Ham and bean soup is a classic soup recipe that combines diced ham, ham hock, white beans, vegetables and simple spices. This easy ham soup recipe uses simple, affordable ingredients and cooks low & slow until the ham hock meat is falling apart tender.
Ingredients For Ham And Bean Soup
- Dried White Beans
- Ham Hock
- Diced Ham
- Chicken Broth
- Celery
- Onion
- Carrots
- Garlic
- Butter
- Seasonings: salt, pepper, dried thyme
How To Make Ham And Bean Soup
- Soak the beans (see notes)
- In a heavy bottomed pot, melt the butter. Add the onion, celery, carrots, and garlic. Cook over medium heat until the vegetables are soft, approximately 5-7 minutes.
- Add the soaked beans, ham hock, water, salt, pepper, dried thyme, and bay leaf to the pot. Cover and bring to a boil, then simmer (covered) for approximately 1 hour.
- Remove the ham hock and shred the meat. Discard the skin & bones and add the meat back into the soup. Stir in the diced ham. Cover and simmer for an additional 30 minutes.
- Discard bay leaf before serving. Add salt & pepper to taste.
What Type Of Beans To Use
Ham and bean soup uses dried white beans. The actual type of beans that you use is up to you. What you see in the pics is dried great northern beans. Other suggestions include navy beans or cannellini. Since this recipe calls for dried beans, pre-soaking is required. The best way to pre-soak the beans is overnight however you can do a quick one-hour soak as well. Below are instructions on how to pre-soak white beans for cooking.
Regular soak:
- Sort through the beans to remove any debris.
- Add beans to a large bowl & cover with cold water.
- Soak beans minimum 12 hours.
Quick soak:
- Sort through the white beans to remove any debris.
- Rinse the beans in a colander under cold water.
- Add the white beans to a large saucepan and cover with 6 cups of water. Bring to a boil & cook for 1 minute.
- Remove from heat & cover for 1 hour. Rinse the white beans in a colander under cold water.
Ham Recipes
Storing Leftover Soup
If you have leftover ham and bean soup, you can store or freeze it for later use. Store leftover soup an air-tight container in the refrigerator for 3-4 days. To freeze ham and bean soup, let the soup cool completely. Once cooled, add the soup to an air tight container or freezer-friendly plastic bag. Store the soup in your freezer for up to 2 months.
FAQs & Tips
- Don’t like or can’t find ham hocks? Double up on the diced ham. Or vice versa.
- Add more flavor by using low-sodium chicken broth in place of water or a combination of the two.
Soup Recipes
Ham and Bean Soup
Ingredients
- 16 ounces dried white beans
- 8 ounces diced ham
- 8 cups water
- 1 small onion, diced
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 3 celery stalks, sliced
- 2 medium-size carrots, diced
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 1 tablespoon dried thyme
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon pepper
- 1 bay leaf
- salt & pepper to taste
Instructions
- Soak the beans (see notes)
- In a heavy bottomed pot, melt the butter. Add the onion, celery, carrots, and garlic. Cook over medium heat until the vegetables are soft, approximately 5-7 minutes.
- Add the soaked beans, ham hock, water, salt, pepper, dried thyme, and bay leaf to the pot. Cover and bring to a boil, then simmer (covered) for approximately 1 hour.
- Remove the ham hock and shred the meat. Discard the skin & bones and add the meat back into the soup. Stir in the diced ham. Cover and simmer for an additional 30 minutes.
- Discard bay leaf before serving. Add salt & pepper to taste.
Notes
- Sort through the beans to remove any debris.
- Add beans to a large bowl & cover with cold water.
- Soak beans minimum 12 hours.
- Sort through the white beans to remove any debris.
- Rinse the beans in a colander under cold water.
- Add the white beans to a large saucepan and cover with 6 cups of water. Bring to a boil & cook for 1 minute.
- Remove from heat & cover for 1 hour. Rinse the white beans in a colander under cold water.