Black bean soup

The first time I saw black bean soup was in college. I had never heard of it before, and all I saw in the big soup tureen in the cafeteria was this steaming, black, well, sludge. I'd never seen anything like it and I saw my peers eagerly scooping it into takeout containers, dunking crackers right into the dark mess as if it were dip.

In order to disguise my hickville roots, I never admitted (until now) that I had no idea what it was (thank goodness for the little label) or that I'd never had it before. Everyone seemed to love it so I took a leap... and it was amazing. Who would have guessed I would be exposed to such a diverse culinary experience at Vassar?? (Well, they did also have amazing pickles.)



I've had other black bean soups since college but I compare them all to the Vassar version which was incredibly thick, like porridge. I have, in the past, been fairly successful making a decent "Vassar" black bean soup using canned black beans with either a vegetable bouillon cube or stock of some sort to help supplement the flavor.

But, for this particular batch, I wanted to use beans I'd made myself.


I started as I start just about any soup, with a combination of carrots, onions and garlic (and celery but I didn't have any on hand so I just skipped it). Sauteed for a bit, then added some spices: cumin, paprika, chili powder.


Added the reserved black beans and liquid, plus some additional water. Next time I think I will put in less water so I can get it much thicker.


After simmering for a while, I carefully pureed about half of the bean mixture, trying to get it as smooth as possible. (In the past, I've sometimes just used a potato masher and mashed them right in the pot.) But, as I mentioned when I made this batch of black beans, the texture was uneven, so with this soup, I felt like I couldn't get it completely smooth.


Nonetheless, back into the pot to simmer. Salt and pepper to taste throughout.


Despite not getting this smooth or thick enough, and considering I didn't use any vegetable or chicken stock, this soup was remarkably tasty. I crushed some blue corn tortilla chips on top, and added a dollop of tomatillo salsa verde. It's also great with sour cream, chives, salsa or even just some freshly chopped tomatoes and cilantro.

Having a bowl of this in front of me, with the weather turning chilly, makes me feel like I'm back at college again.