Spiced Black Eyed Bean Soup

This hearty Mediterranean Spiced Black Eyed Bean Soup is not only perfect as a healthy and nutritious meal but is filling and delicious. The humble ingredients used in this dish mean that it is super budget-friendly, but the real surprise is the hearty flavours and rich, thick sauce.

Helpful Tips:

• Black Eyed Beans: Just as any other dried beans, these will need soaking overnight or a minimum of 6 hours. This reduces the cooking time and makes them easy to digest. I then like to par-boil in the first lot of water, for 10 minutes, as this rids any impurities.

• Celery and/ or Silverbeet Stalks: As I love to use every part of the vegetable (leaves and stalks), I first created this recipe to use up the silverbeet stalks that I had leftover once I used the leaves to make my Spanakopita. There were times I did not have any silverbeet in my garden so I used celery instead hence you can use either or both for this recipe. Each gives it a slightly different flavour so why not try both and let me know which you prefer? Just remember, if you use celery, as it takes longer to cook, remove the strings and slice it finely so it cooks well and evenly with the remaining vegetables.

Here is the recipe for my Spanakopita with Puff Pastry: https://www.createcookshare.com/single-post/spanakopita-with-puff-pastry

• Save Time: If you are running short on time, or you don't like to use dried beans, then why not use the canned black-eyed beans? Rinse the beans well and add them to the pot in the last 10 minutes of cooking time. As the canned beans are already softened, they do not need much time to cook.

And now it’s time to start cooking! As always, if you make any of my recipes, I would love to hear your feedback. I am available here via email or you can catch me daily on Instagram and Facebook. Don’t forget to save it on your Pinterest board as well! I have a board named CreateCookShare that you can follow and save. Can’t wait to hear from you.

Happy Creating,

Margaret

Watch How to Make It

Spiced Black Eyed Bean Soup

Serves 4-6

Soaking Time: Overnight

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cooking Time: 1 hour

1 cup dried black-eyed beans

3 cups broth or vegetable stock

3 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil, plus extra

1 tablespoon butter (dairy free optional)

400g crushed tomatoes

4 garlic cloves, chopped

3 celery sticks or 6 silverbeet stalks, strings removed and sliced

2 carrots, diced

1 red capsicum, diced

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1 teaspoon ground coriander

Sea Salt and Pepper

20+ fresh mint leaves, chopped

Garnish

Greek Yogurt (Dairy-free Optional)

Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Lemon Zest to serve

1. Soak the black-eyed beans overnight or for at least 8 hours. Drain and rinse. Add them to a pot of boiling water and boil for 5 minutes. Drain and set aside. This process removes any impurities.

2. Add to a wide pot the extra virgin olive oil, butter, onion, carrot, and celery or silverbeet stalks. Over a high heat sauté for 3 minutes.

3. Add the garlic, cumin, coriander, and cinnamon, and sauté for a further minute before adding the red capsicum, tomatoes, and broth or vegetable stock. Bring to boil and then add the black-eyed beans. Combine well, cover with pot lid and cook over low heat for 45 minutes, stirring occasionally to make sure there is enough liquid.

4. Once cooked, remove the lid and increase to high heat. Stir through the mint leaves and season well with a good amount of sea salt and freshly ground pepper. Cook for 2 minutes and then remove from heat.

5. Allow resting for 5 minutes before serving with a dollop of Greek Yogurt (dairy free option), lemon zest, a good drizzle of extra virgin olive oil, and extra mint leaves. Enjoy!