Mexican White Bean Soup is a great vegetarian year-round lunch or dinner with nicely balanced spices, Mexican flavors, veggies, and beans. I love Mexican food, so this soup fits right into my dinner plans.
This delicious Mexican Bean Soup is also vegan and Gluten-Free. The thickness and creaminess of the soup comes from the pureed beans.
It’s easy to put together, and it’s budget-friendly (even more budget-friendly if you use dried beans).
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Please let me know if you have any questions about this recipe. I read all the comments myself and I try to help as soon as I can. I have readers from all levels of comfort and experience in the kitchen on my site, and I’ve tried to answer some of your questions already in the post. But if I’ve missed anything, please feel free to leave a comment and ask. The comments can be easily found using the orange circle on the lower left, then Join the discussion!
How to serve this soup
Add the toppings of your choice. I love avocado, sour cream, and cilantro. But don’t stop there, top it with some tortilla chips, tomatillo verde salsa, seared shrimp, crumbled cotija or queso fresco cheese, guacamole, croutons, or jalapenos. Let the whole family add the toppings of their choice so that everyone is happy!
Serve the soup with some corn bread on the side.
Or serve it as a starter course when serving up some delicious Mexican Casserole.
Is this recipe authentic?
No, his is not an authentic Mexican recipe; I created this recipe back in 2012. I love Mexican spices and flavors, and I love soup. So, I created this recipe as a great dinner option.
I, however, was born and raised in Southern California, where Mexican flavors reign supreme (in my opinion). But, I am not Mexican, nor was this recipe handed down from a Mexican Grandma. But, it’s still so tasty and easy to make, that I think you should try it! And soon!
How to make this Mexican soup
This soup is really easy to make, and so delicious. Don’t forget that there’s a printable recipe card with detailed instructions and ingredient amounts lower in the post. Please be sure to scroll down to print it.
Cook the chopped onion in a little oil, until it’s nicely browned, about 20-30 minutes.
Add carrots, garlic, cumin, smoked paprika, salt, broth, water, and beans, and simmer until veggies are tender.
Note: this section contains affiliate links
I love to use a handheld immersion blender to blend slightly – this soup is perfect for that tool. You can also use a blender and puree some of the soup.
Stir in the salsa verde, and top with sour cream, cilantro, avocado, and a dash of smoked paprika. Serve and enjoy!
Smoked Paprika
As you read through the ingredients, you’ll come across {affiliate link} ‘Smoked Paprika‘.
If you’re like me, you might read that and think that there’s no way you need another spice in your cupboard. “I already have paprika, I can’t possibly need smoked paprika as well.”
Well, my lovely friend, they are that different that I’d highly recommend getting them both in your cupboard. It gives everything a nice smoky flavor. Complex and just super yummy.
Can I switch up this recipe?
Absolutely! Feel free to switch up this recipe and make it into something new. I love messing around with soup recipes because they are so easy to change.
This soup is great with some added shrimp, tofu, or shredded chicken.
We already talked about making the toppings fun for everyone.
Add in a couple of chile peppers, like poblanos or Anaheim chiles when you add in the carrots.
Stir in some chopped jicama at the end of cooking for some crunch.
Recipe notes
Also, the salsa verde can be homemade or store-bought. Just remember that if you’re salsa’s hot, your soup will be too. The sour cream will help to cool it down.
I love to make soups with homemade vegetarian broth. I think it makes them richer and tastier.
Vegan soup
This soup is naturally vegan if you leave the sour cream off.
You can also use a non-dairy sour cream. Or, if you want to try and make your own vegan sour cream simply blend ½ pound tofu, 1 tablespoon lemon juice, and 1 teaspoon soy sauce until smooth. Now you have a delicious vegan sour cream.
How to cook dried beans
My recipe calls for canned beans because they are super easy and still very budget friendly.
But, if you want to go even more inexpensive, cook the beans from dried white beans.
