Reviewed: Apr. 8, 2013

I increased the number of servings. I used 4 cans of black beans and 8 cups of chicken broth instead of so much water. Its very important to drain and rinse the canned beans. I also used a heaping tablespoon of cumin and about 1/2 teaspoon of cayenne pepper. It turned into a thick consistency with a deep seasoned taste. A hit in this house!

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Reviewer:

lisalisa6623

Reviewed: Mar. 25, 2013

this really is a great recipe...i like my puree thick as well....therefore i only used three cups of water or vegetable broth....and if you are in the process of making it, just add more black beans....it is especially good if you leave some whole beans in there. i am the kind of person that likes to add everything to soups and substitute things...so i substituted the green pepper for about 1 cup of small sweet red peppers, and added 1 cup chopped carrots,1/2 cup of chopped celery...2 tsp. of chili powder, 1tsp. of Mrs. dash table blend a dash of garlic powder and a dash of hot sauce........try it .....it tastes great!!!!!!!

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Reviewer:

Chef in Pa

Reviewed: Nov. 23, 2012

Best base recipe for black bean soup I could find. I agree with other posters that 7 cups of water would be way too much, so I used 2 cups of vegetable broth, and threw in the liquid from the can with the beans, rather than rinsing and draining them. I skipped the green peppers, and added a 10 oz can of diced tomatoes with green chiles when I put in the beans and the broth. I used considerably more cumin, 4 generous shakes, 2 shakes of chili powder, a shake each of garlic powder and onion powder, and a little dried cilantro. I pureed a little over half the soup. I garnished it with a little sour cream, but it would have been equally good without it. Green onions, fresh salsa, or shredded cheese would also be good garnishes with this soup if you like to experiment. This turned out better than any black bean soup I've gotten in a restaurant.

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Reviewer:

Tygerlilly

Cooking Level: Intermediate

Reviewed: Feb. 2, 2012

I used 2 cans chicken stock in place of the water. Added additional cumin and garlic. I also added 1/2 teaspoon of chili powder and one 4 oz. can chopped chilies.

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Reviewer:

Sandy

Cooking Level: Expert

Home Town: Bakerton, West Virginia, USA

Living In: Olney, Maryland, USA

Reviewed: Aug. 3, 2011

There are much better recipes out there; this needs a major intervention to get any kind of flavour...a ridiculous amount of water called for in this recipe.

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Reviewer:

Wicksy

Cooking Level: Expert

Home Town: Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada

Living In: Perth, Western Australia, Australia

Reviewed: Feb. 22, 2011

Im not sure how many stars to give this one "as is"? I didn't try the base recipe after reading the other reviews. I did tweak it based on what I had in the pantry and it turned out AWESOME! What I did: Use base recipe and add: 1 1/2 red bell pepper (omit green pepper), add 1 can butter beans to the 2 cans black beans, 3 cups chicken broth (omit water), 1 tsp chipotle seasoning, 1/4 tsp cumin, salt to taste. Pulsed it briefly in the blender just to break everything up, but not puree it. Added 2 1/2 cups cooked brown rice after I put it in the blender to keep the rice in tact. Served with dollop of sour cream and green onions! It was delish...5 stars! I agree that this is an excellent base recipe. Add your own spin on it!

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Reviewer:

AZmom

Reviewed: Jan. 24, 2011

This soup is amazing. I love to make it and it is so easy.

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Reviewer:

jmk3482

Cooking Level: Expert

Living In: Troy, Missouri, USA

Reviewed: Dec. 29, 2010

This is way too much water for this soup. I normally read reviews before I start cooking, but didn't this time. I wish I would have! This was way too watery and too plain. I had to try to tweak it, but without much success.

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Reviewer:

BOUKAME

Reviewed: Dec. 16, 2010

Finally, I found a recipe that makes you wish you had made a double batch. This recipe is just as good if not better than the soup I had in an authentic Mexican restaurant. I decided to make it myself since it is a rare item to find in most Mexican restaurants.

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Reviewer:

Wendy Stuart

Reviewed: Nov. 5, 2010

This makes a great vegan black bean soup if you use vegetable stock instead of water. I had to cut the water down to 2 1/2 cups to get anything but a put of liquid, but otherwise, this was a great recipe. It tastes even better if you add some salsa when you put the beans in, the more flavorful, the better. I used some spicy garlic salsa and it was wonderful!

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