Full of Southwest flavor Instant Pot Black Bean Soup is a nutritious recipe that’s high in plant protein, fiber, and tastes great. Hearty, healthy, and time saving with no soaking of dried beans required!
Other favorite vegetarian Instant Pot recipes include, Instant Pot split pea soup, Instant Pot vegetable soup with smoked paprika, and the creamiest dairy free Instant Pot butternut squash soup.
Table of contents
- Why Make Pressure Cooker Black Bean Soup?
- Ingredients for Instant Pot Black Bean Soup
- How to Make Instant Pot Black Bean Soup
- Optional Add-In’s and Variations
- Tips for Best Results
- FAQs
- Black Bean Soup Toppings Ideas
- How to Serve Recipe for Black Bean Soup?
- How to Store Leftovers?
- More Favorite Instant Pot Recipes
Super uber easy Instant Pot black bean soup and no soaking of beans is necessary just like with Instant Pot black beans recipe. I appreciate soups that not only feed a crowd (or my always hungry family) but are also extremely simple and affordable.
In Ukraine, we ate soup every day, even in summer. Today my family does the same. It just works to pull out soup leftovers for lunch or freeze leftovers for an easy dinner on a busy night.
Why Make Pressure Cooker Black Bean Soup?
- No soak: No preplanning a long soak means you can make this easy soup from pantry staples anytime the mood strikes.
- Meatless meal: If your goal is to eat more plant based protein, this soup can help you get there!
- Nutritional powerhouse: By using dried beans you get the most of what pulses have to offer! More protein, fiber, iron, potassium and magnesium, not to mention less sodium than the canned version.
- Vegetarian/vegan friendly: Use vegetable broth for a vegetarian version and skip any cheese topping for a vegan version.
- Easy: Dump, set, and go. It’s really that simple, skip the immersion blender step for even less work.
Mango black bean salad, healthy black bean burgers and quinoa black bean salad are other recipes I love that use a combination of plant based protein, veggies, and simple flavors!
Do you need more ideas for a can of beans? Make bean mushroom soup (my mom’s recipe), easy quinoa casserole or black bean nachos.
Ingredients for Instant Pot Black Bean Soup
Beauty of this Instant Pot black bean soup recipe is that most likely you have all ingredients in your pantry right now. Same goes for mostly any black bean recipe, whether it’s black bean brownies or black bean salsa.
- Dried black beans: No need to soak. You can use canned black beans – see recipe below for cook time please.
- Onion: White, yellow or red onion works. You won’t see it after pureeing. Save green onions for topping!
- Tomato sauce: Plain from a can. Mine is low sodium.
- Broth: Any low sodium broth works. I used chicken bouillon cubes with water – all I had. Even water works. Use vegetable broth for vegan black bean soup Instant Pot.
- Spices: Chili powder, cumin, paprika, cayenne.
How to Make Instant Pot Black Bean Soup
- Dump all ingredients: No need to saute onion or soak beans.
- Cook for 30 minutes on high: Some models have Pressure Cook button and on other it’s Manual.
- Wait 10 mins and release pressure: Don’t release pressure right away, your counter will be a black bean mess.
- Blend just until desired thickness: If you like thick hearty soup, puree with an immersion blender until desired thickness. Or leave it as is if you like broth based with chunks soup (video shows not pureed).
- Top with favorite Mexican toppings: See below for ideas. There are lots. 🙂
Love thick and creamy soups? Try Instant Pot potato soup next!
Optional Add-In’s and Variations
- Canned beans: Use 3 x 14 oz cans of black beans, rinsed and drained, 4 cups water or broth and cook for 6 minutes with 10 minute natural pressure release. If beans are not low sodium, don’t add any salt and adjust after to taste.
- Other beans: While this could result in a different soup, many readers have used 15 bean soup beans.
- Additional vegetables: If you don’t plan to puree, diced carrots or sweet potatoes could be added before pressure cooking.
- Aromatics: Stir in minced garlic at the end, fresh garlic is always great in soup!
- Smoky soup: Replace regular paprika with smoked paprika, it does wonders to any vegetarian soup. Or add a few diced chipotles in adobo sauce with 1 tbsp of sauce or replace regular chili powder with ancho chili powder.
- More heat: Use chipotle chili powder or even include a can of drained diced green chiles.
- Additional spices: Oregano or coriander would be great!
- Even more flavour with other tomatoes: Substitute tomato sauce with plain diced tomatoes, the ones with chilies, or just fire roasted. I love making easy tomato soup with canned tomatoes when in a pinch.
- Heartier soup: Stir in leftover brown rice or quinoa when soup is finished!
Tips for Best Results
- Rinse dried beans: To clean any dust or debris from them.
- No immersion blender? Remove a small amount, puree in blender, then stir back into the soup.
- No blender at all? Try adding 1/2 cup dried red lentils while pressure cooking your soup, because they are split, they will disintegrate and help thicken soup.
- 3 quart Instant Pot: Cut ingredients in half but keep same cook time.
- More help: Read my Instant Pot guide with ver 15 tips and tricks. Or which one I recommend to buy.
