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Instant Pot
15-30 min4-6 servingsAmerican

Refried Bean and Tempeh Soup (or Stew)

By JL Fields

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4-6 servings

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15-30 min

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Easy

Refried Bean and Tempeh Soup (or Stew)
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Recipe Details

Course: Main Dishes

Difficulty: Easy

Prep Time: 15 min

Cook Time: 5 min

Total Time: 15-30 min

Cooking Technique: Pressure Cook

Cuisine: American

Diet: Dairy Free, High Fiber, Low Carb, Plant-Based, Vegan, Vegetarian

Yield: 4-6 servings

Ingredients

  • 1 teaspoon olive oil
  • 1 onion
  • 2 cloves garlic
  • 1 1/2 cups vegetable broth
  • 8 ounces tempeh
  • 15 ounces pinto beans
  • 1 small jalapeno
  • 4-5 ounces green chiles
  • 14 ounces fire-roasted diced tomatoes
  • 1 1/2 cups Water
  • 1/2-1 teaspoon chili powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon chipotle
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
This hearty soup can be as spicy as you like—just add more or less jalapeno, green chilies, and chili peppers. You are also in the driver’s seat for the texture. As written, this recipe tends more toward soup when hot out of the pot. The next day? It’s thicker. But you can make it thicker right away: Mash 1 cup of the refried beans and use 3/4 cup to 1 cup of water instead of 1 1/2 cups. Either way, if you’re looking for a bowl of soup that feels like an entire meal, with a kick of heat, you’re going to love this one.

INSTRUCTIONS

  1. Heat the olive oil in an uncovered Instant Pot or multicooker on the saute function (normal setting). Add the onion and garlic, and saute for about 3 minutes.
  2. Add the quartered tempeh and 1/2 cup of the broth to the pot. Saute and begin to crumble the tempeh with a wooden spoon. Prop the lid over the pot for 5 minutes. (Add vegetable broth as necessary to keep the tempeh from sticking.)
  3. Meanwhile, in a small bowl, add 1/2 cup of the pinto beans and all of the diced jalapeno. Mash with a potato masher or fork.
  4. Continue to stir and saute and crumble the tempeh until it resembles small white beans (or meatless crumbles). Transfer the mashed beans to the pot and, using the potato masher, mash into the tempeh.
  5. Add the remaining whole beans, green chilies, tomatoes, water, chili powder (if using), and any remaining vegetable broth to the pot, combining well.
  6. Cover the pot, move the steam release handle to sealing, select the manual function, toggle the pressure cooker button to low pressure, and set for 5 minutes. Once done, allow for a natural release.

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About the chef

JL Fields

JL Fields

JL Fields is a vegan chef, National Board-certified Health and Wellness Coach (NBC-HWC), Certified Nutrition Coaching (PN1-NC), Certified Specialist in Coaching Dietary Strategies (plant-based, macros-based, and intermittent fasting), RYT 200 Yoga Teacher, Master Vegan Lifestyle Coach & Educator, and chef consultant to food, health, and wellness brands. She is a coach people leader for a digital health company and the Advanced Wellness Coaching instructor at Rocky Mountain University of Health Professions. Fields is the author of six books - The Complete Plant-Based Diet, Vegan Baking for Beginners, Fast & Easy Vegan Cookbook, Vegan Meal Prep, The Vegan Air Fryer, and Vegan Pressure Cooking - and co-author of The Main Street Vegan Academy Cookbook with Victoria Moran and Vegan for Her with Virginia Messina. She provides health, well-being, vegan nutrition, and mindfulness coaching and cooking lessons - as well as private yoga lessons - online (Zoom) and in person (Colorado Springs). She provides career consulting for health and wellness coaches, chefs, and other professionals who want to develop their coaching practice.

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