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Easy Bean Recipes

Black Beans

Cuban Black Bean Soup

This Cuban Black Bean Soup is both extremely fragrant and flavorful. Garnish with chopped onions and cilantro for further flavor. My favorite way to eat this is to serve black beans over a bowl of rice. Use a slotted spoon to strain the liquid when serving over rice. It tastes best when the beans have cooled a bit rather than steaming hot.

Cuban Black Bean Soup

1 lb. dried black beans
10 cups water
½ cup olive oil
3 onions, chopped
1 bell pepper, chopped
6 garlic cloves, minced
1 tsp thyme
½ tsp oregano
1 bay leaf
3 tsp sugar
4 tsp red wine vinegar
salt and pepper to taste
pinch of cumin

  1. Soak the black beans overnight. Place the beans and 10 cups of fresh water in a large soup pot. Bring the water to a boil, then lower the heat to medium, cover the pot, and cook the beans slowly for 50 minutes, or until the beans are tender.
  2. After the black beans have cooked for 50 minutes, start sautéing the vegetables. In a separate pot, add the olive oil, onions, pepper, and garlic. Sauté lightly for 3-5 minutes stirring frequently. When the vegetables are soft, pour the contents of the pot—all of vegetables, olive oil, and garlic—into the pot of beans.
  3. Add the thyme, oregano, bay leaf, sugar, vinegar, salt, pepper, and cumin to the pot of black beans. Mix well. Cover the pot and simmer for another 20-30 minutes. The black beans should be fully cooked by this point. If not, continue simmering until the black beans are done. If you are serving this meal with rice, then start cooking the rice after adding all of the spices and vinegar. The rice should be done by the time the black beans are done.
  4. Turn off the heat and let the black bean soup stand for 10 minutes. Serve lukewarm.

Yield: 6-8 servings

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Black Bean Salad for Lunch or Camping

This easy black bean salad makes an excellent vegetarian lunch or camping recipe.  It can be left in a cooler for a long time, and tastes even better after marinating for many hours. The black bean salad can be made up to two days in advance.

Black Bean Salad

2 15.5 oz. cans black beans (about 3½ cups cooked)
Juice of 3 limes
2 red, yellow, or orange bell peppers, seeded and diced
6 green onions, thinly sliced
2 tbsp honey
1 tbsp cumin
1 tbsp ground coriander
1 tbsp dried oregano
1 tsp salt

In a large bowl, make the lime dressing by combining the lime juice, honey, cumin, ground coriander, dried oregano and salt.  Mix well with a fork or whisk.  Then add the canned black beans, bell pepper, and green onions.  Toss well.

If the black bean salad is being prepared in advance, cover and store in a cooler or refrigerator.  Warm to room temperature before eating.

Yield:  Serves 4

This recipe was adapted from Campfire Cuisine: Gourmet Recipes for the Great Outdoors

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