This black bean sweet potato soup is hearty, a little spicy and totally delicious! Made with some simple ingredients, this comforting soup will satisfy your taste buds and warm your belly! Top with an avocado lime creama for one extra special treat!
Hi friends!
Today I’m sharing one of my favourite bean soup recipes (a spicy black bean and sweet potato soup)!
There’s nothing fancy here, far from it.
It’s made with mostly (budget-friendly) pantry ingredients and comes together quickly. Plus, it tastes so yummy!!
There’s some smoky heat here from chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, as well as fresh jalapeno. I don’t know about you, but I love a little spice. We always have canned chipotle peppers on hand because they add so much flavour to dishes.
When I’m feeling a little extra hungry, I love to enjoy a big bowl with a hunk of homemade cornbread for dunking!
How To Make This Black Bean Sweet Potato Soup
Full details on how to make this black bean and sweet potato soup are in the recipe card below, but here are the basics:
- In a pot, cook onion in a little olive oil until softened.
- Add garlic, chipotle peppers, jalapeno, chili powder and oregano and cook for a couple of minutes.
- Stir in beans, sweet potatoes, salt and pepper. Pour in veggie broth, bring to a boil (then reduce to a simmer), cover and cook until sweet potato is fork-tender.
- Remove about 2 cups of soup and blend with an immersion blender.
- Pour creamy mixture back into the soup, stirring in.
- Stir in corn and cook until warmed through, then stir in lime juice.
Do I Have To Blend the Soup?
The blended soup adds a little creaminess and body to the soup.
However, if you want to skip this, that’s okay.
If you don’t have an immersion blender and you still want to blend some of the soup, no worries!
Simply remove some of the beans and sweet potato, place in bowl and mash with a potato masher before adding back to the pot.
Avocado Lime Crema
This avocado crema is basically Greek yogurt (or sour cream), lime, cilantro, avocado, salt and pepper.
It’s refreshing and delicious. Plus, its adds a lovely creaminess and cooling effect to the heat from the soup.
This soup, on its own, is dairy free. If you don’t want to garnish with crema, that’s okay too!
Yummy Garnish Ideas
Besides the avocado lime crema, this black bean sweet potato soup is delicious with any of these garnish ideas:
- Sliced jalapeno
- Sliced green onion
- Chopped cilantro
- Crumbled feta cheese or queso fresco
- Homemade tortilla chips crushed up
Tips for Making This Recipe
- For less spice, reduce the chipotle peppers and/or omit the jalapeno pepper.
- Use store-bought veggie broth or make your own homemade veggie broth!
- Frozen, canned, or fresh corn works in this recipe. If using fresh, you may have to cook a little longer.
- Add more than a cup of corn, if you wish, for an extra hearty soup.
- If you don’t want to mess around making crema, you can simply dollop your black bean sweet potato soup with some plain yogurt (dairy or non dairy) or sour cream.
More Yummy Soup Recipes
If you make this easy black bean soup, be sure to leave a comment below!
This black bean sweet potato soup was originally published in January 2017 but has been updated.
Black Bean Sweet Potato Soup
Ingredients
Black Bean Sweet Potato Soup
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 yellow onion, peeled and diced
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 3 chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, chopped (or to taste)
- 1 jalapeno pepper, minced (remove ribs and seeds for less spice, if desired)
- ½ tablespoon chili powder
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 2 (19-ounce) cans no salt added black beans, rinsed and drained
- 2 sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into small cubes (about 4 cups)
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 4 cups low sodium vegetable broth
- 1 heaping cup frozen or canned corn kernels, drained
- 1 tablespoon lime juice, from about ½ a lime
- Sliced jalapeno pepper, garnish to taste (optional)
- Sliced green onion, garnish to taste (optional)
- Chopped cilantro, garnish to taste (optional)
Avocado Lime Crema
- â…“ cup plain Greek yogurt or sour cream
- 1 small bunch cilantro, about ½ cup
- ½ avocado, pitted and peeled
- 2 tablespoons lime juice, from about 1 lime
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- pinch freshly ground black pepper
- milk or almond milk, approximately 1 to 2 tablespoons (if needed) to thin the crema
Instructions
Black Bean Sweet Potato Soup
- Heat olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. (I used an enameled cast-iron Dutch oven.)
- Add onion and cook, stirring often, until softened, about 5 minutes.
- Add garlic, chipotle peppers, jalapeno, chili powder and oregano. Cook for 2 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Stir in beans, sweet potatoes, salt and black pepper. Stir in vegetable broth.
- Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat (to about medium-low heat) to a simmer. Cover and cook for 10 to 12 minutes or until sweet potato is tender.
- Optional: Remove about 2 cups of soup, place into a heat-safe container and carefully blend with an immersion blender until smooth. Pour back into pot of soup, stirring in.Note: If you don't have an immersion blender, you can mash with a potato masher.
- Stir in corn and warm through, about 2 to 3 minutes.
- Stir in lime juice.
- To serve, divide the soup into bowls and garnish (if desired) with jalapeno, green onion and cilantro. Dollop over avocado lime crema. Enjoy! Serves 4 to 5 large servings or 6 smaller side servings.
