Diced green chiles and fresh lime juice pack this white bean soup with bright and tangy flavor. It's creamy, comforting, and SO simple to make!
This white bean soup recipe is my zesty vegan spin on white chili. It’s deliciously creamy and comforting, but its rich texture comes from blended white beans instead of any dairy. Lime juice, green chiles, and spices like cumin and coriander punch up its tangy flavor, and fresh garnishes like avocado, jalapeños, and cilantro take it over the top.
The recipe is really fun and satisfying, and it’s also SO simple to make! This white bean soup requires minimal chopping, and most of the cooking time is entirely hands-off. You can easily put it together on a weeknight, and if you end up with leftovers, you’re in luck. This white bean soup only gets better as its flavors mix and mingle in the fridge.
White Bean Soup Recipe Ingredients
Here’s what you’ll need to make this white bean soup recipe:
- White beans, of course! Cannellini beans, Great Northern beans, or navy beans work great. You’ll leave some whole and puree others to give the soup its creamy texture.
- Extra-virgin olive oil – For richness.
- Onion and garlic – For savory depth of flavor.
- Poblano pepper – It adds a little heat.
- Vegetable broth – Use store-bought, or make your own.
- Diced green chiles – They add zesty, tangy flavor to this simple soup.
- Ground cumin, coriander, and dried oregano – For earthy, aromatic flavor.
- Fresh lime juice – It gives the soup a nice bright finish.
- And salt and pepper – To make all the flavors pop!
Find the complete recipe with measurements below.
How to Make this White Bean Soup
This white bean soup recipe is super easy to make!
First, blend half the beans with 3/4 cup broth. Set the puree aside for now. You’ll add it to the soup later on to help create its thick and creamy texture.
Meanwhile, sauté the onion and poblano. Stir in the green chiles, garlic, and spices. Then, add the remaining beans and broth and simmer for 10 minutes.
Next, pour in the bean puree. Stir to fully incorporate it with the soup, and then simmer for another 20 minutes.
After the soup simmers, remove it from the heat and stir in the lime juice. Season to taste with more salt, pepper, and lime as desired. That’s it!
White Bean Soup Serving Suggestions
When you’re ready to serve, ladle the soup into bowls and top it with fresh garnishes for color and crunch. Here are a few of my favorites:
- Fresh cilantro
- Sliced chiles like jalapeños or serranos
- Diced avocado
- Sliced scallions
- A dollop of Greek yogurt or vegan sour cream
- Pickled red onions
- Crushed tortilla chips (not exactly fresh, but still delicious!)
Round out the meal with homemade cornbread or jalapeño cornbread. If you’re looking for another side dish, try pairing the soup with crispy air fryer cauliflower, sautéed kale, or a simple green salad.
Enjoy!
More Favorite Soup and Chili Recipes
If you love this white bean soup, try one of these soup or chili recipes next:
- Black Bean Soup
- Easy Vegetarian Chili
- Black Bean Chili
- Minestrone Soup
- Creamy Potato Soup
- Yellow Split Pea Soup
- Best Lentil Soup
- Or any of these 33 Best Soup Recipes!
White Bean Soup
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- ½ medium yellow onion, chopped
- 2 medium carrots, chopped
- 2 celery ribs, chopped
- ½ teaspoon sea salt
- Freshly ground black pepper
- 1 tablespoon tomato paste
- 3 garlic cloves, grated
- 1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves, or 1 teaspoon dried
- 1 teaspoon chopped fresh rosemary leaves, or ½ teaspoon dried
- Pinch red pepper flakes
- 4 cups vegetable broth
- 3 cups cooked cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
- 2 cups chopped kale leaves or fresh spinach
- 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
- Parmesan cheese, for serving, optional
Instructions
- Heat the olive oil in a large pot or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the onion, carrots, celery, salt, and several grinds of pepper and cook, stirring occasionally, for 6 to 8 minutes, or until softened.
- Stir in the tomato paste, garlic, thyme, rosemary, and red pepper flakes. Add the broth and beans and simmer for 20 minutes.
- Add the kale and cook until wilted, then add the lemon juice and season to taste.
- Serve topped with Parmesan cheese, if desired.
This soup is so delicious ! I made it w/ Canneli & Navy beans because I had no idea how either one tasted. I sliced half an avocado into the bowl & ate it with some chewy toasted sourdough baguette. I used low sodium Better than Boullion soup base.
