This is a bean soup with a thick, creamy tomato broth that’s soothing, nourishing and extremely economical. It’s incredibly simple to make, yet full of savoury flavour. Use canned beans for a 20 minute meal, or dried beans if you’ve got the time.
Make this with any type of white beans – cannellini, navy, great northern, butter beans, lima. Coloured beans will also work perfectly though the colour of the broth will be different!
Creamy Tomato Bean Soup
This is the part where I do what every food blogger does – the “big sell” to convince you that this the best bean soup recipe in the world and how you absolutely must try it right now!
It will be littered with lots of exclamation marks – because I am an excessive user of exclamation marks, to the point that I have been told off by a reader who wrote in to say that it’s unprofessional to use so many, just one per sentence is sufficient, and in any case, I’m much too old to be writing like that.
(To which I replied “Dear X, I’m so sorry to hear that the way I write offends you!!!!! I’m just a naturally enthusiastic person and I just can’t help it!!!! Sincerely, Nagi!!!)
😂
But actually, today, I’m not going to do the big sell. I’m just going to quite simply say this to you:
This soup is a very easy way to turn boring canned beans into an extremely delicious meal.
(And yes, you absolutely must try it right now!😉)
What goes in this bean soup
Here’s what you need:
Canned or dried white beans – any type. More on this below!
Wine and cream recommended / you’ll thank me for it – but still scrumptious without (as I have done numerous times in recent weeks);
Parmesan provides umami here, the fancy word for “savoury flavour”;
Italian herbs – sub with dried basil, parsley, oregano, thyme or any combination thereof;
Tomato paste – quite a bit of it! Because we’re not using canned tomato here, this is what gives the tomato flavour and helps thicken the soup;
Carrot (optional), onion and garlic – an essential flavour base for an otherwise simple soup broth. The trick here is to sauté them for 5 minutes until sweet, then they get blitzed up with the liquid. Blitzing releases flavour!
Baby spinach – completely interchangeable with any leafy green suitable for stirring through the soup. OR get your veg quota by using diced vegetables of any kind!
Dried vs canned beans
Dried will give you slightly better flavour in the beans, you can control the salt yourself (because canned beans are typically quite generously salted) and is more economical. Canned beans is sheer convenience – and is what I use 95% of the time.
You’ll need either 2 cups of dried beans, or 3 canned beans. I’m using white cannellini beans in these photos and the video, but you can use any white beans:
lima
butter beans
navy beans (haricot)
great northern
This recipe will also work with coloured beans (kidney beans, black beans etc) without changing the flavour BUT you might end up with an interesting broth colour!
Recipe includes directions for how to cook dried beans.
How to make this creamy bean soup
Saute onion, carrot, garlic and tomato paste;
Simmer with stock/broth;
Add just 1/2 cup of beans – we use this to thicken the broth!
Blitz blitz blitz
Add remaining beans and spinach,
Serve!
Three little things that make all the difference…
The three things in this recipe that makes a relatively simple soup taste so much better than you think it will are:
Slowly sauté onion, garlic and carrot which makes them sweet and flavourful;
Cook off the tomato paste – this takes off the harsh raw, sour edge;
Blitz it all up with the stock/broth and some of the beans. Blitzing = flavour release, beans = thickens soup!
And here’s what you end up with – a thick, creamy soup with the wonderful scent of tomato but tastes creamy and savoury like a chowder. It’s incredibly filling – and will keep you full, thanks to all the beans!
Serve with soup dunkers
Beans are a starch, so technically I guess serving with bread could be considered carb overkill. BUT! Remember that beans are good for you – they are the world’s best plant based source of protein, high in fibre, low in fat.
With all that goodness happening in this bean soup, I feel like a soup dunker is not just ideal, it’s justified – so try one of these!
Also, I use a large mound of spinach in this to get my veg quota in. But a big leafy salad certainly wouldn’t go astray – tossed with a salad dressing of choice! – Nagi x
Watch how to make it
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Creamy Tomato Bean Soup
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp/ 30g butter , unsalted
- 1 onion , finely chopped (brown, yellow, white)
- 2 garlic cloves , finely chopped
- 1 carrot , large, peeled and finely chopped
- 1 1/2 tsp Italian herb mix OR other dried herbs (oregano, thyme, parsley, basil, or mixed)
- 3/4 cup (170g) tomato paste (Note 1)
- 1/2 cup (125ml) dry white wine , optional (can omit)
- 4 cups (1 litre) stock/broth, chicken or veg , low sodium
- 3 x 420g/15oz cans cannellini or any white beans, drained & rinsed (navy, butter, great northern, lima) (OR 2 cups dried beans, 5.5 cups cooked, Note 2)
- 1/2 cup (50g) parmesan , grated
- 1/2 tsp EACH salt and pepper
- 120g/4oz baby spinach (or 5 – 6 cups any other leafy greens OR 4 cups diced veg, Note 3)
- 3/4 cup (185ml) cream, heavy/thickened (optional) OR more butter!
Instructions
- Melt butter in a pot over medium high heat. Cook garlic, onion and carrot for 5 minutes until carrot is soft and sweet.
- About 3 minutes in, add the Italian herbs and cook with the onion (makes the herb flavour "bloom").
- Turn heat up to high, add tomato paste. Cook for 2 minutes to remove the “raw” flavour.
- Add white wine, cook for 3 minutes until the harsh “winey” smell is gone and mostly evaporates so you’re just left with tomato paste again.
