Black Bean and Smoked Sausage Soup

~TigerJo~'s Note:

I can easily make this after work, even if I have to prep everything from scratch. The original recipe was adapted from a Better Homes and Gardens Cookbook. It called for 1 lb of dried black beans but for us, canned works best on a weeknight. I've used either 2 or 3 cans of beans, it depends on how thick you like your bean soup. I think the coriander and sherry are the key to it's taste.

• Total Time: 1 hrs 15 mins
• Prep Time: 30 mins
• Cook Time: 45 mins

Ingredients:

Servings: 5

• 1 -2 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
• 1 cup chopped onion
• 1 cup chopped celery
• 1 red bell pepper, chopped
• 2 tablespoons pressed or minced garlic
• 2 (15 ounce) cans black beans, drained & rinsed
• 1 (14 1/2 ounce) can diced canned tomatoes, undrained
• 1 quart chicken stock
• 1 teaspoon ground coriander
• 1/8-1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
• salt
• 1 lb kielbasa or 1 lb smoked sausage (halved lengthwise and sliced orq uartered and sliced)
• 3 tablespoons dry sherry

Directions:

1. In a Dutch oven or 6qt stockpot saute onion, celery, bell pepper, and garlic in olive oil until tender; add beans, tomatoes, chicken stock, coriander, red pepper flakes and salt (if needed); Bring to boiling, reduce heat, cover and simmer for at least 30 minutes.
2. In the meantime (optional) cook sausage in a nonstick pan and drain; set aside (we like the flavor a little better that way).
3. Add sausage& dry sherry; stir 2-3 minutes or until heated through.
4. Serve soup with sour cream, and shredded cheddar if desired; and a nice crusty bread.

Reviews

[Chef #716936]

a great meal,even better the next day. I used th sudbury black bean mix (now made by Maine Bean Company) but followed the recipe(of course omitting the canned beans) and used hot kielbasa and beef stock(3 cans) and 5 cups water. It was a hit, a meal in its self. just add a loaf of crusty bread and you're done Thank You LSL

[Akikobay]

We really enjoyed this soup...particularly because it was so thick that we could eat it with a fork! I don't usually have canned beans around, but we buy dried black beans in bulk so I had plenty. I soaked overnight a pound of black beans and then pre-cooked them for an hour, rinsed and followed the recipe as written. I thought it was fine the first night, but the second night...WOW! On the second night, to stretch it just a bit, I also added a bit of corn. I completely forgot the crushed red pepper, but we didn't miss it a bit. Thanks for this wonderful recipe!

[Dreamgoddess]

This soup had the most wonderful flavor and just enough spices to give it a little kick. This was my first time trying black beans, but it won’t be the last! I’ve got to admit, my husband didn’t want to try the recipe. He asked me to bring a steak home for him instead. I talked him into trying just a tiny bit of the soup and he ended up eating three bowls of it! He declared this the best soup he’s had in a long time. Needless to say, the steak went in the freezer for another night. There are five of us at home now, and it’s very rare to find a new recipe that everyone likes. Not so with this one though. We all loved it! I did make one change to the recipe by adding a can of kernal corn. I served this with cornbread and it made a very nice easy weeknight meal. Thanks so much for sharing this recipe!