Black Bean and Sausage Soup
This isn’t your average sausage bean soup! This easy black bean soup recipe makes a large pot of hearty goodness. Use dried black beans for the base of the soup and big chunks of kielbasa and a cumin-chili spiked broth to round out the flavors of this Black Bean and Sausage Soup.
A thick, hearty potage is just the thing to warm you up on a cold day and this is one of our favorites. Black Bean and Sausage Soup is smoky, rich and satisfying and you’ll love it with a cornbread muffin or wedge of this cheddar bacon jalapeño cornbread.
This soup starts with a bag of dried black beans, covered with water and soaked overnight (or you can do the quick soak method which brings them to a boil, simmers for two minutes, then sits for an hour with the lid tightly closed). To cook the beans completely, bring them to a boil, reduce the heat to a simmer and cook for 1 1/2-2 hours until they’re tender. Don’t salt the beans, while they’re simmering — it’ll make the skins tough.
Kielbasa sausage adds a meaty quality to the pot of beans. I cook the sausage separately until it’s browned and has rendered some of its fat. Transfer the sausage to a bowl, leaving the renderings in the pot.
Saute the vegetables in the sausage fat, until they’re tender.
To give this soup a more intense smoky flavor, season the vegetables with cumin and chile paste. The chile paste that I’ve used here is made from New Mexico dried chiles. Heated in a heavy bottomed pan to release their natural oils, reconstituted in hot water and a swirled to a thick paste in the blender. If you don’t want to use dried chiles, you could use canned or jarred Guajillo chile paste or dried chile powder.
Transfer the cooked beans and their liquid to the pot and give it a good stir to blend everything together.
Next, add in the cooked sausage and a bit of chicken broth, so you’ve got ample stock for your soup.
This soup is like a cross between chili and a pot of beans. It’s brawny. Thick, and satiating. Kielbasa adds that savory meat element my guy appreciates. And it makes a whole mess of soup! So gather a hungry crowd and have at it!
FAQ’s
Sure. Try Spanish Chorizo (smoked) or cooked and sliced Hot Italian sausage links.
It should keep up to a week in a sealed container.
Yes. It will keep well in the freezer for 2-3 months.
More bean soup recipes you might like:
- Ham Kale & Great Northern Bean Soup
- Leftover Turkey and White Bean Soup
- Sausage Escarole and Beans
- Italian Sausage Soup
- Chicken Taco Soup with Black Beans
- Black Bean Soup with Ham
- Red Bean and Sausage Soup
- Kale White Bean and Meatball Soup
- Vegetarian Black Bean Chili
Black Bean and Sausage Soup
INGREDIENTS:
for the soup
- 1 pound dried black beans
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- ¾ pound smoked kielbasa sausage cut into ½"-1" chunks
- 3 medium carrots
- 1 medium onion peeled and diced
- 1 jalapeño seeded and diced
- ½ sweet bell pepper seeded and diced
- 2 teaspoons ground cumin
- ¼ cup chile paste or 1½ tablespoons chili powder recipe on this site
- 1 – 2 cups chicken stock from rotisserie chicken or low-sodium broth
- 2 teaspoons kosher salt
Optional Garnish:
- fresh cilantro
- avocado diced
- hot sauce if desired such as Crystal
- oyster crackers
DIRECTIONS:
- Place 1 pound dried black beans in a large pot and cover with water, soak overnight until beans have doubled in volume
- Rinse and drain beans twice. Add fresh water to the beans until they are covered by about 1½" of water. Heat the beans to a boil, reduce the heat to a simmer, cover, and cook for 1½-2 hours or until the beans are tender.
- In a large Dutch oven, heat 2 tablespoons olive oil over medium-high heat. Add ¾ pound smoked kielbasa sausage and cook for 4-5 minutes, until it starts to render some fat and brown. Scoop the sausage out of the pot and transfer it to a separate bowl.
- Add 3 medium carrots, 1 medium onion, 1 jalapeño and ½ sweet bell pepper. Cook for 3-4 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables start to soften.
- Stir in 2 teaspoons ground cumin and ¼ cup chile paste or 1½ tablespoons chili powder and cook until the vegetables are coated and the mixture is fragrant.
- Add the cooked beans and their liquid to the vegetable mixture. Stir in 1 – 2 cups chicken stock from rotisserie chicken, the sausage and 1 teaspoon kosher salt. Taste for seasoning, adding an additional teaspoon of salt, if needed. Simmer for 15-20 minutes until the flavors have married.
- Serve with fresh cilantro, avocadoand/or a few dashes of hot sauce if desired, if desired. Oyster crackers are a great accompaniment too.
NUTRITION:
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Seriously delicious soup. I’d never worked with dried beans and was happy to see how simple it was.
Delicious complex flavorful soup. I’ll definitely make it again. Changes: I didn’t have a jalapeño though the soup was still plenty spicy without the it, likely due to my chili powder ( I reckon it was 2 1/2 stars on the Thai food chart ). So I added 2 teaspoons of lime juice to cut some heat. Also, in the end, between the bean water and the soup, I used about 6 cups of chicken broth. Just a pref for lots of broth. Got to say tho, the soup is still so rich and wonderful. Especially with a dollop of sour cream and some crumbled tortilla chips. Thank you for this great recipe.
Great soup! I made it vegetarian by using beyond sausage and veggie broth. I also added more jalapeños, chat masala, garlic, msg, and more cumin to add more flavor.
This soup is calling my name! Love the combo of black beans and sausage and that big dollop of chili paste! DELISH 🙂
Thanks, Karrie! I hope you enjoy it!
This looks like an awesome soup that is comforting and warming 🙂
This black bean soup looks both comforting and delicious! The color is so rich and beautiful!! I can just imagine how it tastes! Hubby and I need this in our life right now after shoveling for hours in the frigid air!! I have to make this real soon!
Anything to stay warm!
This soup looks so homey and comforting. It’s warming up a bit where I am, but I can always go for a pot of soup!
lucky you for the warming — still too cold where I am.
Kielbasa and black beans are both some of my favorite ingredients. We eat a lot of soup during fll and winter so having some more new recipes to try is perfect especially if it’s super delicious like this one!
I love how much flavor and fresh ingredients you added to this soup. Wish I had a bowl of it to eat for my lunch!
I’ve heard that the temperature is about to plummet in my neck of the woods, and that means I need all the soup my spoon can find! This recipe looks so hearty and satisfying. I’m such a fan of cumin, so this is definitely my kind of soup!