Avocado Lime Crema
- Combine all avocado lime crema ingredients in a mini food processor (except milk). Process until combined. If you want a looser or thinner consistency, blend in some milk until you've reached your desired consistency. Dollop over black bean sweet potato soup.
A note on times provided: appliances vary, any prep and/or cook times provided are estimates only.
© Girl Heart Food Inc. Photographs and content are copyright protected.
Tried this recipe?
If you do make this recipe, thank you!! It would mean so much if you could leave a comment below. Love to know how you enjoyed it, and it helps other readers too!
Miriam - londonkitchendiaries.com
This is just the best advice I ever read on how to prepare for a storm – chocolate, wine and chips, I will remember this or better, stock up right now just in case 🙂 Cold days are just calling for comfort food and I love everything with beans and avocado – this recipe is just right up my alley!
Girl Heart Food
Isn’t it, though? You better, indeed, stock up ’cause you wouldn’t want to run out, especially wine, lol 😀 Thanks so much, Miriam!
Nicoletta @sugarlovespices
Chips, chocolate, and wine for me too, yay! Especially on a stormy night. But also give me bowls of pure comfort food like this one! Black beans are my favorite, sweet potato is another favorite and that avocado cilantro crema on top? So so yummy! Pinned it!
Girl Heart Food
Food like this almost makes me wish that there was more snow on the way….almost 😉 Thanks so much for the sweet comment and Pin, Nicoletta….appreciate it!!
Kevin | Keviniscooking
Like Rachel said, San Diego has been pelted with hail and rains for several weeks now and it’s great. Though I do not enjoy the repairs to my fence and a leak found in a guest room window where I shoot videos. Alas, coming in from the cold to eat this would suit me just fine! Love that avocado crema action! Looks amazing to me. 🙂
Girl Heart Food
We have freezing rain in the forecast for tonight/tomorrow so that will be lovely on top of all the snow #notreally. Oh, well, winter, right? Unfortunate about your damage! Hopefully, you’ll get it repaired quickly! Thanks, Kevin, for the kind words!
Gingi Freeman
This looks amazing, and your plating skills are just awesome! Seriously making me hungry! Thanks for sharing! <3
Girl Heart Food
Thanks for the lovely comment and for stopping by, Gingi!
Rachel @ Bakerita
We’ve been having stormy weather too and this soup looks like the perfect thing to warm me right up! Looks so delicious, especially with that swirl of cilantro crema on top!
Girl Heart Food
Thanks so much, Rachel! At least the stormy weather forces us to stay inside in the cozy warm, right? Hope you’re having a great week!
Adina
I actually love a good storm when we are cozy and warm inside, makes things a bit romantic not being able to get out… We had that two weeks ago as well, there was so much snow, which is still lingering and getting dirtier every day now (not that romantic anymore 🙂 ). This is a perfect dish for a snowy and cold day, it gets you warm from inside.
Girl Heart Food
So true, Adina! I totally know what you mean! Thanks for the kind words. Hope you’re having a wonderful week 🙂
Tracy | Baking Mischief
We just finished a big ol rain storm here and I could have totally used some of this soup, especially with that avocado crema!
Yours sounds like a super cozy weekend. I mean, chip, chocolate, and wine make everything more tolerable, don’t they? 😉
David @ Spiced
Haha! Dude, chips, chocolate and wine is how I like to tackle storms, too. We had a bunch of ice/snow overnight, and now we have a couple of huge branches down in the yard. I’m dragging my feet to go out and shovel and clear those branches out. Maybe I’ll have some chocolate and chips (and wine!) as a way of delaying. And then maybe I’ll have some of this soup when I come back inside….because you know I’ll need something to warm me up! I love sweet potatoes in soup, and this one sounds amazing, Dawn! 🙂
Girl Heart Food
That sounds like a plan 😉 Good luck with those branches…and you’ll probably burn a lot of calories moving them out of the way so you may need to eat a little more chocolate for good measure…hehehe! Thanks David!
Sues
Mmm this is the perfect storm food! Along with the chips and wine, of course!! Cookies are a storm food must, too 🙂
Girl Heart Food
Definitely!! With all those goodies, doesn’t matter if it’s a storm outside, right? Thanks Sues!
Mary Ann | The Beach House Kitchen
I love everything about this soup Dawn! The sweet potato black bean combo sounds awesome! And that avocado crema? YES please! I’ll have to get this on the menu when I hear a storm is heading my way! Thanks for sharing! XO
Girl Heart Food
Yay! Thanks Mary Ann! The avocado cilantro crema definitely is one of my favourite parts. Thanks so much, my friend! XO
Kathy @ Beyond the Chicken Coop
There’s nothing like a good storm to cause a little panic! I’m glad you stocked up with all the “basics” You can survive just about anything with wine and chocolate! This soup would help too. I love the combination of black beans and sweet potatoes!
Girl Heart Food
Yes, gotta have those ‘basics’ 😉 Then, bring on the snow, lol. Thanks so much, Kathy!
