Soup, Smoky Black Bean

By

From Appeal Fall/Winter 2004

  • 6
  • 60 mins
  • 105 mins

Ingredients

  • 2 tbsp vegetable oil
  • 1 large onion, diced
  • 8 garlic cloves, minced
  • 2 tsp coriander seeds
  • 2 tsp cumin seeds
  • 1 tsp dried oregano
  • 2/3 cup fresh orange juice
  • 2 tins (540 ml) black beans, drained, rinsed, divided
  • 1 tin (796 ml) plum tomatoes, including juice
  • 2 cups vegetable broth
  • 1-2 chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, minced
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 1/2 each red, yellow, and green pepper
  • juice of 1 lime

Preparation

Step 1

Heat oil in large heavy saucepan.
Add onion and garlic and saute over medium-low heat until onion is soft, about 7 min. Stir often, do not brown.
Place coriander and cumin seeds in a small dry pan over low heat. Stir and shake for about a minute until they release their aroma. Sprinkle with oregano leaves and continue to shake over low heat another minute until they begin to darken.
Transfer to mortar and crush to a coarse powder. Sprinkle over onion and garlic and stir in.
Add orange juice and cook over medium heat until juic is reduced to half.
Reserve 1 cup beans and set aside.
Stir in remaining beans.
Add tomatoes and their juice, vegetable broth, chiptle peppers, and bay leaf.
Break tomatoes with fork.
Bring soup to a boil.
Cover, reduce heat, and simmer for 30 minutes.
Stir in reserved beans, peppers, and lime juice and heat through.