Fire up the slow cooker to make some delicious ham and bean soup from that leftover ham bone. There is nothing much more traditional than this classic soup. Please enjoy one of the best soups you can make at home.
Introduction
Ham and bean soup has always been a personal favorite of mine. Combine that with what to do with the ham bone leftover from Easter, Thanksgiving, or Christmas dinner, and most of us need this recipe.
This easy ham and bean soup recipe is my version of traditional Senate Bean Soup. It is a simple soup made with navy beans, ham hocks, and onion. It is always on the menu in the dining room of the United States Senate. There are two versions, one using mashed potatoes to thicken the soup.
I combined about five recipes and methods, so there is no specific inspiration piece other than the Senate recipe. Instead of ham hocks, I'm using the ham bone with leftover ham, and other options are provided, including dry beans.
👨🍳How to make this recipe
- If using dry beans, presoak the beans.
- Prepare the ham bone by rinsing off any honey coating and trimming any large pieces of fat.
- Dice carrots, celery, and onion.
- If using precooked beans, drain and rinse to decrease the sodium.
- Add all the ingredients to a large crock pot. Work the ham to the bottom of the pot.
- Cook on low for a total of 8 hours with precooked beans or 10 hours if dry beans.
- Two hours before the end of cooking, pull out the ham bone. After it cools a bit, strip off the meat, and discard the bone and waste. Return the meat to the crock pot and finish cooking time.
- Serve hot or cool overnight in the refrigerator and skim off fat the following day.
Ingredients
🐖 Ham
The ham in the recipe is a huge variable. Start with a "meaty" bone. If you stripped it, you would have no meat.
All hams have a considerable amount of salt. Many hams have been coated with honey or other sweet products. Also, you have a large amount of fat, much of it on the surface.
All those things are a problem that could ruin your soup. So the preparation of the ham is critically essential.
Use running water to remove surface sugar. Scrape off any fat that you can. And be careful with adding any sodium.
What if I don't have a ham bone?
This recipe is designed around the ham bone since we use it for the meat and create a broth to make the soup. BUT, it is relatively easy to make it without a ham bone.
You can use about 2 cups of diced ham, and instead of water, use low-sodium chicken broth.
Beans
The beans are usually white beans like navy or great northern beans. The navy beans are smaller and more traditional for this soup. They are so common that this soup is frequently called "White Bean and Ham Soup."
Mixtures of various beans are sold like 15 bean mix to make 15 Bean Soup and an excellent substitute. Or use the beans you like.
Precooked vs. Dry beans: Either dry or precooked beans will work fine in this recipe. The cooking time will decrease by a few hours with precooked beans vs. dry beans.
If you use precooked beans, you will need 48 ounces. You should drain the beans and rinse them well to decrease added salt. Of course, use low sodium products.
This was a great recipe to start using dry beans. And if you're on a budget, it makes this soup very cheap, considering you were going to toss that ham bone.
The 1 pound of dry will equal approximately three cans or one 48 oz jar of pre-cooked beans.
How to use dry beans
You should not just add dry beans and cook, although you will find recipes that don't soak. But, not the wisest answer in my experience.
Generally, dry beans should be soaked before cooking. It was always done in the "good old days." An overnight soak was always done to decrease the gas associated with beans having a non-absorbed carbohydrate. It helps some.
There is a "quick-soak" method to prepare dry beans that may be more effective. Bring the beans to a boil for a few minutes, remove them from heat, and allow them to rest for an hour.
Also, picking through the beans for pebbles and rocks was important. We frequently found them 50 years ago but none since then.
❓FAQs
The best way is to add a finely diced potato halfway through cooking. You can also add ¼ to ½ cup of potato flakes near the end of cooking.
The second method is to remove about a cup of beans, run them through a blender and mix them back into the soup.
I do not suggest corn starch since it may gel some with cooling and change the texture later.
You can also create a roux with flour and butter and add the last hour of cooking.
