I made my own version of Panera Bread's Vegan Black Bean Soup last night, and thanks to my Instant Pot Pressure Cooker - it was fast and easy!
And tasty? It tasted just like the restaurant version, only mine is completely oil-free!
Besides being full of all that Black Bean goodness (protein, fiber, calcium, iron, etc), this soup is also literally LOADED with veggies.
Onion, garlic, celery, green chile, tomatoes, and red bell pepper add even more antioxidants and phytonutrients, without even a HINT of saturated fat or cholesterol.
And none of that fake processed stuff either.....nope....just REAL food. WHOLE foods.... like nature intended.
Did I mention it tastes great?
It is EVERY bit as good (if not BETTER) as the restaurant version, and by using my Instant Pot Pressure Cooker I reduced the time to cook the dried Black Beans down to about 30 minutes.
So if you're looking for another Instant Pot Recipe - or maybe just another great 'South of the Border' Recipe - then definitely give this one a try.
Vegan Black Bean Soup (Instant Pot)
Start by finely chopping the following vegetables into your Instant Pot.
- 1 red onion
- 2 ribs of celery
- ½ of a red bell pepper
Set your IP to SAUTE mode and using a few tablespoons of water or veg broth, sauté until the veggies begin to soften.
Next, stir in 4-5 cloves of minced garlic and the following spices:
- 2 tsp Mexican oregano (crumble it between your palms first)
- 2 tsp chili powder
- 1-2 tsp ground cumin
- ½ tsp ground pepper
Mix that up well until it becomes aromatic, then turn off the heat by pressing the KEEP WARM button on your IP.
Next, add 2 cups of low sodium veggie broth and 2 cups of water. Stir well.
Rinse and pick over 2 cups of dried Black Beans (removing any odd-shaped ones, rocks, whatever) and add the beans to the pot. Again, stir well.
Finally, pour one can of Rotel Tomatoes with Green Chiles right into the center of the soup. DO NOT MIX. Tomatoes scorch really easy if they come in contact with the hot outside edges of the pot, so leave them in the center. I also used a NO SALT ADDED variety of Rotel to keep the salt content down.
Attach your IP lid, make sure the vent plug is set to SEALING and set your timer for MANUAL MODE for 30 minutes.
Come back 30 minutes later and allow the IP to naturally vent for 10 minutes. I use a wooden spoon to help pop up the vent valve and release whatever steam is remaining. (CAUTION: The steam is VERY HOT!)
Carefully remove the lid, and remove 2 cups of the soup to a blender and blend until smooth, then stir this back into the soup to thicken.
If the soup is still too thin, you can add 1 tablespoon of Masa Harina Corn Flour to help thicken it up even more.
Garnish with chopped green onion, cilantro, salsa, lime wedges, or even a dollop of my Green Chili Sour Cream if you like, and maybe some homemade Cornbread for a complete meal.
As always, I hope you enjoy this flavorful and healthy soup. Let me know what you think and be sure and like it on Facebook or Instagram!
Enjoy!
Vegan Black Bean Soup (Instant Pot)
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Total Time: 40 minutes
- Yield: 4-6 servings 1x
- Category: Soup/Stew
- Method: Instant Pot
- Cuisine: Mexican
Description
A copycat recipe of Panera Bread's Vegan Black Bean Soup, using an Instant Pot. Cooks in just 30 minutes!
Ingredients
- 1 red onion (finely diced)
- 2 ribs celery (finely diced)
- ½ red bell pepper (finely diced)
- 4-5 cloves garlic (finely minced)
- 2 tsp Mexican oregano
- 2 tsp McCormick's chili powder
- 1-2 tsp ground cumin
- ½ tsp ground pepper
- 2 cups low sodium vegetable broth
- 2 cups water
- 2 cups dried black beans
- 1 can Rotel tomatoes & green chiles (10oz)
Instructions
- Finely chop onion, celery, and bell pepper and add to Instant Pot. Saute veggies using SAUTE MODE using a splash of water or veggie broth to prevent sticking.
- Stir in garlic & spices and simmer just until they become aromatic. About 15-20 seconds.
- Press KEEP WARM to stop the saute mode and remove the heat.
- Slowly add the vegetable broth and water and stir well.
- Rinse 2 cups of dried black beans, removing any debris, and add to pot. Stir to mix.
- Pour the Rotel tomatoes into the CENTER of the soup and DO NOT STIR.
- Attach lid, make sure vent is set to SEALING, and set timer for MANUAL MODE for 30 minutes.
