Black Bean & Chorizo Soup

This comforting black bean soup is pumped up with spicy chorizo and is quick & easy to prepare, making it the perfect weeknight meal for a cold evening.

This month for the Secret Recipe Club I cooked from Nicole’s blog, Hapa-tite. Her cooking passion involves the mixing of different food genres together in order to create one fantastic meal, because as she so well stated “that’s how some of the best dishes (and peo­ple ^_^) are made!”. Which leads me to the first recipe that caught my eye on her blog which was her Soy-Glazed Burgers. I will be adding that to my menu plan very soon. Other potential recipes to appear in my kitchen include Rhubarb Ginger Crumble Bars and Pistachio, Cranberry, and Crystallized Ginger Cookies.

The recipe I first had to try was this fast and easy black bean soup. Since I moved back to Ohio from Tennessee during the coldest temperatures of the year, I’ve been in desperate need of comforting soup to warm me up from the inside. After seeing chorizo in the ingredient list for this soup, it was promptly added to the menu. The flavors from the chorizo blended exceptionally well with the rest of the soup, little to no salt was necessary, and made it heartier than a typical black bean soup. Cooked rice or quinoa could also be added if you need more oomph. In fact I may try just that next time because I am definitely going to make this again.

One year ago: Three Cheese Chicken and Artichoke Bake

Three years ago: Almond Cherry Chip Blondies

Four years ago: Apple Oatmeal Breakfast Muffins

BLACK BEAN & CHORIZO SOUP

Serves 4

Ingre­di­ents:

2 Tbsp olive oil

1/2 lb. chorizo, casing removed

1/2 small red onion, finely chopped

1/2 medium red bell pep­per cored, seeded, and chopped

1/2 medium green bell pep­per cored, seeded, and chopped

1-2 cloves gar­lic, minced

1 Tbsp fresh oregano (or 1 tsp dried)

1/2 tsp ground cumin

1/2 Tbsp light brown sugar

1 Tbsp red wine vine­gar

2 cans black beans, 1 can rinsed and drained

1/2 cup reduced sodium chicken stock, plus more if needed

Salt and pepper, to taste

Crushed red pepper, to taste (optional)

Chopped cilantro, garnish

Corn kernels, garnish

Sour cream or Greek yogurt (I used 4% Chobani)

Directions:

1. Add oil to a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the chorizo, crumble, and cook until browned and no longer pink, stir­ring often. Trans­fer to a plate lined with paper tow­el and set aside.
2. Add the onion to the same pan and cook until it begins to soften, about 5 minutes. Add chopped peppers, garlic, oregano, and cumin. Stir­ to com­bine, then reduce heat to medium-low and cook for 6-8 min­utes, stir­ring occa­sion­ally, until ten­der and fragrant.
3. Trans­fer the mix­ture to a food processor/blender (or leave in pot and use an immersion blender). Add the brown sugar, vine­gar and one can of the beans including the liq­uid. Process until fairly smooth.
4. Return the mix­ture to the pan and add the remain­ing drained black beans, stock, and chorizo. Sea­son with salt, pepper, and crushed red pepper to taste. Cook over medium to medium-low heat for 6-8 min­utes, adding a little more broth if necessary to reach desired consistency.
5. Divide the soup among indi­vid­ual bowls and gar­nish with chopped cilantro, corn, and sour cream if desired.

Source: Adapted slightly from Hapa-tite.