Easy Black Bean Dip
Black bean dip is an easy party snack that comes together in just 20 minutes! It’s creamy, loaded with Tex-Mex flavor, and you can dress it up with all kinds of toppings and garnishes.
Before hummus became a household word, bean dip was a go-to for parties and snacking. And if we’re being honest with ourselves—and we should be honest with ourselves—it wasn’t always great. This black bean dip is a different story!
Instead of being made with paste-like canned refried beans, we’re making it from scratch with black beans. And then we add LOTS of flavor with onion, garlic, Tex-Mex spices, and a squeeze of fresh lime juice to liven things up. So many bean dip recipes have just a hint of seasoning, but my black bean dip is good enough to eat with a spoon.
Even with its made-from-scratch street cred, this black bean dip recipe is easy to whip up. After cooking the onion, garlic, and seasonings, it’s just a matter of putting everything in your food processor and blitzing it until it’s smooth and creamy dip. The best thing you can make with a can of black beans.
Ingredients for Black Bean Dip
Here’s a quick rundown of what you’ll need for this recipe. For the full measurements, scroll down to the recipe card.
- Black Beans – Reserve 1/4 cup of the liquid, then drain off the rest and rinse the beans.
- Olive Oil – For cooking the aromatics.
- Red Onion and Garlic – These form the base of flavor for our black bean dip.
- Seasonings – Ground cumin, chili powder, ground cayenne, and salt. You can add onion powder, garlic powder and smoked paprika to amp up the flavor even more.
- Lime Juice – Be sure to use fresh lime juice! It tastes so much better than bottled.
- Tomato Paste – For tomato flavor, yes, but also for a hit of umami.
- Sour Cream – Or Greek yogurt, if you prefer.
- Apple Cider Vinegar – The acid in vinegar punches up the flavor of this dip.
- Fresh Cilantro – If you’re a cilantro hater, you can omit this.
How to Make Black Bean Dip
For printable instructions, check out the recipe card below.
- Cook the onion and garlic. Warm the olive oil in a skillet over medium heat and cook the onion until it softens, then the garlic for a minute.
- Add the seasonings. Stir in the salt and spices and cook for 2 to 3 minutes. Allow to cool to room temperature.
- Blend. Transfer the onion mixture to the bowl of a food processor, then add all of the other ingredients. Blend until smooth.
- Serve. Season to taste, then transfer to a serving bowl and garnish with green onion, extra cilantro, queso fresco or cotija cheese, if desired. Serve with salty tortilla chips or raw veggies.
Tips for Making Black Bean Dip
This delicious black bean dip recipe is super easy, but these tips will help you make sure it turns out perfect!
- Adjust the consistency as desired. If you want some texture in your dip, you can reserve some of the black beans and add them in after blending, or pulse the dip until it reaches your ideal consistency.
- Add more spice if you like it hot. This recipe has a nice balance of flavors and heat, but if you prefer a spicier dip, feel free to amp up the cayenne, add jalapeño pepper or add your favorite hot sauce.
- Make it ahead of time. This dip can be made up to 2 days in advance and stored in the refrigerator. Just give it a stir before serving.
- Add garnishes. Pickled jalapeños, fresh tomatoes, sour cream, shredded cheese, crumbled cotija—make it your own!
- Layer it. You can use this black bean dip as the base layer for a tasty layered dip. Add guacamole, salsa, sour cream, and shredded cheese on top, or use this 7 Layer Mexican Dip as inspiration.
What to Serve With Black Bean Dip
- Tortilla chips
- Fritos
- Pita bread or pita chips
- crudités platter
- Crackers
- How to Make Crostini
- Mini naan
How to Store Leftovers
Leftover black bean dip can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 4-5 days. When you’re ready to enjoy it again, give the dip a good stir. You can freshen up the flavor with another squeeze of lime juice or a sprinkle of fresh cilantro leaves.
Black Bean Dip is perfect for game day, I like to make a big batch earlier in the week for easy entertaining.
Ways to Use Leftover Black Bean Dip
- Quesadillas. Spread the dip between two tortillas along with some cheese, and cook in a skillet until crispy and the cheese is melted.
- Tacos or burritos. Use the dip in place of refried beans in a burrito or spread it onto tortillas before adding taco fillings.
- Baked potatoes. Top a baked sweet potato with black bean dip, shredded cheese, sour cream, and sliced green onions.
- Black bean dip toast. Like avocado toast, but with black beans!
More Dip Recipes
- Italian Hoagie Dip
- Boat Dip
- Best Cold Crab Dip Recipe
- Whipped Cottage Cheese Dip
- Easy Pizza Dip
- French Onion Dip
- Smoked Salmon Dip
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Get the Recipe: Black Bean Dip
Ingredients
- 2 (15-ounce) cans black beans, drained and rinsed reserving 1/4 cup black bean liquid
- 1 teaspoon olive oil
- ¼ cup chopped red onion
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- ½ tablespoon ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- ¼ teaspoon ground cayenne
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- 2 tablespoons lime juice
- 1 tablespoon tomato paste
- 1 tablespoon sour cream or greek yogurt
- ½ tablespoon apple cider vinegar
- 3 tablespoons fresh cilantro, chopped
Instructions
- In a medium skillet, heat the olive oil over medium heat and add the onion. Cook the onion until beginning to soften, approximately 4-5 minutes.
- Stir in the garlic and cook for 1 minute longer. Add the cumin, chili powder, cayenne and salt cooking until just beginning to caramelize, approximately 2-3 minutes longer.
- Remove from the heat and transfer the onion mixture to a food processor along with the lime juice, tomato paste, sour cream vinegar and cilantro.
- Blend until smooth.
- Season to taste and transfer to a bowl.
- Garnish with cilantro, cheese, jalapeno slices, diced tomatoes or sour cream.
- Refrigerate until ready to serve.