Rinse 1 pound of black beans.

Place the beans in a large stockpot and cover with water, ensuring the water level is 2 inches above the beans.

Add 1 bay leaf, 1 tablespoon of cumin, 1 tablespoon of oregano, and 1 halved Italian frying pepper to the pot.

Simmer the mixture until the beans are tender, approximately 45 minutes.

Remove the Italian frying pepper from the soup.

Prepare the sofrito by dicing 1 white onion, 1 red pepper, and 1 green pepper into large dice.

Saute the diced onions and peppers in olive oil in a saute pan until they become translucent.

Puree the sauteed onion and pepper mixture in a blender to create the sofrito.

In the same saute pan, saute 6 cloves of chopped garlic.

Add the sauteed garlic, the pureed sofrito, 1/4 cup of olive oil, 1 tablespoon of sugar, and 1/8 cup of white vinegar to the stockpot with the black beans.

Season the soup with salt to taste.

Continue to cook the soup until it reaches a very thick consistency, about 45 minutes.

Serve the soup hot, garnished with 1/2 cup of finely chopped red onion.