Vegan Tomato and Black Bean Stew
Black beans are without a doubt my favourite bean (and my kids’ favourite too), and I absolutely love this simple black bean stew. It’s nothing fancy or complicated, just good, honest food – simply black beans in a rich tomato sauce, cooked with a few straightforward spices, and served up however you like. And best of all, it can be on the table in less than half an hour.
This easy recipe uses canned black beans, because who’s got time for cooking dried beans on a busy weeknight – or any other time?! Certainly not me, and I love using canned beans for a quick dinner. Just simmer them until the stew is nice and thick, and they really could not be more delicious.
🍚 How to Serve Black Bean Stew
I’ve made this dish dozens of times, and served it in so many different ways. It’s a really versatile recipe. Here are some ideas for how to serve this easy black bean stew:
- simply served with rice (and toppings, like avocado and sour cream)
- wrapped up in a soft tortilla to make an amazing bean burrito
- loaded into a taco shell with salad and extra toppings
- heaped onto a baked potato
- served with lots of roasted veggies (crispy potato wedges would be great)
- with tortilla chips on the side for scooping
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🥗 Ingredients and Substitutions
Here’s what you’ll need to make this recipe. See the printable recipe card below for detailed ingredient quantities.
- black beans. Canned black beans ensure this recipe is quick and easy. If you prefer, you can cook dried beans from scratch beforehand, then follow the recipe as written.
- onion – I used half an onion, because I find a whole large onion is too much in this recipe. If you’d rather not have half an onion left over, try to just use a small one instead.
- tomatoes (try to use good quality ones)
- tomato paste
- garlic – I used minced garlic from a jar, but fresh garlic would also be fine.
- smoked paprika
- ground cumin
- fresh chilli (or chilli flakes, if you prefer) – I always choose a small, mild chilli. I do like things quite spicy, but adding too much spice can spoil a meal very quickly! If you’re not sure how hot your chilli is, start with just a small amount – you can always add more later.
Becca’s Top Tip
If you find you sometimes get stomach issues from eating too many beans or other legumes, make sure you rinse canned beans before cooking with them. This can help to wash away the gas-inducing substances from the beans.
📹 Recipe Video
🖨️ Printable Instructions
Vegan Tomato and Black Bean Stew
If you’ve cooked this recipe, don’t forget to leave a star rating!
Print Pin CommentIngredients
- 1 Tbsp oil
- 1/2 onion (or 1 small onion), finely diced
- 1 tsp garlic puree (or 4 cloves garlic, minced)
- 1 tsp smoked paprika
- 1/2 tsp ground cumin
- 1 small mild chilli, finely diced (or 1/2 tsp chilli flakes)
- ~ 5 medium tomatoes, diced
- 1 Tbsp tomato paste
- 2 x 400g tins black beans, drained (480g, or ~ 2 1/2 cups, in total when drained)
- 75 ml (~ 1/3 cup) water
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
Instructions
- Heat the oil in a large frying pan over a medium-low heat. Add the diced onion, and cook for around 5 minutes, until fairly soft but not browned.
- Add the garlic, smoked paprika, cumin and chopped chilli, and cook for a further 2-3 minutes. You can start with just half of the chilli if you’re unsure how hot it is.
- Next, add the diced tomatoes and tomato paste, and cook for 5 minutes, until the mixture forms a thick, tomatoey paste.
- Add the drained black beans to the pan, along with the water, salt and pepper. Cover with a lid, and allow to simmer for at least 5 minutes – leave it longer if you have time, ideally more like 15-20 minutes. The mixture should be thick and rich. You can remove the lid for the last few minutes if your stew needs thickening up.
- Serve warm. I like to serve mine with rice and a dollop of sour cream.
Video
Nutrition
Nutritional information is approximate, and will depend on your exact ingredients. Please calculate your own nutritional values if you require accuracy for health reasons.
💭 Recipe FAQs
Yes – this stew will reheat nicely, so it’s no problem to prepare it in advance. Once it’s cooked, allow it to cool, and store in the fridge in an airtight tub until you’re ready to reheat.
You can reheat any leftovers in the microwave, or in a pan on the stovetop. You may need to add a splash of water when reheating if the stew has dried out a little. Ensure the beans are piping hot before serving.
Yes! This bean stew is both vegan and gluten-free.
Unfortunately, mine looks none like yours :( Your recipe says onions sliced, but in the photo yours are clearly diced. And following the recipe, I ended up with way more onion than appears in your photo. Onions come in many different sizes – perhaps you used the small dry ones?
we’ll taste it tonight. I hope it tastes good!
Hi Julie, I’m sorry you’re not happy! You’re right about the slicing / dicing – I hadn’t noticed that error before. I’m sure both ways will taste good though! I would have used half on an onion that was around fist-sized, if that’s any help? Hope it tastes good in the end :)
Hi, Becca, I made this last night, and my boyfriend and I thought it was fantastic! Thank you so much for the amazing recipes!
Hey Nicki, thanks so much! Really pleased you both enjoyed it! :)
Black beans are my favorite, too, but just like you I always put them in something else. Authentic Mexican food is the best! I am definitely trying out that slow cooker recipe!
happy birthday!! Mmmm these look great!
Happy Birthday! beans look amazing!
This is perfect, I’ve been looking for a good veggie black bean recipe! Pinning.
Make sure you check out all the others in my round-up! :) https://www.amuse-your-bouche.com/60-vegetarian-black-bean-recipes/
I love beans! Especially the kind you’d get at a Mexican place. I’ve made them before and they’re definitely easy and delicious. Have you ever tried pinto beans with this recipe? I love them too! Wonder if they’d get the same creamy texture!
I haven’t – not sure I’ve ever had pinto beans actually!
The beans and the soup both sound good! Hope you feel better today. It must have been a good celebration! Happy Birthday.
I hope your birthday was SPECTACULAR!
Ah ha… the broth must be the key ingredient that I’m missing!