Amy’s Black Bean Vegetable Organic Soup Review

We often stigmatize canned soups due to their heavily processed nature and high sodium content, and too much broth while too little substantial food within.  But none of these complaints are true of Amy’s Black Bean Vegetable Organic Soup.  This selection is every bit as flavorful and satisfying as a homemade bean soup, and at $2.08 for a 14.5 ounce can at Walmart, this organic soup is highly affordable, and priced competitively with other, non organic soup products.  The can features a pull-top lid with an easy-to-spot label that can be read with ease.

 

But this black bean soup is not just black beans.  It also contains kernels of corn, carrots, and celery, as well as a plethora of other vegetables and spices, for a well-rounded and nutritious yet harmoniously flavorful meal course.  It resembles a variety-packed vegetable soup, with the black beans being the far-predominating ingredient. While the sodium is a bit high, at 620 milligrams per serving, this creation by no means tastes overly salty, and it’s seasoned with sea salt for even more enhanced natural mineral nutrition.  It satisfies, and can be eaten by itself as a complete meal and will keep you filled up for two or three hours.  Top with a spoon of sour cream or half-cup of cheddar cheese to increase its filling effects.

Benefits, Pros, Features, and Advantages

  • Plenty of well-seasoned black beans.
  • With pull-top lid and stackable cans, it’s highly convenient.  Just pour the can contents into a microwave safe bowl, heat for a minute or so, and eat.  Store a bunch too, as the cans will solidly stack five or six tall.
  • No need for a can opener.
  • Even with the beans settled, the broth herein is quite thick, tasty, and substantial.
  • A sufficient amount of black beans and corn here to quench larger appetites.  It will surely fill you up.
  • It’s a great source of protein at six grams per serving, and contains little fat, at 1.5 grams per serving.  Thus, this black bean soup will not distract you from pursuing your own diet quest.   It helps make dieting a cinch.
  • No additional water required.  Just heat and serve, right out of the can.  Or, you can even eat it cold, directly from the open can.  Tastes great either way.
  • Amy includes numerous vegetables and spices in this soup, which enhances both its flavor and nutrition.  Plus, the beans provide lots of fiber, making this soup a healthy snack even more.
  • The steel can is recyclable.
  • Little change of flavor was observed, even after keeping this soup in the pantry for nearly a year.  It remains well-preserved therefore, for long periods of time.  Just keep it in a cool place.
  • The soup is low-fat, and has virtually no saturated fat.
  • With the extensive medley of natural and organic ingredients, Amy’s black bean soup tastes like black beans, but in a highly sophisticated and unique way.  It’s good.
  • No skimping on ingredients has happened here, and you’ll never get a “watery” taste from this Amy’s Organic Soups offering.
  • Contains no GMOs, no trans fats, and no added MSG, and no preservatives.
  • Suitable for vegetarian and vegan diets.
  • Gluten free.

 

Disadvantages, Cons, Problems, and Concerns

  • Harder to find outside of the bigger grocery stores and health food centers.
  • Sodium content is a bit on the high side.
  • Medium-high sodium soup at 620 milligrams per serving.
  • As this black bean soup product is canned, the vegetables and spices inside are pre cooked.  This reduces the signature taste of fresh vegetables significantly.  Nonetheless however, though cooked, the flavor is quite appetizing and satisfying.  Heating releases a fresh-cooked aroma.
  • Once opened, the lid as well as the can have sharp edges.  You can easily cut a finger if not careful.

 

Preparation Instructions

This is not a condensed soup, so avoid adding water in order to retain its undiluted, exquisite taste.

Stove Directions

  1. Open the can and dump contents into a medium sauce pan.
  2. Place pan on stove.
  3. Heat over medium to medium-high heat until the soup just starts to boiling.  However, to prevent splatters, do not bring to a full, rolling boil.
  4. Stir occasionally (once every minute or so) while heating.
  5. Once hot, remove from heat immediately to avoid the drying-out effect of caking.
  6. Let stand for a minute, to assure thorough, through-and-through heating.
  7. Latle into soup bowls.
  8. Enjoy.

Microwave Oven Directions

  1. Put contents of the soup can into a medium-sized microwave-safe bowl or two single-serving microwave-safe bowls.
  2. Heat with the high power (100%) setting for 2 minutes.   Heating times vary depending on the microwave oven.  Experiment with yours to determine  ideal heating times.
  3. Once warming is complete, let stand in the microwave for a minute, to allow any boiling to stop and the heat to evenly distribute throughout the soup.
  4. Remove the bowl(s) from microwave oven.  Take care, as they’ll be quite hot.
  5. Stir the soup several times.
  6. Serve and enjoy.

 

Ingredients

Organic black beans, filtered water, organic onions, organic carrots, organic corn, organic potatoes, organic celery, organic leeks, spices, organic cilantro, sea salt, organic garlic, organic high oleic safflower and / or sunflower oil, organic black pepper.

 

Nutrition Facts

  • Serving size: 1 cup (240 millilitres).  Servings per container: about 2.
  • Calories: 140.  Calories from fat: 15.
  • Total fat: 1.5 grams, 2% DV.
  • Saturated fat: 0 grams, 0% DV.
  • Trans fat: 0 grams.
  • Cholesterol: 0 milligrams, 0% DV.
  • Sodium: 620 milligrams, 26% DV.
  • Total carbohydrate: 26 grams, 8% DV.
  • Dietary fiber: 5 grams, 20% DV.
  • Sugars: 7 grams.
  • Protein: 6 grams, 10% DV.
  • Vitamin A: 20% DV.
  • Calcium: 4% DV.
  • Vitamin C: 8% DV.
  • Iron: 8% DV.

 

Product Rating

Amy’s Kitchen is notorious for their high quality organic soup products, and this black bean and vegetable offering further heightens their already-excellent reputation.  It’s contains no artificial ingredients, yet its price competes with far more processed and non natural soup products.  Our rating therefore, is a highly favorable 99 out of 100.

 

Where To Buy Amy’s Black Bean Vegetable Soup

Look for this soup in the black raspberry colored can with the white and yellow lettering, pull-top lid, and a picture of a bowl of this product on the front with a dab of sour cream floating in the center, at your favorite larger grocery stores like Walmart and Target.  It can also be found online at Amazon

 

References

 

Revision History

  • 2015-01-15: Added whitespace, rearranged category and tag assignments, and revised the content.
  • 2014-08-22: Originally published.