At university most of my friends become vegetarian. I never did; nobody was going to wrench me willingly from a bacon sandwich, but I often cooked for other people and ended up boiling a hill of beans. Some of those friends have been staying with me. They are still veggie, but it’s become more complicated. One is vegan, another intolerant of wheat, and one has IBS, which means no onions. Frankly, it made my brain hurt. I went to Lansdown Health Foods to stock up. Mexico seemed a good choice for culinary inspiration; they do exciting things with beans, and tequila was definitely going to help the decision-making process. I decided to cook a variant on black bean soup, omitting the onion. Black beans (distinct from black kidney beans) have a great flavour and texture. I left a packet to soak overnight before rinsing and boiling in a large, covered pan. I fried several chopped garlic cloves gently in olive oil whilst soaking a whole packet of dried (ie not in oil) sun-dried tomatoes and a dried chilli in hot water. Chipolte is good for smokiness, but any will do. After 50 mins, I drained some cooking liquid from the beans, added the garlic, the tomatoes and chilli roughly chopped, plus their soaking liquid, and simmered for 10 mins. Finally I chuckled in a handful of chopped coriander, black pepper and salt before blending roughly. Served with an optional dollop of sour cream and a sprinkling of coriander leaves, it had a lovely intensity, with a rich, dare I say meaty, flavour. Rye bread, avocado salad and a large margherita on the side.