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Home » Smoky Black Bean Chili Soup

Smoky Black Bean Chili Soup

March 4, 2013 by Debi 9 Comments

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Crock Pot Smoky Black Bean Chili Soup is filled with Smoky chipotle chilies, smoked paprika, toasted cumin seeds combine, earthy black beans and, tangy tomatillos. It’s a tasty and complex dinner.

And, it’s super easy on the cook because it’s made in the slow cooker. You’ll also love that it’s vegan, vegetarian, gluten-free, dairy free.

Smoky Black Bean Chili Soup

We appreciate your support

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.

black cat sniffing tomatillos
Even cats wonder what tomatillos are!

Great for tomatillos

My garden is still giving me lots of tomatillos. I’ve already made a big batch of green tomatillo salsa, chili verde stew, a pasta verde with them.

So, I thought this black bean stew would be a great way to use them. They lighten the stew while the rest of the flavors are the stars.

If you haven’t tried a tomatillo before they’re great – light and tangy.

tomatillo husk that looks like a flower.
The husks, after they’ve been removed, look kind of like flowers

These little fruits have papery husks on them. Remove those papery husks, and you’ll have what look like small green tomatoes.

The outside of the tomatillo is a little sticky once the husk is removed. Don’t worry, this is normal. Just rinse them under water to get most of the residue off.

Smoky Black Bean Chili Soup https://lifecurrentsblog.com

Chipotles

And, this chili uses one of my favorite kitchen tricks! Chipotle paste.

Chipotles are smoke-dried jalapeños, and they’re often sold in cans with adobo sauce (a spicy, dark red sauce made from ground chiles, tomatoes, and vinegar ).

I take the whole jar of chipotles in adobo sauce and blend it all together to create a paste. It’s easier to use than a single chipotle that you need to chop, and way easier to store the leftovers.

recipe notes

I like cooking with cumin seeds; I think they give things a little extra kick of toasty flavor.

Check my post on homemade chili powder on how the seeds look while they’re going through the toasting and grinding process.

showing the color difference in toasted cumin seeds on left and grinding the seeds in a mortar & pestle on right.

Now, if you don’t want to play with the seeds, no worries, ground cumin powder will work just fine. Just add it directly to the crock pot with the other ingredients.

Smoky Black Bean Chili Soup #slowcooker #crockpot #vegan #chili

serving suggestions

If the addition of blue cheese to the top of your black bean chili seems a bit unusual, I can assure you that it is delicious!

See, I had some leftover blue cheese crumbles, and so I thought I’d give it a try. Yep, the creamy strong flavor of the blue cheese totally works with the smoky flavors in the chili.

Now, if you want to the chili to remain vegan, leave the cheese off or use a vegan cheese (maybe a vegan pepper jack would be lovely) as a garnish.

Serve with some avocado and limes wedges as well.

I also think this would be great over your favorite rice.

Smoky Black Bean Chili Soup https://lifecurrentsblog.com #slowcooker #crockpot #vegan #chili

I used some of the leftovers to make Stacked Veggie & Smoky Black Bean Enchiladas. They were a super yummy way to get more dinners out of leftovers!

Smoky chipotle chilies, smoked paprika, and toasted cumin seeds combine with earthy black beans and tangy tomatillos in this soupy chili to make a tasty and complex (but not too hot) dinner. And, it’s super easy on the cook because it’s made in the crock pot.

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Recipe

W black bowl filled with chili that's topped with avocado, blue cheese, and oregano, some cilantro around it.

Smoky Black Bean Chili Soup

Debi
Smoky chipotle chilies, smoked paprika, and toasted cumin seeds combine with earthy black beans and tangy tomatillos in this soupy chili to make a tasty and complex (but not too hot) dinner.
5 from 1 vote
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Prep Time 30 minutes mins
Cook Time 8 hours hrs 30 minutes mins
Total Time 9 hours hrs
Course Main Course, Soup
Cuisine American
Servings 4 servings
Calories 70 kcal

Ingredients
  

  • 1 teaspoon olive oil or light tasting oil of your choice
  • 1 onion chopped
  • 3-4 cups tomatillos husks removed and rinsed
  • ½ teaspoon cumin seeds or ½ teaspoon ground cumin
  • 1 can low-sodium black beans drained and rinsed
  • 1 tablespoon chili powder
  • ½ teaspoon dried oregano or ½ tablespoon fresh oregano
  • ½ teaspoon smoked paprika
  • ½ teaspoon chipotle paste
  • 1 can tomato paste
  • 2 cups low sodium vegetable broth
  • 1 Anaheim chili seeds & membranes removed and chopped

for garnish

  • crumbled blue cheese
  • additional fresh oregano or chopped cilantro
  • avocado slices

