Smoky Black Bean Soup

I thought this was good - used 1 cup expresso instead of 2 cups coffee then increased the water. Used 2 bell peppers as did not have celery. Dumped everything in pressure cooker then pureed all afterwards before serving over rice & with some cheese.

So I'm not the only one who did not care for this at all. I agree. Very bland. Waste of ingredients and time. I didn't use ham hock or jalapeños. It also made me physically sick for days. Maybe it was the coffee which added nothing in the flavor dept. I'll stick to my own black bean soup next time.

Bland. Bland. Bland. I had really high hopes for this recipe! We added cayenne, garlic powder, salt salt salt, hot sauce.... and lots of all of those things...which made it taste ok. The coffee does absolutely nothing. I would not make this again. Pros: None. Cons: Everything.

Cook Ahead I put in a ham hock, so in order to remove the resulting fat I cooked it a day ahead, let it cool, then took off the fat before gently reheating. The ham also provided the salt, so didn't need to add more.

Smoky, yes, but very bland I had to make some changes due to food allergies and to deal with what was seasonal and in the pantry already. I omitted the onions but increased the garlic I used a ham hock, but mine is fresh from the pig, not smoked or cured I used regular sour cream I used dried ancho chilies instead of fresh jalapeno peppers The taste was indeed quite smoky, but lacked any sort of brightness or zing. I grow a much spicier garlic than you'll find in the grocery store, but it gets lost in the starch and long cooking. The regular fat sour cream helped add body and I also added a splash of lemon juice when plating for acidity. Nonetheless, I had to add quite a bit of hot sauce -- and I'm not a hot sauce fan -- to want to finish the bowl. As a base recipe for black bean soup, it's not bad, expect the seasoning to need to be reworked and ramped up for your tastes. Or consider serving with fresh tomato salsa as well as the sour cream. Pros: Easy to make, Most ingredients already in your pantry Cons: Relatively flavorless, Unsatisfying, a little watery

Smoky, yes, but very blandI had to make some changes due to food allergies and to deal with what was seasonal and in the pantry already.I omitted the onions but increased the garlicI used a ham hock, but mine is fresh from the pig, not smoked or curedI used regular sour creamI used dried ancho chilies instead of fresh jalapeno peppersThe taste was indeed quite smoky, but lacked any sort of brightness or zing. I grow a much spicier garlic than you'll find in the grocery store, but it gets lost in the starch and long cooking. The regular fat sour cream helped add body and I also added a splash of lemon juice when plating for acidity.Nonetheless, I had to add quite a bit of hot sauce -- and I'm not a hot sauce fan -- to want to finish the bowl. As a base recipe for black bean soup, it's not bad, expect the seasoning to need to be reworked and ramped up for your tastes. Or consider serving with fresh tomato salsa as well as the sour cream.Pros: Easy to make, Most ingredients already in your pantryCons: Relatively flavorless, Unsatisfying, a little watery

Bland Bean Soup I had high hopes for this one. I wanted something made from dried beans. But this one was not the one to go with. Bland is an understatement. I don't know how much salt in the world could have saved this but then my salt intake would have skyrocketed. I didn't use the hamhock. Would that have made the difference? I don't know because it was _that_ bland. The coffee seemed to make it more bland. I healped the yogurt and it does help but I've had great black bean soup and you don't need yogurt or anything to make it taste good. It's suppose to taste good without any fixin's. This won't be on my saved recipes list. Pros: Made from scratch Cons: Bland

Fantastic! I found this recipe amazing with some additions. I doubled the bell pepper and the celery. I also added much more cumin, chili powder, garlic powder, and a couple of dashes cayenne pepper. I ate it non-stop for almost a week without tiring from it, and am making another batch tonight. :) Pros: Healty and filling

needs the yogurt and cilantro to make it work I also found it "flat" or "bland" by itself, but the cilantro and the yogurt brightened it right up. I also didn't taste any hint of the coffee. I thought of adding some instant espresso to see if I could get the coffee taste there, but didn't. I did use the ham hocks. My first night I ate it with whole grain bread and found it very filling-I couldn't eat it all. The second night, my family loved it eating it up with tortilla chips. It was almost more like a dip and the chips added a fun crunch. Kids friendly. Pros: easy to follow Cons: preplanning required for soaking beans

needs the yogurt and cilantro to make it workI also found it "flat" or "bland" by itself, but the cilantro and the yogurt brightened it right up. I also didn't taste any hint of the coffee. I thought of adding some instant espresso to see if I could get the coffee taste there, but didn't. I did use the ham hocks. My first night I ate it with whole grain bread and found it very filling-I couldn't eat it all. The second night, my family loved it eating it up with tortilla chips. It was almost more like a dip and the chips added a fun crunch. Kids friendly.Pros: easy to followCons: preplanning required for soaking beans

Disappointing 'Hauntingly delicious'? Hardly. 'Flat' is more like it. I used Starbucks brewed coffee for flavor and included a piece of smoked ham bone, and still achieved nothing special, even after upping the salt quotient. Goya makes a canned black bean soup with much more punch. Also, be aware that your black beans may take two hours or more to reach doneness. Cons: Lack of flavor, longer cooking time than stated

Disappointing'Hauntingly delicious'? Hardly. 'Flat' is more like it. I used Starbucks brewed coffee for flavor and included a piece of smoked ham bone, and still achieved nothing special, even after upping the salt quotient. Goya makes a canned black bean soup with much more punch. Also, be aware that your black beans may take two hours or more to reach doneness.Cons: Lack of flavor, longer cooking time than stated

A little disappointedI was not able to use a ham hock, which may have contributed to it being bland. I didn't find it had a "hauntingly delicious". I used just my regular morning coffee, not a strong, bold coffee, but I can't taste the coffee in it. After simmering for over an hour, that flavor isn't there anymore.Pros: fillingCons: not able to develop full flavor it promised

A little disappointed I was not able to use a ham hock, which may have contributed to it being bland. I didn't find it had a "hauntingly delicious". I used just my regular morning coffee, not a strong, bold coffee, but I can't taste the coffee in it. After simmering for over an hour, that flavor isn't there anymore. Pros: filling Cons: not able to develop full flavor it promised