Welcome to The Storied Recipe Podcast, a podcast about food, culture, and love.
This recipe for Vegan Black Bean Stew came from my podcast guest, Kimberly Espinel. Make sure you listen to her episode A Recipe in Fearlessness while you make her Vegan Columbian Black Bean Stew!
It's hard to imagine anything that ranks higher on the cozy, nourishing, healthy, and filling index than a good Vegetarian Bean Stew during the cold weather months.
Kimberly's recipe is deeply rooted in her Columbia heritage - in fact, she calls it Columbian Black Bean Stew. It is best served with rice and avocado, which were daily staples in Kimberly's diet, and in her mother's home country of Curaçao.
P.S. Looking for more cozy stew recipes? Check out my other plant-based meals, Vegan Saka Saka (Congolese Cassava Leak Stew) and Vegetarian Coq Au Vin (Mushroom Lentil Stew)!
A Note from Kimberly
While Vegetarian eating has not become mainstream in either Columbia or Curaçao, I easily veganized this popular stew simply by declining to add meat to the stew and using a vegetarian broth rather than beef broth or chicken broth.
Top Tip
Make sure to take the time to simmer and rest the stew long enough so it can develop a great flavor from the beans and the spices.
Ingredients and Substitutions
- Dry Beans or Canned Beans - if you are going to use dry beans, make sure to leave time to rehydrate them in either a pressure cooker, simmering in boiling water, or left in cold water overnight
- Olive Oil or Rice Bran Oil
- Water
- Fresh Garlic
- Tomatoes - if you want to add canned tomatoes instead of fresh tomatoes, that is completely acceptable, just drain the liquid and watch your salt since canned tomatoes are preserved with lots of sodium
- Ground Cumin
- Vegetable Stock Cube - if you are making this for people sensitive to gluten, make sure to use a gluten-free vegetable bouillon cube to make sure your vegetable broth is gluten-free
- Onions - white onion or red onion, you can use either, just make sure they are small
- Ground Ginger
- Dried Oregano
- Sugar
- Black Pepper
To Garnish
- Fresh Herbs such as Fresh Cilantro or Parsley (optional)
- Fresh Lime Juice (optional)
- Fresh Tomatoes (optional)
- Chilli Flakes or Cayenne Pepper or Chili Powder or Red Pepper Flakes (optional)
Instructions
This is an easy one-pot meal with little prep work and is a great recipe when you need something fast, filling, and nutritious.
- Drain the black beans and set aside.
- Over medium heat, in a large pot cook the onions in oil until translucent. Then add the chopped garlic and pan-fry. Next, add the diced tomatoes, stir, and add the water.
- Next, add the beans. Lower the heat to a simmer, add the vegetable cube, let it dissolve completely, and add dried spices and sugar. Let it simmer.
- Taste then let it reduce a little more. When done, remove from the heat, sprinkle some ground black pepper on top, and serve warm.
Is This Stew Healthy?
Yes! But I bet you saw that answer coming. This hearty stew is a great way to get some vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants into your daily routine. Not only that, but if you are worried about this black bean soup not having enough protein being that it is vegan, beans are actually very high in protein (1/2 a cup of black beans is equal to 8 grams of protein) and are great alternatives to meat so you can get enough protein for lasting energy throughout your day. Other benefits can include, blood sugar regulation, cancer prevention, heart and eye health, and weight regulation. The only con is that they are high in carbohydrates so if you are being careful with that, it is something to keep in mind.
source: WebMD
What To Serve With Your Stew?
This is a main dish so of course it is good on its own, but here are a few ideas to serve with your black bean stew recipe:
- Avocado (optional)
- Plantain (optional)
- White Rice or Brown Rice or Quinoa (optional)
- Arepas - this recipe is from my podcast guest Yessica!
Equipment
Storage
One of the best parts of this stew is that it is easy to meal prep because it refrigerates or freezes easily. You can make a big batch of it and have it the next day or a month from now and it will still be delicious and nutritious.
- Store in the refrigerator for up to 5 days in an airtight container.
- If freezing, divide into freezer bags and freeze for up to 3 months.
More Central and South American Recipes
More Soups, Stews, and Curries
Listen to Kimberly's Episode Now
Recipe
Quick and Easy Vegan Colombian Black Bean Stew
Ingredients
- 2 15oz cans of Black Beans *See Note 1
- Dash Olive Oil can also use Rice Bran Oil
- 100 ml Water
- 5 Garlic cloves
- 1 can Chopped Tomatoes 400g
- 1 teaspoon Ground Cumin
- 1 Vegetable Stock Cube *See Note 2
- 2 small Onions *See Note 3
- 1/2 teaspoon Ground Ginger
- 1 teaspoon Dried Oregano heaping
- 2 – 3 teaspoons of Sugar
- a pinch of Ground Black Pepper
To garnish
- Fresh Herbs Fresh Cilantro or Parsley (optional)
- Fresh Tomatoes (optional)
- Chili Flakes (optional)
- Avocado to serve with (optional)
- 1 Fried Plantains to serve with (optional)
- Rice or Quinoa to serve with (optional)
Instructions
Cue Up The Episode!
- Make sure to listen to Kimberly on The Storied Recipe Podcast, A Recipe for Fearlessness, while you make her Vegan Columbian Black Bean Stew recipe!
Make The Recipe
- Drain the black beans and set aside.
- Peel and chop the onions and garlic finely.
- Over medium heat, warm the oil in a large frying pan and sweat the onions until translucent – about 5 -10 minutes.
- Next, add the garlic and pan-fry everything for about 2 minutes.
- Then add the chopped tomatoes, stir, and add the water.
- Finally, add the beans and stir until nicely combined.
- Once everything is added, lower the heat to a simmer, add the vegetable cube, and let it dissolve completely. (*See Note 4)
- Then, add the cumin, ground ginger, sugar, and dried oregano.
- Let it simmer to intensify the flavors. Taste and see if it needs a tiny bit more sugar.
- When done, remove from the heat, sprinkle some ground black pepper on top, and serve warm.
Notes
- Note 1: You can also use dried beans for this recipe if you prefer. Just replace the packed soaked beans with 250g of dried beans. Soak for at least overnight, a minimum of 12 hours, preferably 24 hours. You can also use canned beans instead of boxed beans.
- Tip 1.5: If you prefer, you can keep 100ml of the water from the packed beans and use it instead of regular water.
- Note 2: Make sure to use a gluten-free vegetable stock if you want this recipe to be gluten-free.
- Note 3: You can use white or red onions, it doesn’t really matter in terms of flavor. They should be small-ish though.
- Note 4: There is no need to add salt as the vegetable cube will suffice.
- Make sure to listen to Kimberly on The Storied Recipe Podcast, A Recipe for Fearlessness while you make her Vegan Columbian Black Bean Stew recipe!
Elizabeth says
Simple yet delicious and so filling!!