Spicy Black Bean Soup
This healthy black bean soup recipe is easy to make with canned beans. It's absolutely delicious and naturally vegan, vegetarian and gluten free!
Updated by Kathryne Taylor on July 10, 2024
Meet my favorite black bean soup! It takes advantage of canned black beans and comes together quickly. Yet the soup tastes remarkably fresh thanks to the carrots, celery and garlic.
Cumin and a little bit of sherry vinegar (or lime juice) add a Cuban flair that takes it over the top. This lightly creamy black bean soup is packed with flavor.
This homemade soup is a million times better than the store-bought variety. Read the comments if you don’t believe me just yet!
How to Make The Best Black Bean Soup
A few notes and tips before you get started:
You don’t need a long list of ingredients for complex flavor. Basic, fresh aromatics like onion, carrots and celery make all the difference. Just cook them until they’re nice and tender.
Briefly sauté the cumin, garlic and red pepper flakes to enhance their flavor. Then, add the remaining ingredients and gently simmer until the beans are tender and the flavors have melded.
To achieve the perfect soup texture, purée a portion of the soup in the blender until it’s super creamy. Then stir it back into the pot. Ta da! Now you have black bean soup with tender beans and a lightly creamy consistency, no cream required.
Black Bean Soup Storage Tips
I should mention that this recipe makes quite a lot of soup. Leftovers will keep well for four to five days, so it’s perfect for weekday lunches.
You can also freeze this soup. I always freeze my soup in pint-sized mason jars, leaving room for expansion at the top and waiting to screw on the lids until the soup has fully frozen. Then I just defrost it later.
Slow Cooker Black Bean Soup
Rumor has it that this black bean soup turns out well in a slow cooker (Erin said she “basically just put it all in the crock at the same time and slow cooked it for about 6 hours”). If you give that a try, will you please let me know how it turns out?
Please let me know how this soup turns out for you in the comments! I’m always so eager for your feedback and hope my recipes turn out wonderfully for you.
Craving more hearty vegetarian soups? Don’t miss the following soup recipes on Cookie and Kate:
- Vegetarian Chili
- Butternut Squash Chipotle Chili
- Pinto Posole
- Mexican Quinoa Stew
- Best Lentil Soup
- Plus my cookbook has eight of my favorite soup recipes!
Watch How to Make Black Bean Soup
Spicy Black Bean Soup
This healthy black bean soup recipe is easy to make with canned beans. Thanks to some basic aromatics and Cuban spices, it’s incredibly flavorful and delicious. This soup is naturally vegan, vegetarian and gluten free. The recipe yields quite a bit of soup (6 to 8 servings)—it is easily halved, or you can freeze the leftovers.
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 2 medium yellow onions, chopped
- 3 celery ribs, finely chopped
- 1 large carrot, peeled and sliced into thin rounds
- 6 garlic cloves, pressed or minced
- 4 ½ teaspoons ground cumin
- ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes (use ¼ teaspoon if you’re sensitive to spice)
- 4 cans (15 ounces each) black beans, rinsed and drained
- 4 cups (32 ounces) low-sodium vegetable broth
- ¼ cup chopped fresh cilantro (optional)
- 1 to 2 teaspoons sherry vinegar, to taste, or 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
- Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- Optional garnishes: diced avocado, extra cilantro, thinly sliced radishes, tortilla chips…
Instructions
- Heat the olive oil in a large Dutch oven or soup pot over medium heat until shimmering. Add the onions, celery and carrot and a light sprinkle of salt. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetable are soft, about 10 to 15 minutes.
- Stir in the garlic, cumin and red pepper flakes and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Pour in the beans and broth and bring to a simmer over medium-high heat. Cook, reducing heat as necessary to maintain a gentle simmer, until the broth is flavorful and the beans are very tender, about 30 minutes.
- Transfer about 4 cups of the soup to a stand blender, securely fasten the lid, and blend until smooth (never fill your blender past the maximum fill line, and beware the steam that escapes from the top of the blender, it’s very hot). Or, use an immersion blender to blend a portion of the soup.
