I got this recipe from Horsefeathers in North Conway, NH. The recipe calls for 3 gallons and of chicken stock and 7 pounds of black beans, lol, so I typically cut it down and make a third of the recipe. It still is a lot of soup, but I freeze what we don’t eat.
The recipe does not give measurements for the spices, so you need to rely on your tastebuds, which IMO is almost better.
| Ingredients for Full Recipe | Ingredients for 1/3 Recipe |
| 7 pounds black beans 1 head of celery, cleaned and diced 3 large onions, peeled and diced 6 carrots, peeled and diced ¾ pound ham 3 gallons of chicken stock cumin, chili powder and salt & pepper to taste serve with sour cream & salsa cilantro for garnish (not on their recipe) | ~2.3 pounds black beans ⅓ head of celery, cleaned and diced 1 large onion, peeled and diced 2 carrots, peeled and diced ¼ pound ham 1 gallon of chicken stock cumin, chili powder and salt & pepper to taste serve with sour cream & salsa cilantro for garnish (not on their recipe) |
Instructions
In a large stock pot, add beans, celery, onion, carrots and ham with the chicken stock. Bring to a boil and simmer until beans are very soft. Season with cumin, chili powder, salt and pepper. Puree in a food processor. I only have a hand held blender and it may take a bit longer to puree, but it works.
Sadly Horsefeathers doesn’t give measurements for the spices, so you need to add, taste, repeat – until the soup tastes good to you. It’s been a few years since I’ve made this; we’ve been trying to eat mostly Keto and unfortunately beans are out. As I look at my measuring spoons, I’d suggest starting with adding a tablespoon of cumin and a table spoon of chili powder (I know you’ll need more), and then add ½ teaspoon each of salt and pepper (you’ll probably need more). As you get close to the right salt/pepper amounts you might want to stop measuring and just add dashes at a time. You’ll end up adding more cumin than chili powder, if you’re like me and love cumin.
Serve in a bowl with one tablespoon of salsa and one tablespoon of sour cream. I like to garnish with fresh cilantro.