Slow Cooker Black Bean Soup is a comforting recipe you can set and forget! Top with some sour cream for a cold-weather dish you’ll crave!
Black bean soup is one of my all-time favorite soups. It’s pretty much tied with potato leek soup and broccoli cheese soup. I love the creamy texture and slightly spicy flavor. This easy black bean soup recipe is great all by itself or you can pair it with quesadillas for a Tex-Mes-style grilled cheese and soup dinner!
Back when I was a waitress, I would always look forward to working on Tuesdays because it was black bean soup day. I had big plans to devour a bowl on my break whenever I got the Tuesday shift. Add a little sour cream on top and boom. Happiness in my mouth.
As much as I love soup, I’m all about keeping things easy. So I turned my beloved black bean soup into a slow cooker set-it-and-forget-it recipe.
Best. Idea. Ever.
I turned on my crock pot in the morning, worked, ran errands, and come home to a crazy good dinner!
All you need for this soup is to do a little prep work, toss everything in the slow cooker, and walk far far away.
I’m kidding. Stay inside where it’s warm!
And for bonus points, this soup will make your house smell amazing! It’s hard to hold out until it’s finished, but it is SO worth the wait!
Ingredients for Black Bean Soup in a Crock Pot
BEANS –Â I used dried black beans for this soup. Canned beans will get too mushy over the long cooking time. All you need to do is rinse the beans in a colander and then throw them in your slow cooker.
VEGGIES –Â Every good soup needs some veggies! I went with the classics to build upon and then added some jalapeno to keep with the Tex-Mex vibes.
SEASONING –Â I went with Mexican spices for this recipe. They’re the perfect complement to the black beans and add a great depth of flavor.
SALSA – I totally took a shortcut and used salsa instead of diced tomatoes for extra flavor. I like to use medium salsa, but you can swap for mild or hot depending on how spicy you like things. The medium adds just enough kick to make you go, “Yum!”
BROTH –Â I used vegetable broth, but you could totally use chicken stock if that’s what you have on hand. It won’t be a vegetarian recipe anymore though.
How to Make Black Bean Soup
- You’re going to start off by prepping your veggies. You want to dice the celery, onion, garlic, and jalapenos. Then grab a box grater and grate the carrots.
- Next, add the onions, garlic, celery, carrots, and jalapenos along with the rinsed black beans to your slow cooker. Give that all a stir. Then pour in the salsa, chili powder, oregano, and cumin and stir it up. Finally, pour in the vegetable broth and water and stir one last time.
- Then you’re ready to cover the crock pot and cook the soup on HIGH heat for 7 to 8 hours. Once the soup is done, the beans should be tender. Like so tender you can mash them with a fork.
- Now it’s time to blend. Fill a blender 1/2 full with soup. Then puree the soup until it’s almost smooth. Continue blending the soup in batches until you’ve pureed it all. An immersion blender in the crock pot works great too.
- Pour all of the soup back into the slow cooker and stir together and season with salt and pepper to taste.
- Then all you need to do is ladle the soup into bowls and garnish! I like to add some sour cream and diced avocado to mine, but cilantro and jalapeno slices are great options too.
You could even serve with lime wedges. A little lime juice brightens everything up!
When you go to puree the soup, you have some options regarding the consistency.
Option 1) Puree all of the soup until it’s completely smooth. It’ll have a silky mouthfeel that’s so good.
Option 2) Puree the soup until it’s almost smooth, but still has some bean chunks in there. This is how I like my soup… with some texture.
Option 3) Puree 1/2 or 2/3 of the soup until almost smooth and then stir that into the remaining soup in your slow cooker. This will leave some whole bean and veggie chunks in your soup.
Is black bean soup good for you?
Heck yes! Black beans are full of fiber, potassium, antioxidants, protein, and they’re cholesterol-free!
What to serve with black bean soup
Black bean soup is delicious with some baguette slices for dipping or in a bread bowl.
If you want to turn it into a side dish for your meal you totally can! My family loves to pair this soup with beef taquitos and mango & shrimp quesadillas.
Or add even more protein and make chicken black bean soup. Chop or shred some seasoned chicken and stir it into your soup.
Grab a bowl of your favorite comfort food!
- Instant Pot Mexican Chicken and Rice Soup
- Bacon Bean Soup
- Mom’s 5-Ingredient Chili
- Easy Tomato Beef Stew
- Butter Bean Soup
- 30-Minute Bacon Chicken Chili
- More dinner recipes
Slow Cooker Black Bean Soup
Ingredients
- 1 pound dried black beans rinsed
- 2 medium carrots ends removed and peeled
- 2 stalks celery ends and leaves removed
- 1 medium yellow onion peeled
- 3 cloves garlic peeled
- 2 large jalapenos seeded (or leave the seeds for spicy soup)
- ½ cup salsa (I like medium spiciness)
- 1 tablespoon chile powder
- ½ tablespoons dried oregano
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 4 cups vegetable broth
- 2 cups water
- Salt and pepper to taste
Toppings
- Sour cream
- Cilantro
- Diced avocado
- Sliced jalapeno
Instructions
- Dice the celery, onion, garlic, and jalapenos. Grate the carrots using a cheese grater.
- Add black beans, carrots, celery, onion, garlic, and jalapeno to a 6-quart slow cooker. Stir to combine. Add salsa, cumin, chile powder, and oregano. Stir to distribute spices. Add broth and water to the slow cooker, and stir once more.
- Cover and cook on HIGH for 7 to 8 hours, or until beans are tender. You should be able to mash the beans really easily when they're done.
- Transfer soup to a blender (do not fill more than 1/2 way full) and pulse until the soup is almost smooth. You'll need to work in batches. You could also use an immersion blender to puree everything right in the slow cooker.
- Stir the soup together and season with salt and pepper to taste.
- Serve soup warm, topped with sour cream, cilantro, avocado, and/or jalapeno if desired.
Nutrition
All nutritional information is based on third party calculations and is only an estimate. Each recipe and nutritional value will vary depending on the brands you use, measuring methods and portion sizes per household.
Michelle Collie says
I’ve made this soup twice and my family loves it. The flavor is amazing!
jenny says
do you need to soak the beans overnight?