This is easily the best Ham and Bean Soup we’ve ever had! Plenty of beans, tender chunks of carrot, a perfectly thickened broth with no shortage of spices, and giant chunks of salty ham.
Little tricks here and there make this soup truly stand out from the rest. It’s perfect any time of day (and it freezes well too!)
Our Ham and Bean Soup Recipe for Life
It’s always been important to have classic American comfort food recipes in our arsenal. Dishes like meatloaf, beef stew, spaghetti and meatballs, and banana bread that you want THE perfect recipe for. The one that you can reach for through the years and generations.
This recipe comes from my aunt, who has always been a master of cooking up classic comfort foods. (She was the original author of the Baked Chicken with Sticky Rice, one of our favorites!)
It’s thick and comforting, with lots of vegetables, a blend of different kinds of beans, and a little bit of smoky flavor from the addition of ham hocks (we’ll get to that in a second).
When you dunk big chunks of bread into it, or serve it with a piece of cheesy toast, it’s heaven. We loved it as soon as we tried it, and knew we had to document it for our family archives!
Bonus Points!
Bonus if you use my dad’s recipe for Artisanal Sourdough Bread! It’s the perfect companion for this hearty soup, which really helped us get through the last of the early spring chill.
When you can’t find ham hocks…
A key part of my aunt’s original recipe is smoked ham hocks. However, I couldn’t find them at any of the grocery stores around us. We checked multiple spots! My workaround is a high quality chunk of ham, plus a drizzle of liquid smoke.
(Anyone who saw my Vegan Korean BBQ: King Oyster Mushroom “Samgyupsal” Bowls knows that I’m on a liquid smoke kick…)
The Importance of a Dutch Oven
Having a Dutch oven is important for this recipe. It will allow the soup to bubble over a long period of time with relatively low risk of burning.
I alternated my heat between medium and medium-low. This way, the soup simmered enough to cook down, but not so intensely that beans burned at the bottom of the pot.
I started my soup early in the afternoon. It was perfect by the time we had finished dessert that day.
This recipe uses canned beans, but if you’d rather use dried beans, you’ll need a pressure cooker. I included my aunt’s pressure cooker instructions at the end of this recipe if you’d like to go that route. Or if you happen to have bags of dried beans in the pantry that need a purpose!
Ham and Bean Soup: Recipe Instructions
Heat a Dutch oven over medium heat for about 3 minutes or so, until it’s nice and hot. (You can also use a thick-bottomed soup pot, but may need to stir more often to prevent burning.)
Add the oil and the onions. Cook until the onions begin to turn translucent. Add the garlic and cook for 1-2 minutes.
Stir in the chopped celery and carrots, and cook for an additional 5-6 minutes. Add the beans, followed by the water. Increase the heat to high.
Add the bay leaves, dried thyme, garlic powder, onion powder, white pepper, black pepper, paprika, and chicken bouillon paste. (If you don’t have chicken bouillon paste, simply use chicken stock in place of the water.) Bring to a boil.
Stir in the ham. I like to cut it into big shards/shreds for extra texture. (Sarah likes hers cubed and orderly though. I won’t judge either way!)
If you’re using a ham hock instead of ham, you can add it in now.
Reduce the heat to medium-low. The soup should be at a somewhat energetic simmer. It should always be at a low bubble.
Cook for 4-5 hours, stirring periodically. If the soup isn’t cooking down, you may want to increase the heat to medium. Every stove is different, so don’t just set it and forget it. Periodically check liquid levels.
In the last hour of cooking, add the fresh parsley, and cook for another hour.
It’s done when the beans and carrots are tender, and the soup is thickened.
If you used a ham hock, fish out any bones, and chop up any large pieces of meat and skin (keeping the skin is optional—though strongly encouraged) that don’t break down during the cooking process before serving.
This soup is quite forgiving. If it ends up too salty for your tastes, just add water, and lightly mash some of the beans to release their starchiness and rethicken the soup.
If you are reheating the soup and there is not enough liquid, just add 1-2 cups of water to bring it back to your desired consistency. This soup freezes well too! It’s best consumed within 3 months, but will last up to 6 months.
Serve with my dad’s Artisanal Sourdough Bread!
If you want to use dried beans (AKA, my aunt’s original recipe):
If you’d rather use dried beans, which arguably do result in superior flavor and texture, you’ll need a large pressure cooker. My aunt’s is a 12-quart (11 liter) size.
If starting with dried beans, cook 2 pounds (0.9 kg) of mixed beans with enough water to cover them by a couple inches for 1 hour first to remove any bean skin. Skim off the skins of the beans.
Keep the soaking water, and add 4 cups of low-sodium chicken broth, along with 2 large smoked ham hocks (she gets hers from a specialty German butcher shop), and the large bay leaves. Cook for another hour.
