Easy mixed bean soup with chicken & greens

An easy soup that makes itself! Who doesn’t want that?

I have been buying canned beans forever, never trying the soaking method despite wanting to for years. This week was the week I stopped saying I wanted to and DID IT.

With a Crock-Pot from my childhood, handed over to me by my mom years ago, this soup literally made itself. I just helped it along. And it made A LOT so if you’re like me and feeding yourself and want lots of leftovers OR you’re feeding a hungry family, this will be perfect for you.

It’s packed full of vegetables and you can add the chicken or leave it out. I added it in for extra protein, not like I needed it with all those beans! And can we talk about all the fiber available in this soup?! We can, there is a lot of fiber. ;) Beans are such an incredible, underused food. Befriend your beans, I say!

Easy mixed bean soup with chicken & greens

you need this:

2 cups of beans, I used a mixed variety and it made the soup colorful and rich

4 carrots, sliced

2 stalks of celery, chopped

1 medium onion, diced

3 gloves of garlic, minced

1 TBSP ginger, minced

1 bay leaf (because we all know how Bay does its thing)

herbs to taste: oregano, basil, thyme, parsley, salt and pepper, coriander

2 TBSP bouillon paste or container/box of vegetable or chicken broth

OPTIONAL BUT RECOMMENDED

chicken thighs, chopped and browned in a pan

3-4 cups of kale, chopped or any dark leafy green of choice

then do this:

  1. add the beans to the Crock-Pot and cover with water. Soak overnight. I soaked mine for 24 hours and then drained them and stored them in the fridge and started the soup the next morning.

  2. chop chicken (if you’re using it) and cook until browned in a pan. Set aside.

  3. add soaked beans to Crock-Pot with all the other ingredients.

  4. add broth or if using bouillon, add water to dilute.

  5. add the chicken thighs to the Crock-Pot. I added a little bit of hot water to the pan and swirled it around to catch all the juice and such from cooking the chicken and added that to the Crock-Pot as well.

  6. when everything is combined, add the lid and set on low for 6-8 hours. It started bubbling and I gave it a stir and the broth thickened to a nice nutrient-dense consistency.

  7. add the greens with an hour so left of cooking time so they wilt and all the nutrients are absorbed into the broth.

  8. serve with bread and butter, crackers OR homemade cornbread like I taught myself to make! I’ll make a separate post for that. ;)

  9. enjoy enjoy enjoy!

 
 
 
Blog, Nutrition/Food, Recipes, LifestyleDillan DiGiovanniComment