Ham and Bean Soup Recipe
My satisfying ham and bean soup recipe is a rich, comforting soup with white beans, veggies, ham, and smoked turkey for a highly delicious bowl of soup. Perfect for using up leftover ham and turkey from the holidays!
Whether it’s after the holidays, and you’re looking for healthier recipes for the New Year, or you want to use up leftover ham, whatever time of year, this soup recipe has what you want.
We love celebrating Christmas Eve at home with friends and relatives. Then, on Christmas Day, we enjoy a relaxing day opening gifts, cooking together, and eating more than we should. Despite all the partying going on, I couldn’t forget to share this hearty recipe with you all so you can make use of the leftover ham.
Ham and bean soup is ideal comfort food for recuperating after binge eating on not-so-healthy holiday food. It’s rich, flavorful, and packed with nutrition. Not to mention it’s great for feeding a crowd.
Beans That Work Best for Soup
White beans are the traditional choice for ham and beans. Great northern, navy, and cannellini beans all work fine. They provide a creamy, delicate, and soft texture. Now you ask, “Can I use canned beans?”. Yes, you sure can. Just drain and rinse them before adding them to the pot.
How to Make Ham and Bean Soup
- Soak dry beans in water for 6-8 hours or overnight in cold water, then drain and rinse. Drain the soaked beans, rinse, and place the beans into the pot. (Photo 1)
- Cook the beans in about 5 cups of water (enough to cover the beans by an inch or two) until tender. (Photo 2)
- Heat a medium or large Dutch oven, and brown the chopped ham and smoked turkey for 6-7 minutes. (Photo 3)
- Add onions, garlic, thyme, bay leaves, celery, and Creole seasoning. Sauté for 3-5 minutes. (Photo 4)
- Pour in about 3 cups of chicken stock and add ham or turkey bones if you have them. Scrape the bits from the bottom of the pot, and bring to a boil. (Photos 5-6)
- Add the beans and carrots, return to a boil, and simmer until it thickens. It might take 30-45 minutes or more, depending on how you like your beans. (Photo 7)
- Adjust seasonings to taste with salt and pepper. If the soup is too thick, add more liquid to get the desired consistency. Serve hot with crusty bread. (Photo 8)
Recipe Notes and Tips
- A trick to thickening bean soup without adding flour is to take a cup or so of beans out and mash them. Stir them back in and simmer a little longer.
- Another quick trick to thicken your soup is to run an immersion blender just enough to thicken the soup without turning it into puree.
- Save the bones for a tasty homemade stock.
- You can totally make this in a pressure cooker or Instant Pot to reduce the cooking time to less than an hour.
- Or, if you want to leave it cooking all day, a slow cooker will let you set it and forget it until dinner time.
- If you’re really short on time, four cans of beans, drained and rinsed, will save tons of time.
Meal Prep Ideas
Soup is a great freezer make-ahead option. I love making a double or triple batch, then freezing it in meal-size portions in a freezer bag. It should last for 4-5 months.
It also lasts a good 4-5 days in the fridge, especially if you use an airtight container.
What to Serve With Ham and Bean Soup
Serve this hearty soup with crusty bread like homemade garlic bread or skillet cornbread for a total filling meal experience. A refreshing tossed salad will only make the meal better. Enjoy!
More Satisfying Soup Recipes to Try
This blog post was originally published in December 2018 and has been updated with additional tips and delicious photos.
Ham and Bean Soup
Ingredients
- 1 pound (450g) dried great northern beans, cleaned and rinsed (6 cups canned beans)
- 1 cup (150g) leftover ham
- 1 cup (130g) chopped smoked turkey
- ½ medium onion, chopped
- 1 tablespoon (15g) minced garlic
- 2-3 teaspoons (4-6g) minced fresh thyme
- 2 bay leaves
- ⅓ cup (30-35g) chopped celery
- 1 teaspoon (4g) Creole seasoning
- 3-4 cups (700-940ml) unsalted chicken stock
- 1 cup (130g) carrots, sliced thick
- ham bones or turkey bones (optional)
- salt and pepper to taste (see notes)
Instructions
- Soak the dry beans for 6-8 hours or overnight in cold water, then drain and rinse.
- Place the beans in the pot, add about 5 cups of water (enough to cover), and bring to a boil. Simmer until the beans are tender (1½-4 hours, depending on the beans and altitude). You can do this in 30-50 minutes in a pressure cooker.
- Brown the chopped ham and smoked turkey in a Dutch oven over medium heat (6-10 minutes).
- Add the onions, garlic, thyme, bay leaves, celery, and Creole seasoning, and sauté for 3-5 minutes.
- Pour in about 3 cups of chicken stock, add the ham and turkey bones (if using), scrape browned bits from the bottom of the pot, and bring to a boil.
- Add the beans and carrots, and continue simmering until the broth thickens (30-45 minutes, depending on how you like your beans).
- Remove the bones, adjust seasonings to taste with salt and pepper, and adjust the consistency. If it's too thick, add broth; if it's too thin, puree a cup or so of the beans and simmer for another 10 minutes with the lid off. Serve hot with crusty bread.
Tips & Notes:
- Add a teaspoon of salt, a crushed clove of garlic, and a smashed quarter of an onion to the bean soaking water for more flavor.
- Ham and smoked turkey already have salt. So do a taste test, and if you can taste the seasonings, you have enough salt. If it tastes bland, stir in a pinch of salt, wait a minute, then repeat until it tastes right.
- Measurements are suggestions. Feel free to add more or less ham.
- If you don’t have smoked turkey, leftover Thanksgiving turkey will work fine. Add a teaspoon or two of smoked paprika for the smokiness.
- Please keep in mind that nutritional information is a rough estimate and can vary greatly based on the products used.
Can you cook this in an instant pot?
You sure can! Sauté your onions and garlic, add the ham and seasonings and sauté a little longer, then add the rest of the ingredients (liquid and beans) and latch the lid. Cook on high for about 60 minutes. Carefully release the pressure.
Made this soup today. My family quite liked it although all of them said it could have used a bit more spice. My beans must have been old though because they took forever to get soft. I will certainly make this again.
Hi Imma, I love your recipes. One question, if I may, can I cook the ham and bean recipe in a crockpot? Thank you.
Hello John,
Yes you sure can. The browning of the ham and turkey adds flavor to the soup, don’t skip this and sautéed vegetables. Do all the way through step 4. Then finish in the slow cooker.