- Return the pureed soup to the pot, stir in the cilantro, vinegar/lime juice and salt and pepper, to taste. Serve.
Notes
Recipe adapted from The America’s Test Kitchen Healthy Family Cookbook.
Suggested sides: Chunky avocado salsa, a little green salad, quesadillas or a grilled cheese sandwich.
Nutrition
The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice. See our full nutrition disclosure here.
I always enjoy making soups- they’re low-stress, involve lots of slicing away at fresh vegetables, and feel a little magical!
I found this while looking for a nice vegetarian black bean soup recipe and I’m so glad I tried it! I think I may have used a bit too much onion (I may have selected some pretty large “medium” sized onions) and it tasted a little sweeter than I thought it was intended to- but it’s still so good! I’m a young professional and & I now have lunch for the rest of the week!
With a dollop of sour cream and some soft corn tortillas on the side, this soup is heaven! Thank you for the recipe. I’ll be visiting your site for more recipes shortly- I think I’ll be tackling that sweet potato and black bean quesadilla recipe next!
This was delicious!!
Thanks,for recipe,made it with just sun flower oil,didn’t have any cilantro but it was still good.
Ok long story short, i have been trying to quit eating meat but I could not find recipes to fit my meat and cheese lovin’ pallet. So, im searching and searching for recipes and come across this spicy black bean soup. I cooked it last night and omg i was so thrown back by the flavors. I had some for breakfast with a few radishes and yes it was oh so good. Thanks for the recipe I think I can trasition my family and I into a meatless existence in peace now. I will definitely be back for more recipes.
That’s great to hear, Nicole! I have lots of recipes for you. :)
I’m cooking this for the second time tonight, and this time I’m making a big batch to freeze for another day. Just the right thing for a cold and rainy summer’s day in the UK! Warming, rich, delicious and filling.I popped a chopped up mix of avocado and tomato on top, which cut through the richness of the soup perfectly.
Made this on a rainy day and it was delicious! I halved the recipe and it came out a little thick but still tasted great. Will make again!
Hi Kate! This soup is all I ever wanted from a black bean soup. Yummmmm! Thank you. :D :D :D
Unless your doctor tells you to watch your sodium intake, always use broth that’s not reduced-sodium in all recipes that require broth, so you don’t have to add salt yourself, or try to save your recipes because it needs salt to improve the taste (even if it’s not bad tasting); Otherwise, I can eat this often.
Also, I sliced a harbanero pepper and added maybe/around 3 cups of collard greens, and I left out the 3/4 teaspoon of sea salt since I used regular no chicken veggie broth. Came out amazing.
Making again soon. Thank you for sharing this recipe
This soup is amazing! I made it in my crock pot today and have added it to the weekly rotation. Thank you!
I just finished cooking this soup (and my mother and I are eating it right now) and it is absolutely delicious! Pureeing part of the soup helped thicken it up nicely. Five stars all the way!
Oh. My. Goodness. This soup is amazing!!! I want to eat the whole pot! I’m not exaggerating. It’s really good. Especially with tortilla chips. Thank you so much for this recipe!
Hi Kate,
thanks for the fab recipe! We used to buy a black bean soup mix that we loved and then it disappeared – I’ve tried a couple of home made versions that didn’t live up to it but this one does! I did use the crockpot as you mentioned which was super easy – the only addition I made was 3 or 4 chilies in adobo sauce for a bit of a smoky taste.
Deborah
I made this tonight, and it’s delicious! I didn’t have any cumin, so I just left that out. I added an extra clove of garlic, two chopped tomatoes (which I think is a great addition!), a dash of cayenne pepper, and two sliced green onions, in addition to the original recipe. I topped it with diced avocado and lime tortilla chips. EXCELLENT! Thanks for the recipe! :)
Thank you, Suzanne! Your version sounds great to me!
Hi! I made this last night although it was a small batch because I didn’t have a lot of black beans. My sons said over and over how good it was and I have to make this again! Well, I’m cooking dried black beans now so I can make mass quantities today and freeze some. Thank you for a really great recipe. I thoroughly enjoyed this too
Thank you, Eva! Happy to hear it.
