Cuban Black Bean Soup

Ingredients

• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 1 large onion, diced
• 1 green bell pepper, diced
• 1 carrot, diced
• 5 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 tsp ground cumin
• 1 tsp dried oregano
• 1/2 tsp smoked paprika
• 3 (15 oz) cans black beans, drained and rinsed (or 5 cups cooked)
• 4 cups vegetable or chicken broth
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 tsp salt
• 2 tbsp lime juice
• 1 tbsp red wine vinegar
• sour cream, diced red onion, cilantro and lime wedges, to serve

Steps

1. Heat the oil in a Dutch oven over medium heat. Cook the onion, pepper and carrot until soft, 8 minutes.
2. Add the garlic, cumin, oregano and paprika and stir 1 minute.
3. Add the beans, broth, bay leaf and salt. Bring to a boil, then simmer 25 minutes.
4. Remove the bay leaf. Blend about half the soup until smooth and stir it back in (or use an immersion blender to pulse it partly).
5. Stir in the lime juice and vinegar, season to taste, and serve with sour cream, red onion, cilantro and lime wedges.

TipThe splash of vinegar and lime at the end is what makes the soup taste bright instead of flat, so don't skip it.