Filling and nutritious, we enjoyed this soup! I used beef base instead of bouillon and an extra ham hock. In the end, I didn't think the bacon garnish was necessary, a little extra cilantro sprinkled on top was all it needed. I did need to add more water throughout the cooking process. Excellent!

This was really good- great rich flavor. I soaked my beans overnight and in the morning, put the whole recipe in the crockpot to cook all day. I used the frozen leftover meaty ham bone from my Christmas ham, and it was great. Still had lots of meat, and added tons of flavor. The meat all fell off the bone by 3pm, so I shredded it and tossed the bones. About an hour before we ate, I pushed most of the meat to the side, and used my immersion stick blender to blend a portion of the beans. I cooked the bacon separately, so I didn't use any grease in the soup- just crumbled up some bacon on the soup as I ate. I think this recipe would be even better with the addtion of chopped red bell peppers and carrots. I've been looking for ways to use more dry beans- they're so good for you, and very economical. Oh, I didn't have cilantro on hand, but it would have been even better with it.

I really enjoyed this recipe- thank you!

Great recipe.... very, very tasty. I added 4 smoked ham hocks and some additional cubed ham. Increased water by about 1 cup. To serve, a dollop of sour cream and some cut up green onions with the bacon amke for a tantalizing dish. I did not use the cilantro.

This was the best flavored black bean soup I have ever had. I cooked it in a crock pot on slow all day and used about 5 slices of hog jowl instead of ham hocks, and then mashed the beans at the end and put them back in. Served with a dollop of sour cream and chips. Delish!