Black Bean Dip
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Break out the chips for this creamy black bean dip—it’s not only easy to whip up and healthy, but irresistibly delicious!
One of our most memorable family trips was to Costa Rica, where we explored the jungle, made friends with monkeys and sloths, and zip-lined above the rainforest (okay, I didn’t, but the rest of the family did). For me, the adventure was as much about the food as it was about the thrills. We enjoyed everything from homemade corn tortillas to hearty rice and beans, beef empanadas, and the classic arroz con pollo. One of my favorites was this deliciously creamy black bean dip. Although it’s not the prettiest dip at the party, its incredible flavor and simple preparation will make you fall in love at first bite.
“It’s so delicious…and also makes a GREAT filling for burritos. Spread it on a tortilla, add some chicken or beef, some sautéed veggies, cheese, sour cream, guac…YUM!”
What You’ll Need To Make Black Bean Dip
The secret is using lots of onions, garlic, jalapeños, and fresh lime juice to boost the flavor. I also like to add lots of fresh cilantro but if you don’t care for it, it’s perfectly fine to leave it out.
Two jalapeño peppers might seem like a lot, but I don’t use the seeds or ribs, which is where most of the heat is. The dip has a little kick, but it’s not spicy. If you like heat, you can add some of the seeds but go easy — you can always add more at the end.
Be sure to either wear gloves or wash your hands very well after handling jalapeños, and never touch your face while you’re chopping — if the juice comes in contact with your eyes, it will sting terribly!
Step-by-Step Instructions
Heat the olive oil over medium heat in a small saucepan. Add the onions, garlic and jalapeño peppers. Notice that I leave the garlic in fairly large chunks; if you chop it too finely, it will burn.
Cook, stirring occasionally, until very soft, about ten minutes. Do not brown.
Combine the beans with onion mixture, salt, cumin, lime juice, water, and fresh cilantro in a blender or food processor.
Purée until almost smooth. If you’re using a blender, you may need to stop and stir it a few times.
Transfer the dip to a serving bowl and top with more fresh chopped cilantro and a lime wedge if desired. That’s all there is to it. Enjoy!
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Black Bean Dip
Break out the chips for this creamy black bean dip—it’s not only easy to whip up and healthy, but irresistibly delicious!
Ingredients
- ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
- 2 small yellow onions, chopped
- 4 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped into large chunks
- 2 jalapeño peppers, seeded and chopped*
- 2 (15.5 ounce) cans black beans, rinsed and drained
- 1½ teaspoons salt
- ½ teaspoon ground cumin
- 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice, from one lime, plus more if desired
- 3 tablespoons water
- ¼ cup fresh chopped cilantro, plus more for garnish (optional)
Instructions
- Heat the olive oil over medium heat in a small saucepan. Add the onions, garlic and jalapeño peppers and cook, stirring occasionally, until very soft, about ten minutes. Do not brown.
- Transfer the cooked onion mixture to a blender or food processor and add the black beans, salt, cumin, lime juice, water and cilantro. Blend until smooth (if you're using a blender, you may need to stop and stir a few times to help it out). If the dip is too thick, add more water or lime juice, little by little, to thin it out. Taste and adjust seasoning, then transfer to a serving bowl. Serve warm, cold or room temperature with tortilla chips.
- *Most of the heat from the jalapeños is in the seeds and ribs, so leave those out. If you like a spicier dip, reserve the seeds and add them little by little when you're blending the dip.
Nutrition Information
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- Per serving (12 servings)
- Serving size: 1/4 cup
- Calories: 114
- Fat: 5 g
- Saturated fat: 1 g
- Carbohydrates: 14 g
- Sugar: 1 g
- Fiber: 5 g
- Protein: 5 g
- Sodium: 231 mg
- Cholesterol: 0 mg
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. 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. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
Gluten-Free Adaptable Note
To the best of my knowledge, all of the ingredients used in this recipe are gluten-free or widely available in gluten-free versions. There is hidden gluten in many foods; if you're following a gluten-free diet or cooking for someone with gluten allergies, always read the labels of your ingredients to verify that they are gluten-free.
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Comments
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Delicious. I did pressure cook fresh black beans first then used a ninja processor to put it all together.
Very good! I used orange juice instead of lime because that’s what I had on hand. I added roasted red peppers and a splash of chicken broth, and used my immersion blender. I served with warm soft tortillas as part of a “tapas” night. Thank you!
A delicious and easy to make recipe. I’ll definitely be making it again! 🙂
Was amazing!! Would recommend only one teaspoon salt instead of one and one half though!
Can this be made ahead? If so, do you serve it cold from the fridge or warm it a bit before serving? Looks like a great recipe!
Hi Susan, yes, you can make it up to 2 to 3 days ahead and serve it cold or at room temperature (it’s good either way). Hope that helps!
Thank you for the reply and the recipe! It was a big hit with my book group. Next time I’ll make half the recipe because it was too much for this group. I see lots of burritos in my future for the next few days! 🙂
Halved the recipe and it still made plenty. We found it boring as written, after processing I upped the cumin to 3/4 tsp and used one whole lime (for a half batch) to add more flavor. I couldn’t get my onions to Jenn’s pictures softness without them browning a little, if you like the sweetness of onions this could be great however I just found the taste distracting.
Oh such creamy goodness.
Finally a black bean dip that is not chunky and hard, oh and that flavour ❤
Thank you so much
This was good enough to eat as is, with a spoon although it was a hit with some rain forest crackers I had just made. Instead of jalapeños I used ¼ of a red bell pepper, chopped, and sautéed with the onion and garlic. Once everything was processed the red bits looked rather nice with the green from the cilantro. I added a couple of glugs of extra virgin toward the end of the processing and also some red pepper flakes. Like others, I halved the recipe but it disappeared too quickly so next time I’ll do a whole recipe.
I have made this recipe many, many times for myself and taken it to parties too. It’s so delicious, I love it. I don’t change a thing. It also makes a GREAT filling for burritos. Spread it on a tortilla, add some chicken or beef, some sauteed veggies, cheese, sour cream, guac … YUM!
Super yummy and easy to make. It is a nice way to add beans to your diet. Flavor is smoky and complex and different than a black bean salsa (which we love as well). A healthy and welcome addition to our dip repetoire!