Skip to Content

15 Bean Soup

Sharing is caring!

A warm and hearty dish to make during the winter season. Packed full of protein, cajun spice, and sweet tomatoes. Top with a dollop of sour cream and serve with crusty bread.

bean soup on a plate with pot in background


 

This post contains affiliate links, please read my full disclaimer here.

Full Recipe Ingredients/Instructions are available in the 
recipe card at the bottom of the post. 
You can find important tips/tricks in the
blog post.

You won’t be able to resist adding this to your dinner rotation. Perfect during those chilly days when all you want to do is cozy up with a blanket and a bowl of hot soup. Delicious and hearty, this dish won’t break the bank either as beans are a budget-friendly way to add more protein.

My other favorite winter month hearty soups are Oxtail Soup and my Brunswick Stew. I hope you love these just as much as I do!

close up of 15 bean soup in a bowl

Ingredients and Tools Needed

  • Bag of 15 bean soup mix – You can usually find this in the grocery store in the bean aisle. It contains 15 bean varieties that include northern beans, pinto beans, large and baby lima, yelloweye, garbanzo, green split peas, kidney, cranberry, small white, pink, small red, lentil, yellow split peas, white kidney, and black beans.
  • Mild or hot Italian sausage – Adds instant flavor to the bean recipe. I like to use ground Italian sausage in this recipe.
  • Other Ingredients – Onions, garlic, cajun seasoning, chicken broth, water, can diced tomatoes.
  • Sour cream (optional) – adding a bit of creamy sour cream after serving takes this soup over the top.
15 bean soup ingredients

Tools Needed:

  • Dutch oven pot
  • Wooden spoon

How To Make 15-Bean Soup

You can choose to soak the beans overnight or skip the step all together. Soaking the beans will allow them to cook a bit faster.

In a large pot, brown Italian sausage over medium-high heat. Add onions and garlic and sauté for an additional 3-4 minutes. Add Cajun seasoning and stir. 

sausage and onion browning in a large pot

Reduce the heat to medium-low and add soaked beans, chicken broth, and water.

Cover and cook for an additional 1-2 hours, until the beans are tender. Add tomatoes and cook for an additional 10 minutes. Remove from heat and serve in soup bowls. 

Cooked 15-bean soup with a wooden spoon showing that it's done

Enjoy as is, or top each bowl with a dollop of sour cream. Enjoy. 

Can I Make 15-Bean Soup In An Instant Pot?

This recipe can easily be made in the instant pot as well. For this option, there isn’t any need to soak your beans overnight, just simply rinse and remove any bean debris.

  1. First, reduce the amount of chicken broth by 1 cup.
  2. Brown Italian sausage int he Instant Pot insert. Add onions and garlic and sauté for an additional 3-4 minutes. Add Cajun seasoning and stir. 
  3. Turn off the Instant Pot and add beans, chicken broth, and water.
  4. Then pressure cook on high pressure for 20 minutes. After the time is up, allow the pressure to release manually for 10 minutes before slowly releasing the remaining pressure. 
  5. Open the lid and stir in the tomatoes. Serve and enjoy.

Can I Make 15-Bean Soup In A Slow Cooker?

Yes, but you will need to do a bit of prep beforehand. First, place the beans in a large pot and cover with about 3 inches of water. Bring to a boil for about 10 minutes. Drain the beans and set them aside.

  1. Brown your meat, onions, and garlic first before adding them to your slow cooker.
  2. Add the rest of the ingredients to your slow cooker except the canned tomatoes and seasonings.
  3. Secure the lid and cook on high for 7 hours without removing the lid.
  4. Remove the lid, add your seasonings and canned tomatoes, and stir to mix through.
15 bean soup served up in a bowl

Storage For Leftover 15-Bean Soup

Store leftover bean soup in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 3-4 days.

Freezing leftover bean soup is also another great option if you have lots of leftovers. Freeze in a freezer-safe bag or container for up to 6 months. Allow thawing overnight in the refrigerator before reheating.

What To Serve With This Soup

For topping your 15-bean soup, I recommend:

  • A dollop of sour cream
  • Shredded cheddar cheese
  • Scallions
  • Diced avocado
  • Sliced Jalapeños

To serve alongside your bean soup, I recommend:

Need more bean recipes?

