Old-Fashioned Black Bean Soup

Updated February 23, 2016

Chef

Cookbook

Not Your Mother's Slow Cooker Cookbook

Published by Harvard Common Press

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This image courtesy of Joseph DeLeo

Whereas black bean chili is a stick-to-your-ribs thick bean stew, black bean soup, made from scratch, is quite a bit thinner in consistency but every bit as soul satisfying. Black beans have a black skin, but after cooking there is a sweet, creamy interior that is so good you often cannot stop with one bowl full.

Cooker: Medium or large round

Setting and cook times: High for 1 hour, then Low for 7 to 8 hours; salt, pepper, and sherry added during last 15 minutes

Serves6

Cooking Methodslow cooking

CostInexpensive

Easy

Total Timehalf-day

Make Ahead RecipeYes

Kid FriendlyYes

OccasionFamily Get-together

Recipe Coursemain course

Dietary Considerationegg-free, gluten-free, peanut free, soy free, tree nut free

Equipmentcrock pot, food processor

Mealdinner

Taste and Texturesavory, smoky

Type of Dishhot soup, soup

Ingredients

1 pound dried black turtle beans, picked over, soaked overnight in water to cover, and drained
1 ham bone or ham hock
6 cups chicken broth or water
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 medium-size yellow onions, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup chopped celery, including some leaves
1 teaspoon dried marjoram
1 bay leaf
Salt to taste
¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
½ cup dry sherry (optional)

Instructions

Combine the drained beans, ham bone or hock, and broth in the slow cooker. Cover and cook on HIGH until boiling, about 1 hour.
Meanwhile, in a large skillet over medium heat, melt the butter. Add the onions, garlic, and celery and cook, stirring a few times, until softened, about 5 minutes. Add to the cooker along with the marjoram and bay leaf. Cover, turn the cooker to LOW, and cook the soup for 7 to 8 hours.
Stir in the salt, pepper, and sherry, cover, and continue to cook on LOW 15 minutes longer.
Discard the bay leaf and ham bone or hock, returning any bits of meat left on the bone to the soup. Puree in batches in a food processor or in the cooker with a handheld immersion blender. Taste to adjust the seasonings. Add some boiling water to thin, if desired. Ladle into soup bowls and serve hot.