Unheralded

CHEF JEFF: One Byte At A Time — Black Bean Vegetable Soup

Beans and legumes rank near the top of the list among the most nutritious vegetables. Most professional agree that they are a key food group for helping prevent disease and for optimizing health, particularly in the areas of cardiovascular and blood sugar problems, including Type 2 diabetes.

That fact is borne out in the 2015-2020 Dietary Guidelines for Americans developed by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and U.S. Department of Agriculture, which recommend 1.5 cups of legumes per week within a nonvegetarian diet and 3 cups per week within a vegetarian diet.

Black beans are among the most nutritious in this food group. From a single, 1-cup serving of black beans come nearly 15 grams of fiber and more than 15 grams of protein, which makes them a great addition to vegetable soup.

The following recipe for Black Bean Vegetable Soup is quick and easy. How fast can you say “Soup’s On!”

Black Bean Vegetable Soup
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
4 carrots, chopped
1 onion, chopped
1 cup cabbage, chopped
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon chili powder
1 teaspoon ground cumin
4 cups chicken broth
3 15-ounce cans black beans, rinsed and drained, divided
1 8¾-ounce can whole-kernel corn
¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
1 14½-ounce can stewed tomatoes
Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium heat; cook and stir carrots, cabbage, onion and garlic until onion is softened, about 5 minutes. Stir chili powder and cumin into onion mixture; cook and stir until evenly coated, about 2 minutes.
Pour broth over onion mixture and add one-half of the black beans, corn, and black pepper. Bring broth mixture to a boil.
Blend tomatoes and remaining 1½ cans black beans together in a food processor or blender until smooth; pour into broth mixture. Reduce heat to low, cover pot, and simmer until carrots are tender, 10 to 15 minutes.




2 thoughts on “CHEF JEFF: One Byte At A Time — Black Bean Vegetable Soup”

  • Elaine J. Allen March 31, 2019 at 3:32 pm

    Hi, Jeff. I made this soup for a “meatless” meal. Chris ate it but he wasn’t too impressed because he said it didn’t have enough flavor. So, when we planned to heat it back up a few days later, he brought home some hot Italian sausages, sliced them up, sauteed them and added the soup to warm them up together. It was much tastier! So much for a low-fat, meatless meal!

    Reply
    1. Jeff Tiedeman March 31, 2019 at 3:39 pm

      Elaine, that works for me. Sounds good.

      Reply

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