Check out An Easy to Follow Guide for How to Cook Dried Beans. Or try these out:

If you’re looking for more soup recipes? Try these out:

 If you have tried this recipe or any other recipe on my blog, please rate it and let me know how it turned out in the comments below!

close up of 15 bean soup
Print Pin Save
5 from 2 votes

15 Bean Soup

A warm and hearty dish to make during the winter season. Packed full of protein, cajun spice, and sweet tomatoes. Top with a dollop of sour cream and serve with crusty bread.
Course Main Course, Soup
Cuisine American
Keyword 15 bean soup
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 2 hours
Total Time 2 hours 10 minutes
Servings 16 servings
Calories 14kcal
Author Tanya

Ingredients

  • 20 ounce Bag of 15 bean soup mix soaked overnight
  • 1 pound Mild or hot italian sausage
  • 1 large Onion chopped
  • 4 cloves Garlic chopped
  • 3 tablespoons Cajun seasoning
  • 6 cups Chicken broth
  • 2 cups Water
  • 1 14.5 oz Can diced tomatoes undrained
  • Sour cream for topping optional

Instructions

  • In a large pot, brown Italian sausage over medium-high heat. Add onions and garlic and sauté for an additional 3-4 minutes. Add Cajun seasoning and stir. 
  • Reduce the heat to medium-low and add soaked beans, chicken broth, and water.
  • Cover and cook for an additional 1-2 hours, until the beans are tender. Add tomatoes and cook for an additional 10 minutes. Remove from heat and serve in soup bowls. 
  • Enjoy as is, or top each bowl with a dollop of sour cream. Enjoy. 

Notes

  • This recipe can also be prepared in a pressure cooker or slow cooker. 

Nutrition

Serving: 1g | Calories: 14kcal | Carbohydrates: 2g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 0.4g | Saturated Fat: 0.04g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 0.04g | Cholesterol: 2mg | Sodium: 330mg | Potassium: 63mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 649IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 11mg | Iron: 0.4mg
My Southern Air Fryer ECookbookFind all my Top Southern Air Fryer recipes in one place! My Southern Air Fryer ECookbook!
Subscribe to my YouTubeSubscribe to my YouTube Channel for full length recipe videos. Click the bell icon to be notified when I upload a new video.
Tried this recipe? Share on InstagramMention @Myforkinglife or tag #myforkinglife!
Although myforkinglife.com attempts to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Under no circumstances will myforkinglife.com be responsible for any loss or damage resulting for your reliance on nutritional information.

Sharing is caring!

Recipe Rating




Bill in StL

Monday 19th of February 2024

This recipe looks great Tanya and can't wait to try it, thanks for posting. Just one question about the level of spiciness / heat ... we like a little heat but not lots, and our our grandson will be eating this too so won't want it too spicy. So we will be using sweet Italian sausage ... going this route trying to get an idea how spicy it will still be using the full 3 Tbl. of cajun spice (or if we should scale that back some too). Any guidance would be appreciated.

Bill in StL

Friday 23rd of February 2024

@Tanya, Thanks much for the tips Tanya ... figured your built in spice meter was going to be in a different place than mine. It's all a matter of what you are used to ... though my daughter adds crushed red pepper flakes to just about everything ... go figure. :-)

Tanya

Tuesday 20th of February 2024

Hey Bill, I think my spice level is different based on a lifetime of eating spicy foods, lol. I think the sweet Italian sausage is a great idea. For the cajun seasoning, scale back a bit, maybe by 1/2. If after it's done you find it too spice, dilute it with a little broth. I hope you all enjoy it :)

cindy

Saturday 21st of January 2023

could i put this all in crock pot

Tanya

Tuesday 24th of January 2023

Hi Cindy, Yes, I've included slow cooker instructions in the blog post. The soup mixture should be quick soaked before placing in a crockpot, mainly because the 15 bean mix contains kidney beans. Kidney beans should always be soaked before cooking.

George

Tuesday 17th of January 2023

great

Tanya

Wednesday 18th of January 2023

Thanks so much George.

sara

Friday 13th of January 2023

do you use or discard the seasoning pack included with the bean pack?

Tanya

Tuesday 17th of January 2023

Hi sara, you can use the seasoning in the packet. It's usually cajun seasoning.