A warm and hearty dish to make during the winter season, this 15-bean soup is packed full of protein, Cajun spice, and sweet tomatoes.

You’ll find the full recipe with ingredient amounts and instructions in the recipe card at the bottom of this post. Be sure to check out the blog post itself for extra tips and tricks!

The 15 Bean Soup is perfect for bean lovers, and I love that this soup pack contains such a wide variety of beans. That's one of the reasons it's so tasty. My version uses added meat, but I like to add Italian sausage because it is already seasoned meat. It makes your beans so flavorful. It helps lessen the amount of ingredients needed for this soup. It's such a hearty soup.

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

Love, Tanya

A Quick Look at the Ingredients

Ingredient amounts and full recipe instructions are on the printable recipe card at the bottom of the post.

• Bag of 15 bean soup mix – A 20-ounce bag of mixed dried beans you’ll find in the dry bean aisle. Tons of texture and flavor in one bag.
• Italian sausage – I use mild or hot ground Italian sausage. It’s already seasoned, so it adds a ton of flavor without needing a bunch of extra spices.
• Onion and garlic – Build the flavor base for the soup. Don’t skip these.
• Cajun seasoning – Use your favorite Cajun blend and adjust to taste, depending on how spicy you like it.
• Chicken broth and water – Broth adds flavor, and the extra water gives the beans plenty of liquid to get nice and tender.
• Diced tomatoes – A can of diced tomatoes (undrained) adds a little sweetness and acidity to balance the rich beans and sausage.
• Sour cream (optional) – A dollop on top makes the soup extra creamy and delicious. It's not optional for me, but I know some people aren't fans.

Tools Needed:

• Dutch pot
• Wooden spoon

How To Make 15-Bean Soup

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

Step 1: 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. 

Step 2: Reduce the heat to medium-low and add beans, chicken broth, and water. Cover and cook for an additional 1-2 hours, until the beans are tender.

Step 3: Add tomatoes and cook for an additional 10 minutes. Remove from heat and serve in soup bowls. 

Step 4: Enjoy as is, or top each bowl with a dollop of sour cream. Enjoy. 

To Make these Beans in an Instant Pot Pressure Cooker

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. So you’ll use 5 cups of chicken broth instead of 6.
2. Brown Italian sausage in the 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.

Making 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 seasoning.
3. Secure the lid and cook on high for 7 hours without removing the lid.
4. Remove the lid, add your seasoning and canned tomatoes, and stir to mix through.

How to Store

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 it to thaw 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:

• Classic Southern Cornbread Recipe or Easy Cornbread Muffins
• Mayonnaise Biscuits or Homemade Air Fryer Biscuits
• Honey Whole Wheat Dinner Rolls or Soft Air Fryer Dinner Rolls 

Need more bean recipes?

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

• Pinto Bean Pie
• Beef and Bean Stew
• Homemade Baked Beans
• Black Bean Soup

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

• Oxtail Soup - Rich, slow-cooked oxtail in a deeply flavored broth with tender veggies.
• Collard Green Soup - All the flavors of Southern collards turned into a hearty, sippable soup.
• Creamy Cream of Mushroom Soup - Better than canned, with mushrooms and a silky, creamy base. Perfect on its own or as a base for casseroles.
• Vegetable Beef Soup - Classic veggie-packed beef soup with a rich broth and tender chunks of meat. Great for an easy, filling family dinner.

 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!

Print Recipe

5 from 3 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.

Prep Time10 minutes mins

Cook Time2 hours hrs

Total Time2 hours hrs 10 minutes mins

Course: Main Course, Soup

Cuisine: American

Keyword: 15 bean soup

Servings: 16 servings

Calories: 230kcal

Author: Tanya Harris

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 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

Calories: 230kcal

Smoked turkey, fire-roasted tomatoes, garlic, and collard greens all together in a warm and comforting bowl of delicious soup. Serve this collard green soup with a side of buttery cornbread.

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

You’ll find the full recipe with ingredient amounts and instructions in the recipe card at the bottom of this post. Be sure to check out the blog post itself for extra tips and tricks!

Start off this soup season with a flavor-packed collard green soup. If you love this soup you'll also love my Hearty Instant Pot Vegetable Soup, Pressure Cooker Lentil Soup with Sausage, or Beet Soup Recipe.

Serve any of these delicious soups with Golden Sweet Potato Cornbread, Classic Southern Cornbread Recipe, or Easy Cornbread Muffins. Seriously, cornbread is the perfect accompaniment to soup.

Ingredients and Tools Needed

• Olive Oil - for softening the aromatics.
• Yellow onion, Garlic - can I make soup without these???
• Smoked turkey wings - this helps bring flavor to this soup. You'll notice I used smoked meat in my traditional collard greens as well.
• Cajun seasoning - for a little bit of a kick.
• Low-sodium Chicken broth - keep it low sodium, or homemade with little salt, to control the salt content.
• Dry black-eyed peas - you can also use canned if need be; add close to the end of cooking if using canned.
• Fire-roasted tomatoes - I add this for added color and flavor. Regular diced tomatoes will work as well.
• Bunch of Collard greens
• Apple cider vinegar - helps balance the dish.
• Salt and pepper to taste - always.