FAQs
While similar, there are some differences. Cuban black bean soup will often include both sweet bell peppers, spicy Cubanelle pepper, and red wine vinegar. Some cuban versions also include oranges.
Yes, if you are using dried beans, do a quick soak or soak overnight, then simmer your soup on the stovetop for a few hours. Use canned beans for a quicker stovetop version.
Healthy means something different to everyone, but overall this soup is a great healthy choice for those looking for a meatless meal that is lower in sodium than traditional store purchased soup.
Use additional broth/stock, add in chopped red bell pepper or carrots when pressure cooking or roasted red peppers after to add a sweet taste.
Sure! Cooked smoked sausage (chicken sausage is my preference like in breakfast sandwiches), leftover taco meat, or rotisserie chicken could all be added to up the protein.
Black Bean Soup Toppings Ideas
Mexican toppings bring boring black bowl of soup to life.
- Avocado: Diced avocado or guacamole.
- Veggies and herbs: Corn, diced fresh tomatoes, jalapenos, cilantro, lime.
- Onions: Diced white, red or green onion. Not yellow.
- Tortilla chips: Our favorite brand is Que Pasa or Good Food Should Taste Good.
- Cheese: Shredded Colby or cheddar cheese, crumbled cotija or feta, omit for vegan black bean soup.
How to Serve Recipe for Black Bean Soup?
This recipe is great for a light lunch or dinner, but also can be included as part of your Mexican fiesta with these additional ideas:
- Mexican themed meal: Along with above topping ideas, serve with shrimp tacos, Mexican kale salad, chicken tostadas and Mexican street corn salad.
- Game day: With chicken wings in air fryer, air fryer nachos or healthy buffalo chicken dip.
- Low carb sides: Mexican cauliflower rice or Mexican meatballs.
- For the kids: Grilled cheese is always a winner.
- Appetizers: Healthy veggie dip, charcuterie, or spinach dip make great healthy snack recipes before or during your soup dinner.
How to Store Leftovers?
- Storing: Soup is a long lasting dish. It will keep in the fridge for up to 5 days before you have to freeze, eat or discard it. Soup might thicken with time, just add a bit more broth until desired consistency.
- Freezing: This soup freezes beautifully. Transfer to a glass container and leave some room for expansion. Freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw in the fridge overnight.
- Reheating: It is not unusual for black bean soup to thicken with time and once cold. Reheat only amount you plan to eat by simmering on low heat and then adjust thickness with more broth to taste.
More Favorite Instant Pot Recipes
Instant Pot Black Bean Soup
Ingredients
Instructions
- In Instant Pot, add black beans, onion, tomato sauce, chili powder, cumin, paprika, salt, cayenne pepper and broth. No need to stir.
- Close the lid, turn pressure vent to Sealing and press Pressure Cook on High or Manual for 30 minutes.
- After Instant Pot has finished cooking, let Instant Pot black bean soup stand for 10 minutes or so and then turn the valve to Venting. This way you will avoid black countertop hot mess.
- If you like thick hearty soup, puree with an immersion blender until desired thickness (video shows soup not pureed). Or leave it as is if you like broth based with chunks soup.
- Serve hot with your favorite toppings.
Storing: Soup is a long lasting dish. It will keep in the fridge for up to 5 days before you have to freeze, eat or discard it. Soup might thicken with time, just add a bit more broth until desired consistency.
Freezing: This soup freezes beautifully. Transfer to a glass container and leave some room for expansion. Freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw in the fridge overnight.
Reheating: It is not unusual for black bean soup to thicken with time and once cold. Reheat only amount you plan to eat by simmering on low heat and then adjust thickness with more broth to taste.
Video
Notes
- Canned beans: Use 3 x 14 oz cans of black beans, rinsed and drained, 4 cups water or broth and cook for 6 minutes with 10 minute natural pressure release. If beans are not low sodium, don’t add any salt and adjust after to taste.
- Smoky soup: Replace regular paprika with smoked paprika. Add a few diced chipotles in adobo sauce with 1 tbsp of sauce or replace regular chili powder with ancho chili powder.
- Broth: I use organic bouillon cubes instead of broth. Use vegetable broth for vegan black bean soup.
- 3 quart Instant Pot: Cut ingredients in half but keep same cook time.
- No immersion blender? Remove a small amount, puree in a regular blender, then stir back into the soup.
- No blender at all? Try adding 1/2 cup dried red lentils while pressure cooking your soup, because they are split, they will disintegrate and help thicken soup.
Nutrition
Recipes and images are a copyright of ifoodreal.com. It is against the law to republish recipes without permission. Nutritional info is approximate.
I Am loving all of your recipes and so easy! My husband is allergic to tomatoes. What can I sub for that to keep the taste similar?
Thank you so much!
You can add a few chopped sweet bell peppers or roasted ones. Enjoy!
Instead of black beans (didn’t have any around, I used Assi Red Beans.
Result: a thick chili that we are using as a topping on baked potatoes and on top of stove-cooked ground turkey.
I will be making this again, maybe even with black beans next time. 🙂
Thanks for letting me know how it turned out with the red beans!