Make sure your dried beans are fairly fresh. The cooking time of dried beans is largely dependent on their freshness. To ensure freshness when shopping for beans, look for the best buy date on the bag, you want the beans to be less than 2 years old.
This is the cooking guide I like for how to cook dried beans. Take a look over there if you want to make this soup from dried beans.
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Mexican White Bean Soup Recipe
Mexican White Bean Soup
Ingredients
- 1 teaspoon olive oil
- 1 large onion coarsely chopped
- 2 medium carrots sliced
- 3 cloves garlic chopped or pressed
- 2 teaspoons cumin
- 1 teaspoon Smoked Paprika
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 2 cups low-sodium vegetable broth
- 2 cups water
- 15 ounce can Cannellini White Beans drained and rinsed
- 1 cup salsa verde
Instructions
- In a large soup pot, heat oil over medium-high heat. Once oil is hot, cook onion until nicely browned, about 20-30 minutes, stirring often, and adding some water to the pot if the onion is beginning to burn. Once onion is caramelized, add carrots and garlic to the pot, and cook 5 minutes. Stir in cumin, smoked paprika, and salt.
- Add broth, water, and beans. Bring to a boil; reduce heat, and simmer, covered, for 10-15 minutes or until veggies are tender.
- Remove 1 cup of the beans and carrots, and set aside. Working in batches, transfer mixture, one-third at a time, to a blender, and blend until smooth. Or, use a handheld immersion blender to blend slightly.
- Return reserved veggies to the pot, along with the blended soup. Stir the salsa verde into soup; heat through.
- Top with sour cream, cilantro, avocado, and a dash of smoked paprika.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional information is based on third-party calculations, and should be considered estimates. Actual nutritional content will vary based on brands used, measuring methods, portion sizes, and more.
Definitely love this soup… it’s fantastic. Easy to make and so yummy! My family asked for it again this week. Your photo styling is terrific as well!
It’s so good! I love soup and mexican! This was just the perfect dinner. I added shredded chicken to mine.
This soup is wonderful, I ate the whole batch myself while my husband was out of town… and you can never have too many spices… I’m so glad I have spice paprika in my cupboard now… Your pictures are AWESOME too.. Thanks for sharing on Foodie Friends Friday..and remember to come back and vote on Sunday.
Wow! This is a great recipe. Thanks for the tip about the salsa! I loved every bite of this. I added tiny shrimp and made it a seafood Mexican soup. Also, a squeeze of lime.
Ummm, this is amazing! Though I wouldn’t expect anything less from you. 🙂 I am trying to build up my soup recipes, so this was perfect for my menu plan this week.
this is perfect for a cozy winter day. My husband thought it was perfect when I served it to him. Happy weekend wishes xo
This is delicious for a cold Fall day. Love the flavor combination in this, as I love Salsa Verde. I’m so glad I tried this soup, and thanks for the recipe! Have a wonderful week.
Michelle
YUM, I have this book marked so I can make this over and over again!! I have tweeted and pinned your recipe to our Gluten Free Fridays board on Pinterest! 🙂 It was so quick and easy to make and so good. I served it with gluten free bread and salad. It was a nice light summer dinner.
This looks beautiful and thank you for the explanation about smoked paprika! Now if only someone could also explain Spanish paprika 🙂 though I suppose that’s what the Internet is for, ha.
Debi, I love this recipe and would love to keep it on Wellness Weekend, but sour cream isn’t vegan. Could you add a vegan alternative so we can keep it up on the event? Thanks! 🙂
Tweeted and pinned this, thanks for sharing, I have it marked as a favorite! I make it all the time. It’s budget friendly and I make it with dried beans. It takes a little extra time, but the cost savings is worth it.
This Mexican White Bean soup is just divine; thanks for the hint of smoked paprika; I’m so glad I picked some up; there’s always room in my spice cupboard for one more jar of something! The boys just loved this soup!