Hearty and flavorful black bean and sausage soup is quick to make and cooks up in either a slow cooker or instant pot - your choice! It's an easy dinner served with chips & salsa that your family will enjoy.
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When our family tried this black bean and sausage soup recipe for the first time we knew it was a keeper.
It's filling and really tasty, plus I love the fact that I can make it as a slow cooker dish if I will be away from home or make it quicker in my Instant Pot. I make this often during the winter months, and I think you will like this simple soup with Tex-Mex flavors, too.
I adapted this recipe years ago from a library book I had, adding more vegetables, spices, and sometimes even changing the type of beans (which I know doesn't make it 'black bean' anymore, but work with me here).
I like to use the beans I have in the freezer cooked and ready to go and for most soup recipes it seems that beans are pretty interchangeable. I've used pinto beans and white beans in addition to the black beans - and sometimes a combo of them.
This is such an easy dinner, too! Since it's pretty much a one-dish meal with all the vegetables, I usually serve this with chips and salsa or warmed tortillas.
Sometimes I add a plate of carrots and celery with this best ranch dressing as a dip, too. It all depends on how much time I have.
And if you do have the time, you might want to make these 10-minute chips from corn tortillas - they have a great fresh flavor that can't be beat with store bought. And of course I like to serve my favorite canned salsa if I have any.
Black Bean and Sausage Soup Recipe
Ingredients
I think you're going to love this as much as I do. It's a recipe with mostly basic real food ingredients, there's not too much prep (sautéing the onions is about it) and you throw it in the cooker of your choice and dinner's done!
Here are the ingredients you'll need:
- Cooked sausage (any type)
- Onions
- Black beans
- Corn
- Canned tomatoes
- Mild peppers like anaheims or ancho
- Optional hot pepper like jalapeño
- Garlic, spices, and olive oil
I like to buy sausage that has real ingredients, so if I can't find cooked sausage like that at a good price, I'll buy uncooked sausage and cook it first along with the onion. So it's pretty flexible that way.
And if you have chopped peppers in the freezer from your garden or farmer's market, this is the time to use them!
Instructions & Tips
It's simple to change this up to cook in either a slow cooker or the Instant Pot. If you have an IP, you can use it to sauté the onions and then choose either to slow cook the soup (using a glass lid like this) or pressure cook the soup.
Using an Instant Pot
You can watch the video I made to see how to make the soup using an Instant Pot and then how to choose either the slow cook function or the pressure cook function.
Using a Slow Cooker
Of course, using a classic slow cooker is how I first made this years ago and it's still a great hands-off option. (And no, I haven't gotten rid of my slow cooker - I find that meats come out more moist in the slow cooker, especially pork, than using the IP's slow cooker function.)
Which slow cooker is best?
Many slow cookers spit hot water out when cooking on high. I always look for a rubber sealer along the lid to minimize this.
The newest version of the slow cooker I use and love is the Hamilton Beach Stay or Go 6-qt Slow Cooker. It has the thick lid seal so it doesn't spit hot liquid.
I love these kinds of easy recipes where you basically throw all the ingredients together and let them cook.
They are one dish meals that are pretty much done for you, and should be a part of our regular menus, don't you think?
Black Bean and Sausage Soup Recipe (Slow Cook or Instant Pot)
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 large onion chopped
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 1 pound cooked sausage sliced (or use uncooked sausage, crumbled and cooked with onions)
- 5 cups cooked black beans or 3 14-ounce cans
- 2 14- ounce cans diced tomatoes undrained
- 2 cups frozen corn
- 1 cup chopped peppers sweet or mildly hot peppers like anaheim or ancho
- 1 small jalapeño chopped (optional)
- 2-1/2 cups water or broth
- 1 teaspoon oregano
- 1 teaspoons salt
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper or to taste
- 1/2 to 1 teaspoon hot sauce like Tapatio or Cholula or to taste
- fresh parsley or cilantro chopped (optional for serving)
Instructions
For both Methods:
- Sauté onion for about 5 minutes, using the sauté button on the Instant pot or over medium heat in a skillet. Add garlic toward the end (and cook the sausage if using uncooked).
Slow Cooker Method:
- Scrape into a 5 to 6-quart slow cooker if you used a skillet and add all the remaining ingredients. Stir to combine.
- Cover and cook on high heat for 3-4 hours or low heat for 6-8 hours (choosing the 'slow cook' option if using the Instant Pot as a slow cooker).
Instant Pot Method:
- Attach pressure cooker lid to Instant Pot, making sure the valve is set to seal.
- Choose 'manual' and set the time for 5 minutes on high pressure. Let the cooker release pressure naturally for 10 minutes, then do a quick release for the remaining pressure. (Note: the cooker will take about 25 minutes to come up to pressure, so the total time in the IP is about 40 minutes.)
To Serve:
- Sprinkle with freshly chopped parsley or cilantro, if desired, before serving.
Notes
Nutrition
Other Slow Cooker/Instant Pot Recipes to Try:
Slow Cooker Chicken Sausage Cassoulet
Slow Cooker Pork-Vegetable Stew with mashed potatoes
This recipe has been updated - it was originally published October 2009.
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Linda says
Jami: This recipe sounds so good I've put it on my menu for this coming week. I'm going to make it with chorizo as I have some that I need to use up. Thanks for sharing!!
Jenelle says
Hi!
Thanks for the tip about the frozed beans. I don't know why it never occured to me before. I switched to using dry beans about a year ago, and up until now I have coked up all the beans I need for the week on Sunday, because I don't get home from work early enough to cook them the day I needed them.
You have mentioned this before so last time I cooked up some beans I doubled what I needed and froze the rest. It was so nice having them so handy in the freezer for a quick dinner.
oh, and the soup looks good too. I'll give it a try next time Kielbasa goes on sale.