Kathryn @ Family Food on the Table
Glad you got a storm that was an excuse to stay in and curl up! I’m with you on the stocking up nonsense… everyone else is going for bread and I’m all like, I just need to make sure I’ve got enough bourbon in case we get snowed in. ??? Storm chips too – that sounds like a good plan 😉 And storm brownies maybe?! But definitely soup – warms you right up and feels oh so cozy! Love this black bean and sweet potato version – one of my fave combos! Pinned! XO
Girl Heart Food
Yes! Bourbon! I like the way you think, girl 🙂 And storm brownies? You’re on a roll! Thanks so much for the kind words and Pin-hope you have a wonderful week! XO
Jolina
Storm chips. I do love that idea 🙂 And this soup! Looks amazing. We’re huge fans of chipotle in adobo sauce. And that avocado cilantro crema – I would go drizzle crazy on that for sure. We got these squeeze bottles from the dollar store and lemme tell you our meals have not looked the same lol! We didn’t have any storm out here though the whole weekend there was this horror-movie style fog everywhere I’m not even exaggerating! It’s kind of lifted now, still gloomy though, storm chips still appropriate I think haha. Happy Monday Dawn!
Girl Heart Food
Hahaha! Those squeeze bottles are the best, aren’t they? Love ’em! Oh, the little things! I think storm or no storm, it’s always a good time for chips 😉 Thanks Jolina!
annie@ciaochowbambina
Storm chips?! Are you kidding me?! I am all about it! Especially if I can munch between enjoying big bowls of this beautiful soup! You guys have taken comfort to a whole new level!! Keep these soups coming! They’re predicting 4 – 9 inches of snow in CNY tonight…better run out for chips and chipotles! Have a great week, my friend! Stay warm! XOXO
Girl Heart Food
Thanks Annie! It sure doesn’t hurt to have lots of yummy eats when it’s all warm and cozy inside and snowing outside, does it? You stay warm too, my friend! XOXO
annie
I love the idea of storm chips! I’m glad y’all were safe during the storm.
I’m also diggin this pretty soup. I am all about the spicy comfort food….it literally warms you up from the inside out. That’s pretty sweet in my book.
Girl Heart Food
Thanks Annie! I could eat spicy food (and soup) every day. Hope you have a wonderful week 🙂
Gaila
Dawn! best storm food ever!! Chips and soup!! Oh my! I am glad you guys are ok and had a super fun storm!! loving this crema!! I am in!
Girl Heart Food
Totally! Thanks so much Gaila! Happy Monday 🙂
Cheyanne @ No Spoon Necessary
I’m glad you guys were safe during the storm, but sucks you ran out of eggs! Those are my go-to for sure. And, ummm, STORM CHIPS?! My ears (eerr eye balls?) perked up when I read that! Best Idea EVER! I mean, nachos during a storm? Yes please! AND THIS SOUP during a storm! Heck yes! Loving the flavors, Dawn! And I loooove that you added chipotles for a bit of smoky heat! And that crema!! Drool! So much deliciousness going on here!! Cheers, sweets!
Girl Heart Food
Thanks so much, Cheyanne! Despite running out of eggs, we did have lots of stuff in the fridge and pantry….almost too much for two people, lol 😀 And it didn’t hurt to have those chips! Thanks, my friend! Cheers to a fab week!
Rachelle @ Beer Girl Cooks
Hahahaha! I loved that pic you sent me! It sounds like you had an awesome and cozy weekend drinking wine and eating this delicious soup!
Girl Heart Food
I thought you would 😉 We definitely had a cozy weekend and now looking forward to the next one 🙂 Thanks Rachelle! XO
Gayle @ Pumpkin 'N Spice
It’s so funny how people just have to run to the grocery store when any kind of a storm is coming. Like, do they not keep any kind of food in their house? And will it really prevent you from going out for DAYS? I’m definitely not one of those people who does that, in fact, I avoid the stores as often as I can haha. Glad it wasn’t too bad for you though, Dawn! And it’s the best when it happens on the weekend and you can stay in and just relax. Sounds like you were armed with some delicious foods, too! This soup looks amazing! I’ve been testing black bean soup recipes, and I’m loving the sweet potatoes in here, too! And yay for avocado cilatro crema, YUM! What a perfect dish for the winter! Pinned, of course! Hope your Monday is off to a great start!
Girl Heart Food
I know, right? I do enjoy going to the grocery store, but definitely not when there’s a crowd. I ended up going on Sunday morning (to get the eggs, lol) and it was hardly anyone there so that was perfect! Thanks so much for the sweet comment and Pin. Have a fantastic week, Gayle!
Shashi at RunninSrilankan
Who needs eggs when you have chips, chocolate and wine eh? 🙂 Peeps go cray cray over here in Atlanta when a dusting of snow is in the forecast – emptying shelves off bread and milk – and we are not even an island!
It hasn’t been that cold here but I’ve been craving soup too – especially ones with ALL the beans – so I know I’d enjoy every last drop of this one – especially with that avocado crema! Your topping game is definitely en point!
Girl Heart Food
Hahaha! So true, Shashi! Thanks so much! Happy Monday to ya 🙂