After an hour, release the pressure, and carefully open the lid (safety first!). Then add the fresh garlic, onion, celery, carrots, dried thyme, garlic powder, onion powder, white and black peppers, and 1-2 tablespoons chicken bouillon (to taste), and fresh parsley (she likes to also add an extra 1 tablespoon dried parsley). Cook for another hour. The soup should be very thick.
Fish out any ham bones, and chop up any large pieces of meat and skin (keeping the skin is optional but very much recommended) that don’t break down during the cooking process before serving.
Ham and Bean Soup
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon oil (olive oil, vegetable oil, canola oil, etc.)
- 1 1/2 cups onions (diced, about 1 medium onion)
- 4 large garlic cloves (chopped)
- 2 cups celery (diced, about 5 ribs of celery)
- 2 1/2 cups carrots (diced, about 6 medium carrots)
- 5 15 oz. cans assorted beans (such as cannellini, red kidney, pink beans, pinto beans, or black-eyed peas, drained—no need to be super thorough about draining)
- 9 cups water (a 15-ounce/425g bean can, filled 5x; can use low-sodium chicken stock if you don't have the chicken bouillon paste the recipe calls for)
- 2 large bay leaves
- 2 teaspoons dried thyme
- 2 teaspoons garlic powder
- 2 teaspoons onion powder
- 1/2 teaspoon white pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon paprika
- 2 tablespoons chicken bouillon paste (adjust to avoid over-salting if using powdered bouillon)
- 14 ounces ham (roughly shredded or diced; or 2 large smoked ham hocks)
- 1/2 cup fresh parsley (chopped)
- 1/4-1/2 teaspoon liquid smoke (optional, to taste: not needed if using smoked ham hocks)
Instructions
- Heat a Dutch oven (you can also use a thick-bottomed soup pot, but may need to stir more often to prevent burning) over medium heat for about 3 minutes or so, until it’s nice and hot. Add the oil and the onions. Cook until the onions begin to turn translucent. Add the garlic and cook for 1-2 minutes.
- Stir in the chopped celery and carrots, and cook for an additional 5-6 minutes. Add the beans, followed by the water. Increase the heat to high.
- Add the bay leaves, dried thyme, garlic powder, onion powder, white pepper, black pepper, paprika, and chicken bouillon paste. (If you don’t have chicken bouillon paste, simply use chicken stock in place of the water.) Bring to a boil.
- Stir in the ham. I like to cut it into big shards/shreds for extra texture. (Sarah likes hers cubed and orderly though. I won’t judge either way!) If you’re using a ham hock instead of ham, you can add it in now.
- Reduce the heat to medium-low so the soup is at a somewhat energetic simmer–it should always be at a low bubble. Cook for 4-5 hours, stirring periodically. If the soup isn’t cooking down, you may want to increase the heat to medium. Every stove is different, so don’t just set it and forget it. Periodically check liquid levels.
- In the last hour of cooking, add the fresh parsley, and cook for another hour. It’s done when the beans and carrots are tender, and the soup is thickened. If you used a ham hock, fish out any bones, and chop up any large pieces of meat and skin (keeping the skin is optional) that don’t break down during the cooking process before serving.
- This soup is quite forgiving. If it ends up too salty for your tastes, just add water, and lightly mash some of the beans to release their starchiness and re-thicken the soup. If you are reheating the soup and there is not enough liquid, just add 1-2 cups of water to bring it back to your desired consistency.
Hello, I’m genuinely excited to try this recipe I just got a ham today. I’ve tried many of your other ones, I’ve learned so much and they have all been delicious and inspiring, I truly trust your flavorful recipes so I always know it’s going to turn out yummy. Finding TWOL was life changing and has shaped my cooking style. Thank you for this wonderful site it’s so appreciated by me and anyone who tastes it :D
Could you please tell me what size/quart Dutch oven that is? I do not own one, but after reading your tips I realize I need one and why my soup keeps burning a little! Mine is a very thin and cheap pot even though I didn’t think I did anything wrong, keeping it on low simmer. Mystery solved thank you.
Hi there! We think a 7 to 8 quart Dutch oven is perfect! Hope you enjoy this soup, and thank you so much for your kind words. :)
Thank you so much for your kind words! and for reading and cooking :) I believe mine is a 7-8 quart Dutch Oven. The other day I made a pot of this with a truly huge ham hock, and it filled it almost to the brim. But the good thing about the dutch oven is that it heats really steadily and evenly so I never once had a boil-over incident. Good luck!
