Black Bean Soup with Tomato-Tomatillo Salsa
Total Time
3 hours
Servings
6
1 pound dried black beans
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 large onions, finely diced
4–6 cloves garlic, minced
6 cups cold water
1 cup peeled, seeded, and chopped tomato (fresh or canned)
1 small sprig fresh or dried epazote (optional)
1 tablespoon finely-chopped canned chipotle chile (or ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper or to taste)
1 teaspoon ground cumin seed
1 teaspoon ground coriander
2 teaspoons salt
1 large tomato, finely diced
3 medium tomatillos, husks removed and finely diced
1 small red onion, very finely diced
1 serrano or jalapeño chile, very finely diced
¼ cup roughly-chopped fresh cilantro leaves
Salt, to taste
Crème fraîche or sour cream, for garnish
Pick over the beans to remove any debris. Soak if desired and drain.
In a deep, heavy-based pot, heat oil over medium heat.
Add onions and cook until translucent, about 5 minutes.
5 minutes
Add beans, garlic and water.
Bring to a boil, skimming any foam that rises to the surface.
Reduce to a simmer and when the beans are soft, after about 1 hour, add tomato, epazote, chipotle chile, cumin, coriander and salt.
1 hour
Cook until the beans start to break down and broth begins to thicken.
Taste for seasoning; add salt and pepper if needed.
In a small bowl, combine tomato, tomatillo, onion, jalapeño and cilantro.
Taste for seasoning and add salt as needed.
Ladle soup into individual serving bowls.
Garnish each with a spoonful of crème fraîche and salsa.
- •If you're serving this soup immediately, you can thicken it by pureeing a cup or two of the beans in a blender or food processor and then recombining them with the rest of the soup. If refrigerated overnight, the soup will thicken on its own.
- •The salsa will taste best if assembled no more than an hour before serving.
- •Epazote is an herb that looks like a weed and is regularly used in Mexican cooking. If you can't find it, use an equal amount of cilantro.
- •Tomatillos look like rock hard tomatoes with papery skin. Look for them canned in the Hispanic section of your market, if you can't find fresh. They will be perfectly acceptable.
- •Crème fraîche is similar to sour cream, but richer. Look for it in the fancy cheese section.