- Add 1/2 cup of beans (to thicken soup), stock, parmesan, salt and pepper. Stir, low heat, cover and simmer 3 minutes, stirring every now and then.
- Use a stick blender to puree until smooth (or transfer to blender).
- Add remaining beans, simmer 3 minutes. Stir in spinach until wilted, then stir in cream if using. Add more salt and pepper if needed (note: canned beans are already salted).
- Serve with crusty bread for dunking!
Recipe Notes:
- 1 can = 1 3/4 cups beans once drained
- Recipe calls for 3 cans = 5 1/4 cups beans
- 1 cup dried beans = 2 3/4 cups cooked
- So you will need 2 cups dried beans (2 x 2.75 = 5 1/2 cups cooked beans)
Nutrition Information:
More bean recipes
No bland beans around here!!
And more hearty soups!
Life of Dozer
Just another day in the Hard Life of Dozer – starting the morning with a beach play!
I made it with Napa cabbage (I didn’t have spinach) and whipping cream! Everything else I had! Delicious!! Thank you!
Sounds great Donna! N x
Jeeze, now I’m going to be looking for tins of cannellini beans.
It does sound delicious tho.
Had all the ingredients in the cupboard. Made tonight for dinner. Absolutely delicious. It’s definitely a keeper. Thank you.
Hello Nagi
First I have tried several of your recipes and they are awesome! You are awesome! I especially like the curry recipes! Well, I tried the bean soup recipe and doctored it up a bit with a little hot sauce! Spicy rules! Keep on keepin on gal, YAHHH!
See what I did up there? Solidarity!
Opps
Dave
I’m so glad you enjoyed them David!! N x
From Jefferson, New Hampshire-this recipe is the bomb! Made it tonight and it is ahhh-mazing!!!!!
Wahoo, that’s great to hear Darcie! N x
Can’t wait to try this – back in late summer my local fruit and veg wholesaler had boxes of 10kg of Romas for $12. I bought up and roasted them. have tomato paste for the year and the equivalent of cans x 12.
I’m so jealous Sue – I’d sell my soul for good tomatoes! N x
I have a bag of dried pinto beans waiting for me to use. Do you think they would work with this recipe? Thanks Nagi
Hi Debra! Absolutely – I think the soup colour will be a bit more red/brown but the flavour will be pretty much the same! N x
I love this recipe. I used dry beans and the flavour was much better than the canned version. You are a great cook Nagi. We enjoy alot of you recipes.
Thanks so much Jackie! N x
Easy, nutritious and budget friendly! You are a champion, Nagi. Thank you!
You’re so welcome Corrie!! N x
Nagi, thank you for the very practical recipes you are posting lately. They get us outside our usual boxes and help us use some of those ingredients we under use.
You’re so welcome Barbara, thanks so much!! N x
Beans are one of my faves, (next to potatoes) and I am going to love this bean soup recipe!!!!!!!
Rancho Gordo Beans are the best in the world, in Northern California – but they are mostly sold out now due to demand, so I’ll use canned canellinis.
Love you & Dozer, and I love your exclamation marks!!!!!!!!
I hope you love it Bobbi – love to know what you think! N x
Oh good, something to do with those cans of beans I stocked up on. Other than beans for chili or humous, hardly ever buy them. But everyone was snapping them up getting ready for Armageddon. Monkey see; monkey do !!! 🙈🙈
Yes definitely Jenny! But you’ll have the best recipe for them! N x
You are too funny. 😀🌞🌈
🙂 N x
It’s good to have you back and cooking! The shot of you and Dozer should read it’s nap time.
😂 Definitely Jonathan! N x
So happy to see your e-mail and that special dog. Soup tonight!
Thanks Mary! N x
First I love beans, they are so healthy for a person and you can do so many things with them. Tonight this will be dinner with some of your crusty bread here. Oh, I love Dozer, he is so cute and such a happy dog. Love to see him smile….those bright eyes says it all!
I hope you love this recipe Sherry, love to know how it goes!! N x
Yum! I can’t wait to make this. Most of my favorite ingredients are all here! I will try it in the IPot, Cooking the beans and aromatics first, then remove some before blending it up.
Bean soup!!!!! I’m all over this one as I love beans in all forms.
Don’t know if I can get into the tuna addition, but adding chopped up left over BBQ sound like a winner to me.
We tried the high dollar doggie door with Chloe girl, but she just slapped it with her paw and barked at it. I think it’s one of those things one should teach one’s dog when it’s a puppy.
You could customise it to whatever suites Ron!! N x
Hi from Charleston SC Nagi I think you’re great! Don’t pay attention to people who don’t see the “Love” you put in your recipes…
Thanks Martha!! N x
Nagi, or anyone who has experimented with this recipe…. I’m on a very restricted Keto eating plan and only beans allowed are Black Soy Beans. Has anyone tried using a Black Bean of any kind, or specifically Black Soy Beans?? BTW, this sounds DELISH!!!!!!!
Hi Tana! I have not but knowing how they taste, they will work fine! You just need to make sure the beans are soft enough so they will puree smooth to thicken the soup 🙂 If they are a bit on the firm side, just simmer the soup for longer until they are soft enough to puree! N x
Thanks so much!! Trying it this weekend!
Here in Scotland getting tinned tomatoes isn’t a problem but beans are like hen’s teeth!!!
Really Liz?!