My quest for the perfect black bean soup came to an end when I made this soup last night. I was already soaking black beans so I made my beans from scratch instead of using out of the can. I seasoned the beans with hickory smoked salt and West African uda pepper. Outside of this I made exact to the instruction and was profoundly pleased…and so was my husband! I will make this again and again!
Thank you! I’m so glad. :)
We love this black bean soup! I use homemade beans and vegetable broth, and I sauté the veggies in a little water instead of oil, as we’re whole food, plant based. It’s so quick and it turns out perfect every time!
I forgot to mention that we like this soup so much that we dehydrate it and take it on all of our backpacking trips (several every year). I also follow the recipe exactly except for substituting water for the oil, and I use home-cooked beans and vegetable broth as I mentioned above.
This soup sounds and looks amazing!!! I can’t wait to try it out now that it’s coming back into soup season. Thanks for sharing
its getting cold and I made a batch of this soup and its wonderful so hearty
Thanks, Peetie! Stay warm!
I made this recipe last night – it was so good!! It was my first cookie and kate recipe. 2 thumbs up. I will make this again for sure :)
Thank you.
Thank you, Andrea! I’m so glad you loved your first C+K recipe. Thank you for saying hi!
Loved how simple this was, but still packed a flavorful punch. I am very much looking forward to creating more of your recipes. Thank you!
Thank you, Grace! Really happy to hear that you enjoyed this one. Hope you love the others, too!
This soup sounds great, will make it this weekend. I purchased a soup maker last spring and only used it once. Do you think this would work in it or should I play it safe and follow the recipe?
Great recipe….only change was that I used red pepper instead of celery (I didn’t have celery). Everything else was the same….my oh my what a fantastic soup. Low fat, but creamy and rich and just the right amount of heat to make it enjoyable. The lime and cilantro made it at the end…very nice acidity and herb to balance the flavours. Easy, fast and flavourful.
I made the spicy black bean soup in the crock pot. So easy and yummy, everyone loved it!
Lovely recipe for a cool fall evening! I used your suggestion of lime juice vs sherry vinegar and used an immersion blender. Balanced flavors and just enough heat to warm your body :) Although it didn’t take too long to make, I may try it in the slow cooker for a weekday meal. Thanks for the recipe!
Freeze leftovers? What leftovers! This soup is divine. The lime juice and cilantro are a must. Thank you for sharing!
This soup is SO DELICIOUS! Easy to make too! I mixed in some corn and sour cream and it all tasted like a delicious burrito. My favorite soup by far.
I love black bean soup but always bought the beans that came with a spice packet. My store quit carrying that brand so I had to find a recipe that my husband & I would like. We both loved this recipe and it was so easy to make…will definitely make it again (in a much larger batch so I can freeze some) Thanks
Beany tastiness. I added red pepper, serrano peppers (with seeds), brunoise’d them all up very small. Added an extra can of beans and homemade veggie broth. Goodness.
This is a nice recipe for black bean soup. I followed the recipe except I added extra cumin and used Rotel to spice it up and add some tomato at the same time..
This soup is amazing! It will definitely be put in our weekly rotation this winter. This was quick to put together, healthy, and there are so many ways to add on ingredients like the avocado, radishes, cheese, Greek yogurt, etc for extra tastiness. Thank you…your recipes are quickly becoming favorites in this house!
I tried this recipe and it was delicious. Next time I’ll skip putting black beans in the blender. I prefer to eat the beans.
Made this last night with my dad, absolutely delicious! The spice level was perfect and the flavors were out of this world. Defiantly going to try another one of your recipies soon!
Delicious soup! Do you have the nutritional information on this?
Can’t wait to try this. We’ll be having it tonight :)
Hi Kate,
Merry Christmas from London, UK! I am eating a big bowl of your soup now and its incredible! I have only been veggie for 4 weeks now and use your blog religiously so thank you so so much.
Super tasty, hearty soup to get through Christmas!
Char x
Just made this and it’s delicious! Reminds me of Dr. McDougall black bean and lime instant soup. Except way better for you! I always hated how much sodium it had, and the price. Really good served with pico de gallo and a side of lime.
