Apr

Salsa Soup with Chicken and Black Beans

Salsa Soup with Black Beans and Chicken

In 2008, Stephanie “The Crockpot Lady” made and documented one different crockpot recipe every single day in her blog A Year of Crockpotting. Putting aside my awe, wonder and profound respect for Stephanie’s perseverance and creativity, I decided that I would make a similar attempt at a feebler goal of cooking and reporting on one crockpot recipe a week - for as long as the fancy strikes me. I get bored easily and fortunately Stephanie has a lot of different recipes including a smoked brisket, so this will not be just stews and soups.

A slow cooker is a mom’s best friend, as it can provide steadfast loyalty and focused devotion to cooking the meal today, a critical yet often impossible task during a typical chaotic day in the life of a busy mother. The crockpot doesn’t question your poor planning (oops - an unexpected baseball practice at 5:00?), your fate (pick up sick child from at 11:00; really sick, so suddenly no time to shop or cook) and it is happily flexible (the meal will be ready at 5:00, and won’t burn if you get stuck in traffic or otherwise distracted and don’t get to it till 7:00). But crockpotting does require planning and at least 15 minutes of prep time in the morning, before the day starts. This is a small price for such a huge convenience, but give yourself some extra time in the morning.

The following recipe is from A Year of Crockpotting, with a few changes to make it even easier. The result is a soup that is a lot like a chili — very thick, hearty and filling. Check out Stephanie’s recipe to make it a bit soupier — I thought this was fine. The salsa provides a lot of flavor along with the cumin, and this soup smells delicious while it cooks.

Chicken - 1 lb., cut-up
Black Beans - 1 cup dried (or 2 cans, drained and rinsed)
Broth - 4 cups - Chicken or vegetable
Mushrooms - 8 oz., sliced
Corn - 1 cup, frozen
Salsa - 1 16-oz. jar prepared
Cumin - 1 1/2 tsp.
Optional Toppings: shredded cheddar cheese, avocado slices, cilantro, sour cream

If you are using dried beans, soak them overnight the night before, in enough water to cover plus 2 inches extra. In the morning, drain and rinse the beans. Pre-soaking shortens the cooking time.
If using canned beans, drain and rinse.
Add beans to the crockpot.
Add everything else.
Stir, but don’t disturb the beans—let them stay at the bottom of the pot, closest to the heating element.
Cover and cook:
- Pre-soaked dried, or canned beans: 6-8 hours low.
- Non-presoaked dried beans: 9 hours, high.

Serve with optional toppings. Serves about 6.

Serving tips and comments:

I served this with cornbread muffins, which was a great pairing.
I used chicken thighs (on sale) which I didn’t realize would have so much fat and took a lot of time to cut up; next time I’ll try breasts.