Ciorbă de Fasole (Bean Sour Soup)

Romanian Fast With Oil Published April 10, 2026

If ciorbă de legume is the light sour soup, ciorbă de fasole is its heavier, more formidable brother — a thick, filling bean soup that constitutes a full meal on its own. This is the soup that Romanian workers and monastics rely on during long fasts: cheap, enormously high in protein, and soured to a sharp tang that wakes up the appetite on even the most austere days.

The combination of white beans, smoked paprika, and sour broth is distinctly Romanian. Once you taste it, you understand why this country never needed meat to make satisfying soup.

FASTING LEVEL: Fast With Oil (omit oil for strict days)
SERVINGS: 6-8
TIME: 1 hour 30 minutes (plus overnight soaking)

INGREDIENTS

- 400g dried white beans, soaked overnight
- 2 tablespoons sunflower oil
- 1 large onion, diced
- 1 large carrot, peeled and diced
- 1 parsnip, peeled and diced
- 1 red bell pepper, diced
- 2 stalks celery, diced
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1 teaspoon sweet paprika
- 8 cups water
- 250ml borș (fermented wheat bran liquid) or juice of 2 lemons plus 1 tablespoon white wine vinegar
- 2 bay leaves
- Salt and black pepper to taste
- 1 small dried hot pepper or 1/2 teaspoon chili flakes (optional)
- Large handful fresh lovage (leuștean), chopped — or celery leaves and parsley
- Sliced raw onion for serving

METHOD

1. Drain the soaked beans. Place in a large pot, cover with fresh water by 8 centimeters, and bring to a boil. Skim the foam, reduce heat, and simmer for 45-60 minutes until the beans are tender but not mushy. Drain, reserving the cooking liquid.

2. In the same pot (or a clean one), heat the oil over medium heat. Add the onion and cook for 5 minutes. Add the carrot, parsnip, celery, and bell pepper. Cook for 5 minutes more.

3. Add the tomato paste, both paprikas, and the dried hot pepper if using. Stir for 1 minute. Add the cooked beans, 8 cups of the reserved bean cooking liquid (top up with water if needed), and the bay leaves.

4. Bring to a simmer and cook for 15-20 minutes until the vegetables are tender and the soup has thickened slightly. Some beans will break down and thicken the broth — this is desirable.

5. Add the borș or lemon juice and vinegar. Taste — the soup should be noticeably sour, robust, and savory. Adjust salt, pepper, and acid. Remove bay leaves.

6. Stir in the lovage just before serving. Ladle into deep bowls and serve with raw onion slices on top, crusty bread on the side, and hot peppers for those who want them.

NOTES

- Using the bean cooking liquid as the soup base gives the broth a starchy richness that water alone cannot provide. Do not discard it.
- The smoked paprika is not optional — it gives the soup a depth that approaches the flavor of smoked meat, which is exactly the point during fasting.
- For an even thicker soup, mash a cup of the cooked beans and stir them back in before adding the sour element.
- Keeps refrigerated for 5 days. Like most bean soups, it improves overnight.