating a chip dip for dinner!
We buy black beans in bulk, so we’re always looking for good recipes for them. So excited to try this one!
Jacques Pepin makes a similar black bean soup. What really stood out to me was he added bananas and cilantro as a topping which I thought was really interesting.
It’s in my slowcooker right now, I can’t wait to try it :-)
Hi, I bought some better than boullion at the super market and its chicken based. Do you still use that in this recipe, or is there a vegetable version? Thank you!
You CAN use the chicken flavored one if that’s what you have, but there is also a vegetable flavor Better Than Bouillon (actually, they probably make about ten different flavors!) :)
Thank you! My supermarket only carries the chicken flavor. :-( I will look at other stores!
It might be worth checking online retailers, too, like Amazon. :)
This was amazing! Mine came out a lot thicker than yours did but that could be because 1. I was using a crockpot from the 70s and 2. I ended up staying late at work so it was on high for almost 10 hours. I also added a couple teaspoons of chipotle powder to mine and it was an awesome addition. I highly recommend it. I don’t even like beans very much and I couldn’t stop eating this!
This looks DELICIOUS! I’ve been looking for a black bean soup recipe, you totally read my mind!…. :D
made this tonight and was a hit, even with the non-chili liking daughter! Thanks for a great one, Beth!
Hey! I just realized this calls for dry beans instead of canned. Can I still do it with canned? Just use less water?
Delicious! Thanks for the easy, tasty recipe.
My family loved this recipe!!
Made this soup this week and LOVE IT. It is hearty and filling but still so healthy! I added two chopped jalapeños for extra spice. We set up a toppings “bar” so we could each make it our own. YUM!!
“It smelled so good, I thought it couldn’t be vegetarian,” said my roommate as he scooped himself a bowl of this delicious soup, upon learning this was meat-free. Beth, every soup recipe I have tried of yours has always come out delicious. I never have leftovers for the freezer!