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This Black Bean and Rice Soup is a simple, cozy, chunky soup that has just the right amount of spice and is so easy to whip up! Perfect topped with cilantro, cheese and more!
Black Bean and Rice Soup: a soup for all seasons!
This recipe may seem a bit out of season but since I had a cold last week, soup was on my priority list. And this was one that certainly opened up my sinuses and helped nurse me back to health, so I think it is worth sharing right now!
I am a sucker for really thick and chunky soups, so that is what this one ended up as. This Black Bean and Rice Soup may even be more of a chili, but it has broth, so that constitutes a soup, right?
Anyway, no reason to get all caught up in that nonsense, let’s talk about how amazing this one is.
First of all, it’s a one pot meal and it comes with plenty of leftovers. I personally find soups and chilis always better the second day so that made me very happy all week. More time for the spices to really meld together.
If you prefer a more brothy soup, you may want to grab some extra at the grocery as the rice really absorbs a lot of the liquid for a nice, chunky soup. If not, stick with the recipe!
What you will need to make this black bean and rice soup:
From the image below, it may look like you need a lot to make this black bean and rice soup, but I promise half of the ingredients are spices. And honestly some of them are optional so don’t fret.
The main things you need include:
- black beans: I use canned, I am not gonna act like I don’t. Whatever you use, make sure they are pre-cooked!
- rice: uncooked. If you are in a pinch for time, no worries, add rice that’s already cooked. This will knock off a bunch of time for you!
- broth: I use veggie broth, but I have found myself missing two containers before so went half veggie and half chicken and it was still tasty.
- carrots
- red bell pepper: I sometimes chop up two if I am feeling it, and other times I will do one red and one green. I love sneaking lots and lots of vegetables into my soups and this is a simple way to do it.
- celery
- onion
- diced tomatoes
- tomato paste: this thickens the soup up a touch. If you prefer a thin broth when it comes to soup, it’s not 100% necessary.
- garlic
- cilantro: there is absolutely no such thing as too much cilantro in my opinion. Feel free to keep it coming and coming!
- spices and seasonings
That’s not so bad, right?
Check out these other soup recipes you will love:
- WHITE BEAN, KALE AND BUTTERNUT SQUASH SOUP
- CHUNKY ITALIAN VEGETABLE SOUP
- SLOW COOKER CREAMY CHICKEN AND WILD RICE SOUP
- BLACK BEAN AND RICE SOUP
- MAPLE ROASTED SWEET POTATO CARROT SOUP
- SLOW COOKER SWEET POTATO CHILI
- PUMPKIN QUINOA CHILI
- TOMATO TORTELLINI SOUP
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Black Bean and Rice Soup
Ingredients
- 1 red bell pepper, diced
- 4 medium carrots, diced
- 1 medium red onion, diced
- 3 celery stalks, diced
- 3-4 garlic cloves, minced
- 2 cans, or 4 cups cooked beans
- 1 can diced tomatoes
- 1/2 c uncooked brown rice
- 1 T tomato paste
- 7-8 c unsalted or low sodium vegetable broth
- Juice of 1/2 lime
- 2 tsp cumin
- 1 tsp chili powder
- 1/4 tsp crushed red pepper
- 1/4 tsp cracked black pepper
- Dash of cayenne pepper, optional
- 1/2 c fresh cilantro, chopped
- 1 T olive oil
- Sea salt to taste
Instructions
- In a large pot, heat olive oil over medium-high
- Add garlic, and onions and heat until onions become soft and translucent.
- Add red pepper, celery and carrots and sauté for about 3-5 minutes or until softened.
- Add in tomatoes, beans (rinsed), rice, tomato paste, lime juice, spices and broth. (Do not add cilantro at this time.) Stir to combine.
- Allow the soup to come to a steady boil and stir frequently until rice has cooked through. (about 35 -40 minutes, but varies by rice).
- Turn heat to low and add chopped cilantro. Allow to simmer for about 5-10 minutes.
- Serve garnished with extra cilantro, avocado or your favorite toppings!
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
This recipe was really good. We used chicken broth instead of veggie broth. We plan to make it again this week!
Yay! Love that it was a hit for you!
This was fantastic and super simple! I’ll be making it again.
The only change I’ll be making for next time is to add in kale and a little corn.
So glad to hear you loved it Anthony! And I like your style, will definitely add those into mine as well next time!
This soup was great way to use left over cooked rice and beans.
I added some corn and used Penzey spices.
Yum! Love using up ingredients that are leftover in the fridge too!