Instructions
 

  • In a large pot, heat oil over medium-high heat. Once oil is hot, cook chopped 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 onions are caramelized, place them in a 5- to 6-quart slow cooker.
    1 teaspoon olive oil, 1 onion
  • While onions cook, cut the cleaned tomatillos in half for small ones and in quarters for larger ones. Place cut tomatillos in the slow cooker.
    3-4 cups tomatillos
  • Heat a dry heavy skillet (like a cast iron or crepe pan) over medium heat. Add the cumin seeds to the hot pan, and toast, stirring the seeds constantly, being careful not to let them burn, until the seeds begin to turn golden brown and are very fragrant. Remove from pan when they’re a few shades darker than the untoasted seeds. Grind the toasted seeds with a mortar and pestle or with a rolling pin between two sheets of waxed paper, and place them in the slow cooker.
    ½ teaspoon cumin seeds or ½ teaspoon ground cumin
  • Place the remaining ingredients in the slow cooker and stir to combine. Put the lid on and cook until the beans are creamy and the tomatillos are soft, about 4-5 hours on high or 6-8 hours on low. I like to smash a couple of the tomatillos on the sides of the crock pot when they’re soft to help distribute their flavor.
    1 can low-sodium black beans, 1 tablespoon chili powder, ½ teaspoon dried oregano or ½ tablespoon fresh oregano, ½ teaspoon smoked paprika, ½ teaspoon chipotle paste, 1 can tomato paste, 2 cups low sodium vegetable broth, 1 Anaheim chili
  • Garnish each serving with blue cheese crumbles, a sprinkle of fresh herbs, and some avocado slices.
    crumbled blue cheese, additional fresh oregano or chopped cilantro, avocado slices

Nutrition

Calories: 70kcalCarbohydrates: 12gProtein: 2gFat: 2gSaturated Fat: 1gSodium: 566mgPotassium: 361mgFiber: 4gSugar: 7gVitamin A: 1091IUVitamin C: 15mgCalcium: 27mgIron: 1mg

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.

Keyword black beans, chili
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Filed Under: Budget, Gluten-free, Main Dish, Mexican Food, Slow Cooker/ Crock Pot, Soups & Stews, Vegan, Vegetarian Tagged With: black beans, chile, chili, chili powder, chipotle, Cooking, crock pot, cumin, dinner, Food, gluten-free, healthy, onions, oregano, recipe, slow cooker, soup, tomatillos, vegan, vegetarian

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about debi

ABOUT DEBI

Hello! I’m Debi, the girl behind Life Currents where I write about mainly healthy vegetarian dishes. My husband eats meat, so occasionally I share some of his dishes as well. And, I’ll share tasty treats and projects that we do. Read more...

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Comments

  1. kristascookin

    March 7, 2013 at 12:12 pm

    Wow, this looks amazing!

  2. Adrienne

    March 8, 2013 at 9:28 am

    Since my family doesn’t like anything hot, I can never use an entire can of chiptoles. As an alternative, I found chipotle powder from Penzey’s. I can add just a dash to get some of that smokey flavor I love without anyone else at the table keeling over.

  3. Katherines Corner

    March 10, 2013 at 8:24 pm

    pass a bowl please 🙂 Thank you for sharing at the Thursday Favorite Things hop xo

  4. Janet Cochran

    March 12, 2013 at 6:14 pm

    I made this tonight. It is the most amazingly delicious chili I have ever made!

  5. Joanne/Winelady Cooks

    March 17, 2013 at 5:32 pm

    How delicious! Love all the flavors in this soup. Thanks for sharing this with Foodie Friends Friday.

  6. vegetarianmamma

    March 20, 2013 at 7:40 pm

    This has some beautiful color! YUM! Thanks for linking up at our Gluten Free Fridays party! I have tweeted and pinned your entry to our Gluten Free Fridays board on Pinterest! 🙂

    Thanks for linking back to the Gluten Free Fridays post!

    Party starts tomorrow at 7:05 pm eastern time! Hope to see you there!

    Cindy from vegetarianmamma.com

  7. Desiree

    April 28, 2013 at 10:46 am

    I made this tonight and it was incredible! I added 2 sweet potatoes, chopped, as well as 3 bay leaves (discarded after) and broke up a large dried ancho chili peppper I had, and topped it with Greek yogurt, cilantro and lime juice. I ate it over cooked polenta and wish it hadn’t been so filling so I could eat more!!! Delicious!

  8. Joanne T Ferguson (@mickeydownunder)

    October 16, 2013 at 11:57 pm

    G’day! Great photo! Love is topped with crumbled blue cheese, true!
    Yum Yum! Yum

  9. lovenerdmaggie

    May 15, 2014 at 8:54 pm

    I really adore great crock pot recipes, and this sounds so good!!

5 from 1 vote (1 rating without comment)

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Hi! I’m Debi, the girl behind Life Currents, where I write about mainly healthy vegetarian dishes with some great desserts and other goodies mixed in! Read More >>>

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