Dang…this recipe changed my life fr
I’m a big fan of Love & Lemons, and I wanted to love this because it’s so simple and sounds delicious but it turned out quite salty unfortunately. I used kosher salt rather than sea salt and only slightly increased the amount (like 1.5 tsp instead of 1 1/4), 4 tsp Better than Bouillon to yield 4 cups broth, and hot diced green chiles from Ortega. Should I try decreasing the Better than Bouillon next time to make it less salty? Or maybe adding another can of beans to make it thicker and help counter the salt?
Hi Ali, I would decrease either the Better Than Bouillon or the salt, even starting with 1/2 teaspoon. You can always season to taste at the end of the cooking process!
This recipe is so, so good. Flavorful and satisfying but also so easy and budget-friendly. A perfect weekday dinner recipe that we’ll definitely be returning to!
I’m so glad you loved it, Andrew!
Just made this, and it was amazing! I didn’t change any ingredients, but I did skip the blender and used an immersion blender while cooking instead. My boyfriend and I nearly ate the whole pot.
I love this soup and make it often. I do add some sliced carrots when sauteing the garlic, onion and polano pepper.
I’m so glad you love the soup, Patti!
How many cards is there in this lovely soup please
Everyone asked for this recipe! So easy and delicious! The pot was scraped clean, so I have to go rebuy the ingredients tomorrow for another batch for some easy to freeze lunches.
Hi Mandy, I’m so glad it was a hit!
Delicious! I was looking for a flavorful bean soup as I find the usual bean soup bland. This one did not disappoint! My poblano was very hot but turned out to have perfect heat in the soup.
Thank you!
Followed your recipe – used poblano, garlic , jalapeño from my garden. The avocado garnish was a-mazing and also I added pickled red onion on top too . Oh my gosh … that was above and beyond fabulous ! Thank you ! I love your cookbooks too ?. Keep the goodness ( and healthy) recipes coming !
Rhonda
Hi Rhonda, I’m so glad you loved this recipe and that you’re enjoying the cookbooks!
I did not puree as my kids prefer seeing the broth, I replaced the poblano with a yellow pepper and reduced the green chilies according to the kids likes. I added sauteed mushrooms to my and husbands bowls and it was delish.
So glad it was a hit!
My guy and I recently adopted a vegan lifestyle – it’s a whole new cooking adventure. This recipe was one of the best we’ve tried. Absolutely delicious. I misread the recipe when I made the puree, causing it to be more watery than probably intended, but just added some cornstarch (always dissolve that in cold water before adding) and it made it creamy again. We paired it with the cornbread – made that with simply eggless – and it was just perfect for an Autumn evening. His comment: “best meal I’ve had in awhile”.
I’m glad you enjoyed this one too – happy plant based cooking!
This was really good! Creamy and flavorful. I just wish it made more, so I will definitely double it next time.
I’m so glad you enjoyed it!
This is SO flavorful! I can’t believe it. So delicious. As I was adding the ingredients I got concerned it was gonna be too spicy, but not at all! The broth itself is really mild actually and the blended beans make it really creamy. A+!
I’m so glad you loved it!
This is downright delicious. I used four small serrano peppers as that’s what I had on hand. I highly recommend the green onion, cilantro and avocado as toppings.
Delicious; thank you very much! My minor changes:
1) store didn’t have jalapeno or serrano so i used a three chopped-up tiny red chilies we had around. This added plenty of heat and a nice bit of additional color.
2) My cans of beans were bigger than listed, plus I went heavy on the seasonings, so I added an extra cup or two of broth.
3) had no oregano; used thyme instead
4) i had a bunch of kale that was about to go bad so i stirred it in at the very end. Adds heft and heartiness!
I’m so glad you enjoyed it!
Awesome soup! I made some minor changes. I had homemade chicken stock in my fridge that I used and I added some leftover shredded rotisserie chicken but it would have been delicious as is. I took to work and my coworkers devoured it too! The fresh jalapenos took it to the next level. It will be part of my soup rotation.
I’m so glad you loved it!
How spicy is poblano? I am sensitive to spicy food but trying to build up my tolerance.
Hi Taylor, a poblano from the grocery store isn’t very spicy. The amount used here doesn’t make the soup spicy, it’s on the mild side unless you add the jalapenos on top.
great soup, love the jalapeno topping too, and white beans are a nice change from my typical pintos and black beans, so thank you
Fantastic recipe! So simply yet, sounding so flavorsome. I will try out