- Allow to naturally vent for 10 minutes before CAREFULLY releasing whatever steam is left (I use a wooden spoon handle)
- Remove 2 cups of the beans & veggies and blend until smooth. Add back into the soup and stir.
- Garnish with chopped green onion, cilantro, salsa, lime wedges, or even my Green Chile Sour Cream if desired.
Notes
Keywords: black bean soup
Ruth Dewar
Made this soup yesterday. The only thing i left out was the celery as i didnt have any, but wow! Amazing soup! Ate it with Jasmine rice, definitely a keeper! Thanks Chuck!
Evelina Marie
Great soup! Yum! My darling omnivore men, hubby and 8 yr old grandson, especially the grandson, love black beans. My challenge: hubby tolerates onions only if they dissolve completely away in whatever dish I make, or he picks them out or just skips the meal. The grandson is even worse! All that veg, he complains, as he points to the offenders, (and his eyes are sharp), "I don't like that green, that thing (aka onion), yuck, I don't eat those red things, and I don't eat anything made with tomato!" (I can hardly wait to catch him devouring pizza. **wicked grin**) You mention blitzing half the soup. Hmmm, brilliant idea. My solution: I add the dry beans to the pot last, instead of the tomatoes going in last. Once all the veg is cooked I add the water, broth, tomatoes and spices, stick that immersion blender in the pot and blend away! Then I add the dry beans and cook them in the ipot. Sneaky? Yes and no. Grandson asks for seconds, yes sneaky. But hubby knows I blend up the onions, that's okay by him as he, too, goes back for seconds! Thank you for a great soup recipe! Oh, btw, the broth comes out nice and thick right out of the pot. If it looks a little thin I just mash up some of the beans against the side of the pot with the back of a soup spoon and give it a good stir.
Graham Smith
This is great! 45 min start to bowl and tastes real good. Excellent consistency, nicely flavoured.
Monique Connealy
Made this, and your cornbread for dinner. So yum! I subbed date paste for the sugar and maple syrup on the cornbread.
Jess Lawnicki
Just wanted to let you know, the ingredients in the top part (the long form instructions) include the red pepper, and the directions for what to do include it, but in the bottom part (the condensed ingredients/directions - the “recipe card” version of the recipe, if that makes sense?), the list of ingredients foesn’t include the red pepper. I made my shopping list based on the bottom list, although I had a nagging feeling I was forgetting something, and didn’t realize til now (as I went to make the soup) what I had missed. Just thought you might want a heads up. thanks for the recipe 🙂
Meredith Schiller
I just made this tonight and loved it. I forgot to grab a few things at the store so I had to substitute canned diced tomatoes for the Rotel with green chilies. I was in luck to have a small can of green chilies so I took a spoonful of that and added it. The flavor was excellent for this soup! I happen to like mine smoother so I blended the entire batch with my immersion blender, but that’s just my preference. Thanks very much for this IP win! It definitely helped me to get more comfortable using it. I will be making this soup again and again.
★★★★★
Tracey
It's cold and windy today in NorCal, so I decided to make this soup. It is so good! For the chili powder, I used half regular and half chipotle. I didn't have Mexican Oregano, so I used the regular kind. But those were the only changes I made. I NEVER eat canned soup so I am always looking for satisfying soup recipes for when the weather gets chilly and this one will definitely be in my rotation. Thanks!
★★★★★
Nancie Martin
Very good I did add a bunch of cilantro with the tomatoes and blended all ingredients when finished was perfect!
★★★★★
Tara
Should the beans be soaked overnight?
Chuck Underwood
Not necessary with a pressure cooker.
John P Link
The red bell pepper isn't included in the recipe summary.
★★★★★
Jenni
I made a few tweaks based on what I had. This is a great soup!
★★★★★
Sonya Thompson
Love this black bean soup! It is my go to for black beans!
★★★★★
Matthew
I made this recipe with black beans the first time and am using pinto beans today. I increased the cook time 10minutes and added some liquid smoke. Great recipe!
★★★★★
Laura
I don’t have an IP. How many cans of black beans would I use for this recipe!
I love your recipes, Chuck! Thanks for all you do!
SITA
I AM WONDERING IF THIS CAN BE MADE ON THE STOVETOP?? IT SOUNDS DELISH!
★★★★★
Sheryl
Easy to make and absolutely delicious!
★★★★★
MG
Love this recipe! Its my go to when I need something but don't know when we will be eating. I took this to my daughter's house , ready to go, , plugged it in when we arrived and when we were done meeting and greeting, lunch was ready! Paired it with a loaf of homemade bread.
!
★★★★★