11 Bean Recipes: Soups, Salads and Family Meals

White beans, black beans and red beans can anchor very different meals. These eleven bean recipes range from a Mexican-style salad in tortilla bowls to Quebec maple baked beans, chili and braised dishes. Choose by bean type and serving style, then check whether the recipe starts with dried or canned beans.

How to choose your recipe

For a cold dish, choose the Mexican-style bean and corn salad in crisp tortilla bowls. For soup, compare the mixed-bean version with ham and the smooth white bean potage. The two chilis take different directions: chicken with white beans and green chiles, or beef with red beans. Quebec maple beans simmer on the stovetop; the red beans and sausage cook in a slow cooker and are served over separately cooked rice. Cassoulet and the pork or beef braises suit a more substantial meal.

Explore the recipes

1. White chicken chili

White beans and chicken in a creamy chili with mild green chiles, corn and lime.

1

White Chicken Chili with White Beans and Green Chiles

A gently spiced white chicken chili with white beans, green chiles, corn, cream, and lime. Mashed beans thicken the broth without flour.

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2. Slow cooker red beans and rice

Fully cooked canned red beans and smoked sausage, served over rice cooked separately.

2

Slow Cooker Red Beans and Rice with Canned Beans

Slow cooker red beans and rice is a comforting bean-and-sausage meal served over separately cooked white rice. This version starts with canned kidney beans, so the slow cooker softens the vegetables and brings the flavors together. Mash a small portion of beans near the end for a thick, creamy sauce without adding flour.

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3. Mixed-bean soup with ham

A soaked dried-bean blend simmered with vegetables and ham.

3

15 Bean Soup with Ham and No Seasoning Packet

Fifteen bean soup with ham is a hearty stovetop soup made from a mixed bag of dried beans, vegetables and cooked ham. The beans are soaked, boiled in fresh water, then simmered until tender before tomatoes are added. That order gives a creamy broth and properly softened beans without relying on a seasoning packet.

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4. Cuban-style pork and black bean stew

Pork and carrots braised with black beans that are cooked separately first.

4

Cuban-Style Pork and Black Bean Stew with Carrots

This Cuban-style pork stew combines browned pork, black beans, carrots, onion and tomato in a gentle braise. The beans are cooked separately before joining the meat, which gives you control over their texture and keeps acidic tomato from slowing their softening. The video’s timing is a useful guide, but both the beans and the cut of pork can need longer. I use tenderness, not the clock alone, to decide when each component is ready.

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5. White bean potage

White beans blended into a smooth potage, with small carrot pieces folded in.

5

Creamy White Bean Soup with Carrots (Potage Soissonnais)

Creamy white beans, gently softened onion and small carrot dice make this French soup satisfying without a splash of cream. Cook the beans until their centers crush easily before blending, because a blender cannot fix undercooked beans. The finished potage should flow from a ladle in a thick, smooth ribbon, with tender orange pieces scattered through the pale base.

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6. Mexican bean and corn salad

Black and red beans with corn and cilantro-lime dressing, served in crisp tortilla bowls.

6

Mexican Bean and Corn Salad in Crispy Tortilla Bowls

This colorful bean salad combines black beans, red kidney beans, sweet corn and cherry tomatoes with a bright cilantro-lime dressing, served in a crisp tortilla bowl. Drain the beans thoroughly before mixing: the dressing should leave a light gloss on the ingredients, with no puddle collecting underneath. Fill the tortilla bowls at the last moment so their golden edges stay crunchy.

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7. Chicken cassoulet

Chicken thighs, white beans, bacon and carrots in a moist, spoonable cassoulet.

7

Chicken Cassoulet with White Beans, Bacon and Carrots

Tender chicken thighs, creamy white beans, smoky bacon and carrots make this chicken cassoulet a generous meal for a family supper. Browning the chicken gives the broth depth, while cooking the beans before they meet the tomatoes keeps their centers soft. The finished pot should be moist and spoonable, with enough sauce to surround the beans without turning dinner into soup.

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8. Quebec maple baked beans

Maple-flavored white beans and bacon, simmered on the stovetop.

8

Easy Quebec-Style Baked Beans with Maple Syrup

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9. Braised short ribs with white beans

Oven-braised beef short ribs served over white beans with bacon and vegetables.

9

Braised Beef Short Ribs with White Beans and Bacon

These braised beef short ribs with white beans combine deeply browned beef, a tomato-rich braising jus, smoky bacon, tender beans, onions, and carrots. This recipe is based on my YouTube video, with a few adjustments since publication to make the quantities, seasoning, and cooking cues clearer. The key is to keep the braise gentle and give the ribs enough time: they are ready when a fork enters easily and the meat begins to loosen from the bone.

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10. Pork and bean stew

Pork shoulder simmered with canned white beans, vegetables and Dijon.

10

Pork and Bean Stew

Pork and bean stew is a hearty comfort meal made with tender pieces of pork, beans, vegetables, broth, and simple aromatics simmered until rich and satisfying. It sits somewhere between a rustic North American pork and beans recipe and a French-style bean stew, making it perfect for cold weather, Sunday dinner, meal prep, or any night when you want a generous one-pot meal.

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11. Beef chili con carne

Cubed beef and red kidney beans in a tomato chili finished with dark chocolate.

11

Authentic Homemade Chili Con Carne with Beef and Beans

When the weather turns cold and you’re craving a meal that warms you to the core, nothing beats a hearty bowl of chili con carne. This recipe is inspired by my own cooking video, where I prepared a rustic and flavorful chili using Angus beef chuck, red kidney beans, smoky spices, and a touch of 100% dark chocolate for depth. It’s the kind of dish that fills your kitchen with comforting aromas and rewards patience with an unforgettable taste.

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Before you start

• Check whether the ingredient list gives a dry weight, a drained weight or a can size before measuring your beans.
• The slow cooker red beans recipe starts with canned, fully cooked beans, and the rice cooks separately. Do not treat it as a raw dried-bean method.
• For the tortilla-bowl salad, drain the cooked beans well and fill the cooled bowls just before serving to keep them crisp.
• Read the full ingredient list before choosing a meat-free dish. Several recipes include chicken, beef, pork, bacon or ham, and the potage uses chicken broth.

Frequently asked questions

Can I use canned beans in every recipe?

Only when the recipe allows for them or explains the change. A dish written for dried beans may rely on a different cooking time and amount of liquid. Check the individual method.

Which kinds of beans are included?

White, black and red beans feature in the collection, along with a dried mixed-bean soup. Check the package ingredients for a mixed blend. Separate chickpea and lentil collections cover those ingredients in more detail.

For more menu ideas, explore our more comforting family dinners.