Tasty Black Bean Soup
Submitted by cherokee
Mexican black bean soup with a secret hit of Mexican chocolate, serrano chile, and finished with red wine vinegar and olive oil. Authentic depth from a long slow simmer.
YIELD
8 servingsPREP
10 minCOOK
2 hrsREADY
8 hrsAn authentic Mexican-style black bean soup with the secret weapon that elevates it from ordinary to memorable: a tablespoon and a half of crumbled Mexican chocolate. The bittersweet chocolate adds rich, almost mole-like depth without making the soup taste like dessert, just an indefinable savory complexity that you can’t quite place.
The overnight soak with the red bell pepper is a clever Mexican technique. The pepper infuses the soaking water with subtle sweetness and color, then gets discarded before cooking. The beans absorb this flavor through their skins during the soak.
The two-step seasoning is the key technique. Sauteing aromatics separately in bean broth creates a concentrated flavor base that then strains back into the soup, letting the soup taste deeply seasoned without chunks of onion or garlic.
The vinegar and olive oil drizzle at the very end is non-negotiable. The acid brightens the heavy bean flavor, while the olive oil contributes silky richness. Skip them and you lose the entire balance.
Pro Tips
Use Mexican-style chocolate like Ibarra or Abuelita, not regular dark chocolate. The slightly grainy cinnamon-laced texture is what makes the soup distinctive.
Don’t skip the 2 ½ hours of simmering. The long cook is what produces the silky, almost creamy texture that defines real bean soup.
Make a day ahead. Black bean soup is one of those dishes where overnight rest dramatically improves the flavor.
Serve with diced raw onion, fresh cilantro, lime wedges, and crumbled queso fresco for a complete Mexican-style bowl.
Variations
Add a chopped chipotle in adobo for smoky heat to complement the serrano.
Stir in cooked rice or chunks of ham at the end for a heartier one-bowl meal.
Puree half the soup and stir back in for a creamier texture without losing the bean chunks.
Ingredients
Directions
Rinse beans and soak overnight, along with 1 teaspoon salt and bell pepper.
In a 6-quart stewpan, bring beans, soaking water, and pepper to a boil.
Simmer until tender (really tender).
Heat peanut oil in deep frying pan.
Sauté onion, garlic and green hot pepper until soft.
Remove 2½ cups bean broth from pot and add to frypan.
Simmer 10 minutes. Strain onions, garlic and hot peppers from broth and discard them.
Remove bell pepper and discard.
Add seasoned broth to soup pot.
Add all other ingredients except vinegar and olive oil to soup pot and simmer 2½ hours until thick.
If too thick, add water.
Add vinegar and olive oil before serving.
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