Hi there! Can you make this with black beans that are soaked over night. Would you have to cook them first or can they just cook in the soup?
I made this with dry black beans soaked overnight. I did cook them first in a pressure cooker. I think you could probably cook the beans during the soup making, but it may take a lot longer!
Looks like a great recipe…for those of us who can’t eat tomatoes… Would love to know the carb count though..
Hey, Sheila – right now I don’t have nutritional info / calorie counts for my recipes, but am working on a solution to it.
This soup is delicious, easy to make, and super filling! I love that I can even get my 7 year old to eat it (he loves it with homemade tortilla strips for dipping). It’s really great reheated all week for my lunch as well.
Yes, this one keeps really well for a full week of soup. So happy you & your son loved it!
Quick question: What are the consequences of not pureeing four cups of the soup during step three? I really would like to make this recipe, but I want to use as little dishes, and make as little mess, as possible.
Thanks!
Hey Ronald, puréeing a portion of the same makes it creamy without adding any cream. Without it, the soup will just be more chunky, and hardly creamy. I always try to keep my dishes/equipment use to a minimum but I really think it is worth it here!
I just made it (delish!) and did not puree it – I had planned to use an immersion blender for that purpose (no mess) but simply forgot. However, the canned beans were very soft so it still seemed somewhat creamy. FYI, I cooked everything for only 15 minutes, not 30, and got great results. My one modification was to add some chopped red bell pepper, just because I had it on hand.
Ronald, using a blender to purée a part of this and many other soups/chili’s on this site is so worth the few extra minutes to clean a blender jar!
Great soup! My only changes were to add a sweet potato and a dash of smoky paprika. I can see why this soup made the top ten list for your 2016 recipes.
:) Thanks so much! And yep, this one is definitely a reader favorite.
So delicious! We made a big batch and froze it…has been great to enjoy on dreary days when we don’t want to cook! It turned out quite thick though, so I plan to make again as a bean dip rather than soup. Very flavorful!
It’s great for rainy days, and the kick certainly warms you up :) Thanks, Lavanya!
I just read through your spicy black bean soup recipe, and I think I will use it for a dinner party in two weeks. I will let you know how it turns out, thank you for your website. If you have added to the recipe in any way please let me know. My best…
Definitely report back, Thomas! And nope, I haven’t changed this one at all. But, you may want to glance over some of the comments, and see if you find a helpful tip/trick hiding in there.
Hi
If I want to use fresh beans -not out of the can. what are the instructions?
Hey, Shoshana. Fresh beans are going to take a lot more time and prep, because you’ll want to soak them overnight and then cook them prior to starting the directions here. The Kitchn has great, simple directions for cooking beans from scratch. Let me know how it works out!
i have a pressure pot so-no biggie:)
I’ll try it out this weekend and let you know…
Excellent!
As i live abroad i used lemon ( lime is not very common here) i was also powndering about sherry vinegar substitutes as i have balsamic and regular vinegar so i added a small amount of sherrt liqure ( shery hering)…
The soup has a small sweet flavor from the sherry but still great!
My husband declared it the best black bean soup I’ve ever made. Thanks for a great recipe that the whole family enjoyed. I added about one cup of extra broth because I prefer it a little thinner.
YES! I’ll wait for my certificate of achievement in the mail :) haha! Thanks, Amy.
If i wanted to make this with dry beans, do I just soak the beans and then cook the whole thing until the beans are tender? Thanks! marcia in colorado
Hi, Marcia. You’ll want to cook the beans prior to adding them to this soup (canned beans are already cooked). So simply follow the directions, cook the beans entirely, then use them as you would canned beans in this recipe.
Another recipe that my entire family loved!!!! I added a bell pepper to mine…
Yum! Sounds awesome.
This was a great soup. I did it all in the crock pot and let it go over night. Great flavor. Do you know the size of a serving? It days 6-8 servings but I wanted to calculate calories.
This soup was fabulous. So tasty. I made it with dry beans instead of canned and it was fine. Making the Spice Lentil soup tomorrow.
Great! Let me know how the Lentil Soup goes :)