Guatemalan Black Bean Soup (Sopa de Frijol)

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Authentic, comforting and endlessly versatile, this recipe for traditional Guatemalan black bean soup (sopa de frijol) comes straight from my husband’s family ranch in Zacapa.

Lightly creamy, its rich earthy flavour is like soul food in a bowl. Serve it hot on a chilly day with warm tortilla and a dollop of sour cream or crema.

Why You’ll Love This Recipe for Black Bean Soup

• Authentic & Tested at Home: This recipe comes directly from my husband’s family ranch in Zacapa, Guatemala where black beans are a daily staple and the standards are sky-high. My in-laws are so devoted to Guatemalan black beans that they pack it in their suitcases when they travel. We’ve even delivered beans overseas to homesick friends!
• Deep Cultural Roots: While Guatemalans enjoy fava beans, white beans and even red beans , black beans are the heart of traditional Guatemalan cuisine. They’re served in soups, with rice, refried (frijoles volteados), and even inside sweet caramelized plantains as dessert..
• Flavour You Can Trust: In our household, generations of experience with beans mean this soup has been perfected with authentic methods and simple, fresh ingredients. It contains no artificial flavours, additives or enhancers such as Maggi seasoning.
• Naturally Vegetarian & Nutritious: Hearty, plant-based, and protein-rich, this soup is satisfying, wholesome, and fits a vegetarian lifestyle. It’s also low in fat.
• Easy to Make: So foolproof, it’s the perfect introduction to Guatemalan cuisine. Subscribe to our newsletter and you can download our free cookbook with 5 Easy Guatemalan Recipes.

Ingredients for Black Bean Soup

One thing you’ll notice right away about the ingredients for authentic Guatemalan black bean soup is that there are really only a few main ingredients.

That means no cumin, chicken broth, jalapeño peppers or other ingredients you’ll often see in other recipes. But you can get creative with the garnishes.

Black Beans:

While purists argue that the region around Parramos, Guatemala produces the best black beans, for the rest of us the main objective is to make sure you’re buying black turtle beans.

Named for their shell-like appearance, they’re members of the Phaseolus vulgaris species which is very different than Glycine max, the black soya beans used for paste in Asia.

High in protein and fiber, black turtle beans have been cultivated in the Americas long before Columbus crossed the Atlantic.

Onion: Preferably white as it’s not as pungent as a yellow onion.

Garlic: Opt for American or Spanish roja garlic as it’s less pungent and sharp than Chinese garlic.

Garnishes: While the basic ingredients are simple, you can get creative with the garnish.Typical toppings are:

• Chopped cilantro,
• Crema (the Latin American equivalent of crème fraiche). Substitute full fat sour cream or yogurt.
• Queso de Zacapa, a salty, sharp-flavoured dry cheese produced in homes in the lowlands of Guatemala. Use Mexican cotija cheese, Greek feta or parmesan cheese.
• Other delicious toppings include thinly-sliced radishes (chojín), fried strips of corn tortilla chips, chopped peppers or curtido (shredded cabbage slaw).

Put the garnishes out family-style and let guests top their soup as they like.

How to Make Authentic Guatemalan Caldo de Frijol

1. The first step in using black beans is to sort them to remove any small stones. Then rinse them carefully.

2. Combine the chopped onion, whole garlic, water, salt and beans in a large pot. Bring to a boil and simmer until tender but not mushy (about 1 ½ hours).

Black beans are quite forgiving and don’t get mushy easily, so the cooking time is fairly flexible.

🌟 Meal Planning Tip: Add an extra 1 1/2 cups water and 1/2 cup of dried black beans to the pot and reserve the cooked beans and liquid to use in our recipe for Guatemalan Black Beans and Rice.- Arroz Negro  

4. Remove the garlic cloves from the soup, reserving one clove. Puree half of the beans with the one clove of reserved garlic in a blender (or use an immersion blender in the pot) and return to the pot.

5. Add more water to the pot if needed to reach desired consistency of soup, stir and reheat until warm.

6. Top each bowl with swirl of crema or sour cream, the chopped cilantro, a sprinkle of dried cheese, preferably Queso de Zacapa, a strong-flavoured, salty, aged dry cheese from that’s made in the lowlands of Guatemala. Good substitutes include Mexican cotija cheese, Greek feta or even parmesan cheese.

7. Serve with a wedge of fresh lime, slices of fresh avocado and fresh tortillas de maize. Or, try this recipe for Healthy Air Fryer Plantain Chips. 

Expert Tips and Variations

• Don’t be tempted to cut corners and use canned beans. The consistency and flavour of canned black beans is totally different and they contain more sodium.
• One of the most popular variations of traditional Guatemalan Black Bean soup is the addition of chicharron (crispy fried pork rinds) into each bowl of soup prior to serving. This adds a burst of salty, smoky flavour.
• For hearty version of black bean soup my Guatemalan husband likes to whisk a large egg and pour it slowly into the pot of simmering soup. He swirls it around so it cooks in ribbons rather like a Guatemalan version of egg drop soup.
• Spice it up! You can add cumin, chile cobanero or other spices in the soup or on the side.
• If you don’t like cilantro (due to genetic reasons cilantro tastes like soap for some people), substitute an equal amount of thinly-sliced green onion.
• Mix up the garnishes by adding chopped red onion, slivers of thinly-sliced radishes, shredded cabbage, diced jalapeño or fried corn chips as delicious options for a DIY soup bar. Toppings can be set at the table for people to pick and put on their soup as they wish.

Serving and Storage

Black bean soup is also wonderful with Kalamata olive bread or any one of these recipes with Kalamata olives. I also like serving caldo de frijol with garnachas, the popular Guatemalan street food, topped with curtido cabbage slaw.

You can also serve this soup with a hot sauce for extra kick. I love Marie Sharp’s Hot Sauce. It’s produced in Belize but is also popular in the Peten region of Guatemala.

For the ultimate in make-ahead convenience, make extra and freeze in a freezer-proof container or freezer bag for up to three months.

Just thaw and reheat in a saucepan to enjoy with your choice of fresh toppings.

Recipe

Other Popular Guatemalan Recipes

• • Tapado Guatemalan Seafood Soup with Coconut Milk
  • Sopa de Albondigas (Meatball Soup) 
  • Mango and Black Bean Salsa
  • Easy Guatemalan Guacamole 
  • Chirmol – a Guatemalan Charred Tomato Hot Sauce.

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