Tools needed for collard green soup:

• Large pot with a lid, 5+ quarts
• Sharp knife
• Cutting board

How to make Collard Green Soup

Place oil in a large pot over medium heat and add chopped onions. Cook and stir until softened, about 4-5 minutes. Add chopped garlic and stir for an additional minute.

Add smoked turkey, cajun seasoning, chicken broth, and black-eyed peas. Increase heat to medium-high heat and bring the mixture to a quick simmer. Allow to simmer for 2 minutes, then reduce heat to medium-low. Cover with a tightly fitting lid and allow to simmer on medium-low heat for about 1 hour, until the turkey wing meat becomes tender.

Remove the smoked turkey wing from the pot and shred the meat from the bone. Set aside the meat.

Add roasted tomatoes and collard greens to the pot. Allow it to simmer for an additional 20 minutes until the greens are tender.

Return the meat to the pot and add the apple cider vinegar. Salt and pepper to taste.

How should I chop up my Collard Greens?

Isn't cutting up collard greens pretty straightforward? Sure! But just a couple of tips to ensure a perfect soup.

• Wash and dry collard greens.
• Fold the leaves over themselves, and cut the stems out.
• With the stems cut out, you can roll the leaves into a bundle and cut them into thin strips.

You can also use bag collard greens, which are prewashed and cut. If using bagged greens, make sure to chop these a little finer as well.

Easy substitutions for this soup

Smoked Turkey Legs: Smoked ham hocks are a perfect substitute. Using ham will obviously raise the fat content, but still just as delicious.

Collard Greens: If collard greens are not readily available to you, kale is the most similar and will be just as tasty.

Apple Cider Vinegar: Regular white vinegar is a good replacement for ACV.

Black-eyed Peas: Great northern beans are a good replacement for black-eyed peas in this recipe.

What does adding vinegar do?

When cooking collard greens, or even if you have to supplement kale, adding vinegar to either of these greens will be beneficial. Adding vinegar will cut the bitterness and toughness of these particular greens.

Apple cider vinegar is the more popular option, but white vinegar can work in a pinch as well. Don't be afraid of your soup tasting like vinegar! The flavors we add to the soup will shine through.

Notes

• Try and get smaller-sized smoked turkey wings to ensure they become tender in about an hour. Large pieces will take longer to cook. 
• If subbing canned black-eyed peas for the dried ones, add the black-eyed peas during the last 10 minutes of cooking.

Looking for more soup recipes? Try these out:

• Creamy Carrot and Lentil Soup
• Creamy Yellow Squash Soup
• Oxtail Soup
• Beet Soup Recipe
• Pressure Cooker Moroccan Spiced Soup

 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!

Print Recipe

4.75 from 8 votes

Collard Green Soup

Smoked turkey, fire-roasted tomatoes, garlic, and collard greens all together in a warm and comforting bowl of delicious soup. Serve with a side of buttery corn bread.

Prep Time15 minutes mins

Cook Time1 hour hr 30 minutes mins

Total Time1 hour hr 45 minutes mins

Course: Appetizer, Main Course, Side Dish, Soup

Cuisine: Southern

Keyword: collard green soup

Servings: 6 servings

Calories: 226kcal

Author: Tanya Harris

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons Olive Oil
• 1 Yellow onion chopped
• 4 cloves Garlic chopped
• 1 pound Smoked turkey wings
• 1 teaspoon Cajun seasoning
• 6 cups Low-sodium Chicken broth
• 1 cup Dry black-eyed peas rinsed
• 15 ounce Fire-roasted tomatoes undrained
• 1 large Bunch of Collard greens leaves only, thinly sliced (8 cups)
• 1 tablespoon Apple cider vinegar
• Salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

• Place oil in a large pot over medium heat and add chopped onions. Cook and stir until softened, about 4-5 minutes. Add chopped garlic and stir for an additional minute.
• Add smoked turkey, cajun seasoning, chicken broth, and black-eyed peas. Increase heat to medium-high heat and bring the mixture to a quick simmer. Allow to simmer for 2 minutes, then reduce heat to medium-low. Cover with a tightly fitting lid and allow to simmer on medium-low heat for about 1 hour, until the turkey wing meat becomes tender.
• Remove the smoked turkey wing from the pot and shred the meat from the bone. Set aside the meat.
• Add roasted tomatoes and collard greens to the pot. Allow it to simmer for an additional 20 minutes until the greens are tender. Return the meat to the pot and add the apple cider vinegar. Salt and pepper to taste.

Notes

• Try and get smaller-sized smoked turkey wings to ensure they become tender in about an hour. Large pieces will take longer to cook. 
• If subbing canned black-eyed peas for the dried ones, add the black-eyed peas during the last 10 minutes of cooking.

Nutrition

Serving: 1g | Calories: 226kcal