On a chilly evening, there is nothing better than a piping hot bowl of Butter Bean Soup. This healthy vegan soup is nourishing and flavorful. With an array of colorful vegetables and fresh dill, this is an entree you can feel good about.
My family often makes a meal out of soup, especially when the weather turns cold. There’s nothing better than a piping hot bowl of Butter Bean Soup, loaded with vegetables, to fill you up without packing on the pounds. The calories you save here can be better spent on a holiday treat or two… latkes, anyone?
Butter beans are actually mature lima beans, and can be called butter beans or lima beans depending on regional dialect. They are white and larger than the green lima beans you might be used to. You can find them dried or canned; if using canned, you will need about four standard 14-15 ounce cans for this soup recipe. I prefer using dried beans here; you can quick soak them if you don’t have time for an overnight soak. Instructions are provided in the recipe below.
This Butter Bean Soup is warming, flavorful and satisfying; your house will smell amazing as it cooks. The soup has a salty, slightly tangy tomato broth and a tantalizing aroma. My stepdaughter, who is particularly picky when it comes to food, asks me to make this soup for her a lot during the winter. At her request, I sometimes substitute potato chunks for butter beans. A combination of beans and potatoes would work great, too.
So what are you waiting for? Get your soup on!
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Butter Bean Soup
Ingredients
- 1 pound dry butter beans (or 6 cups cooked or canned butter beans - you can sub cannellini or navy beans)
- 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
- 1 large sweet onion, peeled and chopped
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 large carrots, peeled and sliced into rounds
- 2 celery ribs, sliced
- 14 ounces crushed tomatoes (1 can - fire roasted is ok)
- 3 tablespoons tomato paste
- 6 tablespoons fresh chopped dill, divided
- 1 bay leaf
- Salt and black pepper
Instructions
- Cover the dry beans with cold water and soak them overnight. Drain and rinse.
- Alternatively, if you’re running short on time, you can quick soak the beans. To do this, in a medium pot bring 8 cups of water to a boil. Add dry lima beans and boil for 3 minutes.Remove pot from heat and allow the beans to soak in the hot water for 2 hours to soften.Drain and rinse until water runs clear. Remove any bean skins that have come loose and discard.
- In a large pot, heat up ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil over medium high heat until hot (not smoking). Add chopped onion to the pot and sauté for about 10 minutes until softened. Add the minced garlic and sauté for 3-4 minutes more until fragrant.
- Add carrot, celery, and soaked lima beans to the pot.Cover the ingredients with 8 cups of water (if using canned beans, add 6 cups of water) and bring to a slow boil for a few minutes. Skim any foam that rises to the top of the pot.
- When foam dissipates, add the crushed tomatoes and tomato paste to the pot, along with ¼ cup of fresh chopped dill and bay leaf. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
- Let the soup simmer for 75-90 minutes until beans are nice and tender. If using canned beans, you will only need to simmer the soup for 30 minutes or so. If the soup becomes too thick while it’s cooking, add a little more water. Taste and season again towards the end of cooking, if needed.
- Ladle soup into bowls and serve garnished with the remaining fresh dill.
Nutrition
I love this recipe and make it all
The time.
Do you have any suggestions for how to adapt it for a crock pot for Shabbat lunch?
Yummy.
Loved the butter bean soup – and so simple. I did use Cannellini beans as butter beans simply were not in my pantry, where I have a host of dried beans of most varieties. In fact I think you will agree that any bean would work with the exception of a few heavily flavored ones (not crazy about black beans). I am a great fan of all of your recipes and glad to see such a host of soups coming from you. I am 86 years old, live alone, and like to stock my freezer with single-serve sized containers of varied soups that I can pull out for lunch or supper. Most of your recipes are very close to what I grew up eating in our Italian household. Mama did not use recipes and when I wanted to learn from her she would say ‘watch’ and I did but the next time she made a particular dish it often was different from what I watched, more of this, less of that, but always, always very delicious and delightful to spoon into our mouths, full of good nourishment. Last word about the bean soup, I omitted dill, added a bay leaf and fresh parsley which worked well for me.
Thank you for all you do to keep so many old time recipes alive and for sharing them with all of us, who are devoted fans and look forward to all of your missives.
Thank you for your kind comment Anna! I am so happy you enjoyed this soup.
Do not care for dill.is there another herb
Fresh parsley or thyme would work nicely, too.
I haven’t yet eaten it but it smells fabulous! The dill is sooo fragrant! I chose to add corn cut off the cob, and twice the garlic and smoked paprika. The broth is great and I shall enjoy shortly.
This recipe is AMAZING! I made it for my family and they could not get enough of it! Great portion size too. We were able to have it more than one night.
This was an absolute winner with my family! Will make it again soon.
This was my first time making Lima bean soup with a tomato base. My husband and I both loved the end result!
I made this a while ago and it was unreal. From a bean soup it doesn’t really seem too ‘beany’ if that makes sense? Hahah. When I think of bean soup though I think of a thick tomato based broth. This is thin and watery but it’s super rich and tasty. Absolutely loved it when I last made it. Making it again tomorrow but using dry dill. Hoping it still turns out as good.
I add rice to mine and it makes it a little heartier.
This recipe is delicious and easy