Gary's black bean soup
8 Servings
Ingredients
| Quantity | Ingredient | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | pounds | Black beans |
| ¾ | pounds | Smoked boneless ham hocks (or less) |
| 8 | cups | Water |
| Salt, to taste | ||
| 2 | cups | Beef or chicken broth (I prefer beef) |
| 1½ | cup | Green bell peppers, finely chopped, seeded and cored |
| 1½ | cup | Onions, finely chopped |
| 1½ | teaspoon | Olive oil |
| 1 | tablespoon | Garlic, finely minced |
| 1 | teaspoon | Ground cumin |
| 1 | cup | Tomatoes, peeled, seeded and diced. |
| ¼ | cup | Red wine vinegar |
| 2 | tablespoons | Coriander, finely chopped [optional] |
| Sherry, dry, to taste | ||
Directions
Put the beans, ham hocks, water and salt in a kettle and bring to a boil. Cover and let simmer 2 to 2½ hours, or until beans are thoroughly tender. Remove the ham hocks and set aside.
Drain the beans and reserve both them and the cooking liquid. There should be about 6 cups of beans and about 4 cups of liquid. Add enough broth to the liquid to make about 6 cups.
Put the beans in the container of a food processor or blender, and blend as thoroughly as possible. Add a little of the liquid and continue blending. Combine the pureed beans and remaining liquid in a large bowl.
Heat the oil in a heavy kettle and add the peppers, onions, garlic and cumin. Cook, stirring, until the onions are wilted. Add the tomatoes and the vinegar. Let simmer about 15 minutes. Meanwhile cut up ham hocks.
Add the pureed bean mixture to the cooked tomato mixture. Add the chopped ham and coriander. Serve in hot soup bowls with about a tablespoon or so of sherry (if desired) in each serving.
NOTES:
* Soup with Black Beans and Ham Hocks -- Here is a hearty soup for those cold winter evenings. This is a rather messy soup to make, but well worth the effort. Yield: Serves 8-12.
* I skip the sherry and add a spoon of sour cream or yogurt. If your palate can handle them, try adding pickled jalapeno peppers.
: Difficulty: easy.
: Time: 10 minutes preparation, 3 hours cooking.
: Precision: no need to measure.
: Gary Scott
: Tektronix, Beaverton OR
: garys@...
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