Did this on the stovetop with a dutch oven with Target’s Good & Gather 16-Bean Soup Starter mix (just covered the beans with 2x volume of boiling water from an electric kettle, soaked them for an hour and drained before tossing them in the pot; trick I learned from Rick Bayliss to sub for an overnight soak). Used 2c. dried for a half-recipe and ended up with near-stew consistency at 5 hrs, even with adjusting the water level along the way (I suspect the smaller beans/lentils/split peas in the mix increased the thickening. Normally, I just halve volume between canned/dried with single-bean recipes, but went for less with the mix). Used a smoked ham hock from Vons (while you have to go to an ethnic grocery to find fresh pork hocks, regular chain supermarkets (and even Walmart) carry the smoked ones. (Sunnyvalley is the brand I see most often).They’re usually found in the cured meats section along with smoked turkey legs and bacon, but they do go in and out of stock regularly (and have been scarcer of late) so you have to check multiple times. My other substitution was to use the ham base Better Than Bouillon paste instead of the chicken, as I was feeling matchy-matchy. Turned out great. The ham variety seems to have left store shelves (I blame the newer vegan options) and required mail ordering (best price I found was at Food4Less’s site which TIL is Kroger-owned so a Kroger/Ralph’s login works on the site). Bought the lobster base, too, while I was at it to make the shipping worth it. :)
Hi Kathy, I’m so glad you liked it! Thanks so much for sharing these tips :)
I made this soup and it was great. Freezing was no problem as I freezed 3 servings of it in Tupperware like storage. After thawing out and re-heating it tasted just as good (if not better).
Definately suggest this soup if you are hankering for ham and bean soup.
Hi Sean, so glad you enjoyed it! thanks for the stars ^_^
When using an instapot, what settings do you use?
Hi Jenn, I’ve not made this in an Instant Pot exactly, but I think that the meat/stew setting is a safe bet, particularly if you have a very large ham bone. Another option, is the manual High pressure setting. Then just follow the time instructions. Next time we make this, we’ll test it in an Instant Pot to get more precise instructions! We usually make this on stovetop.
Used the “Bob’s 13 Bean Soup” mix – for their “multi-cooker” instructions, they say to use the Manual setting at High pressure for 40 minutes, then natural release for 20 min. Trying it now, using the Woks of Life recipe!
Rather than having to monitor it so closely for the 4-5 hours, put the lid on your dutch oven once it’s boiling and place it in a preheated oven at Gas Mark ¼, 225 °F, 110 °C or 100+ °C(Fan).
Hi Mike, that’s an excellent tip. I will be trying next time!
First time cooking it this way it would be best to just check it 20-30 minutes after putting into the oven to make sure it is just simmering as there can be variations of temperature within the oven and between different ovens. Once you’ve nailed the correct setting you’ll be able to repeat with confidence.
Getting ready to make this for dinner and I’m using dry black eyed peas. Do they really cook for a total of three hours in the pressure cooker? Usually if I’m making beans (unsoaked) they cook about 45-60 minutes. I don’t want to overcook and end up with mush 😆. And I’m halving the recipe. Thanks for your advice.
Hi Cindy, I’m so sorry I missed your comment! That is what my aunt tells me!
I made this yesterday. Halved the recipe. It was pretty tasty. I only cooked it for an hour and a half because I didn’t read the full recipe before I decided to make it. Then when I saw it said “4-5 hours,” I was liked, “Holy Moly!” It was too late. Dinner was supposed to be on table in two hours or less. I figured the ham was already cooked, so I went ahead with it. It turned out fine. I was using leftover ham, and I believe this will be my recipe for leftover ham from now on.
Also I didn’t have the onion powder as the recipe calls for, so I used granulated onion. Just today, I see granulated is in your picture. I’m off of the onion powder because it always clumps after the first couple uses. Love granulated instead.
Good recipe. Five stars.
Hi, Diana, I’m so glad you loved it! I found in developing the recipe that when I timed it, I’m more particular about getting that slow-cooked flavor than even I anticipated! Glad it all worked out, however. I’m sure the reduction in quantity helped a lot too!
I make bean soup and get my ham bones from a Honey baked ham store.
I wish we had a honey baked ham store, that sounds delightful
This looks really good!
I’ll make you a deal. I’ll try this one if you try this one.
https://www.recipetineats.com/ham-bone-soup-beans/
Deal?
Hah we’ll have to give it a try next time!
LOL! Okay, you’re on.
I made something similar to this a few ago. I found the beans too much. So instead of beans I use Barley, red/green/yellow Lentils, Soup Mix and Split Peas. Still using onion, carrot and celery. Boiling the hock (must use a hock, easy to find in Australia) for 3 hours in water with a Bay Leaf before adding the veges half an hour, the the dried mixes, 1 hour. Soup is thick and more flavor than you would think. Keep the blog going. I do not try all your ideas, but I like to know them.
The very definition of mansplaining. 😂
Sean, that’s pretty funny!
Thank you, Geoff! I like the sounds of your variation :)