None other than the onion in the traditional soup. I suggest carrot and celery since they made it more interesting taste-wise.
A diced potato added halfway through cooking will help thicken some. You can also add a half or a full cup of mashed potatoes near the end to thicken.
All ham soups have a lot of animal fats. By refrigerating, the fat will come to the top and be solid. It can be removed, and your soup will be healthier.
I love Cornbread Biscuits or Old Fashioned Cornbread with this soup.
Good refrigerated for 3-4 days. Good in the freezer for 3-4 months.
📖 Other Ham Recipes
Puerto Rican Chuletón Soup AKA Xmas Ham Bone Soup
Ham Bone Vegetable Soup – Crock Pot Edition
This recipe is listed in these categories. See them for more similar recipes.
Have you tried this recipe, or have a question? Join the community discussion in the comments.
Step-by-Step Photo Instructions
A nice meaty ham bone and some simple ingredients are needed. Dry beans are in the picture, but you may use 48 oz. of precooked navy or great northern beans.
Rinse 1 pound of navy or great northern dry beans. Pick through the beans for any stones or pebbles. Cover with water and allow to soak overnight. The quick-soak method is discussed in the post.
Under running water, rinse any coating off a meaty ham bone. Also, scrape off any surface fat that you can. Add to a larger crock pot.
Dice two medium carrots, two celery ribs, and one medium onion. Carrot and celery are options but recommended.
Add the beans, carrots, celery, and onion to the crock pot. Add ½ teaspoon garlic powder, ½ teaspoon black pepper, and one bay leaf. Add 6 cups of water.
Cook on low for 8 hours total if using precooked beans and 10 hours for dry beans. Two hours before the end of cooking, remove the ham bone to a cutting board. Allow the bone to cool for 10-15 minutes. Then remove all meat from the bone. Discard bone and any fat and waste.
Place meat back into the cooker, stir well, and finish cooking. This is a good point to taste test for adding salt if needed.
If you have time, refrigerate overnight and scrape the fat off the top the next day before reheating.
📖 Recipe
Crock Pot Ham and Bean Soup
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Ingredients
- 1 pound dry navy beans - or great northern; see note about precooked beans
- 1 ham bone - meaty
- 2 carrots - medium - diced - optional
- 2 ribs celery - - diced - optional
- 1 onion - medium - diced
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- 1 bay leaf - optional
- 6 cups water
Instructions
- You may use one pound of dry beans or 48 oz. of pre-cooked beans.
- If using dry beans, rinse 1 pound of navy or great northern dry beans. Pick through the beans for any stones or pebbles. Cover with water and allow to soak overnight.
- Under running water, rinse any coating off a meaty ham bone. Also, scrape off any surface fat that you can. Add to a larger crock pot.
- Dice 2 medium carrots, two ribs celery, and one medium onion. Carrot and celery are options but recommended.
- Add the beans, carrots, celery, and onion to the crock pot. Add ½ teaspoon garlic powder, ½ teaspoon pepper, and one bay leaf. Add 6 cups of water.
- Cook on low for 8 hours total if precooked beans and 10 hours for dry beans. Two hours before the end of cooking, remove ham bone to a cutting board. Allow the bone to cool for 10-15 minutes. Then remove all meat from the bone. Discard bone and any fat and waste.
- Place meat back into the cooker and finish cooking. This is a good point to taste test for adding salt if needed.
- If you have time, refrigerate overnight and scrape the fat off the top the next day before reheating.
Recipe Notes
Pro Tips:
- Use a large crock pot of 6 quarts or above.
- Hambones (and hams) vary a lot. So this is like many recipes; these are guidelines and not rules.
- If yours is honey-coated or spiced heavily, you need to rinse as much of that off as possible. Also, scrape off surface fat.
- Most hams have LOTS of salt. Don't add any until you're sure you need it, and use low sodium products if possible.
- You can use pre-cooked navy or great northern beans. You will need 48 oz., and they should be drained and rinsed. Use low sodium is possible.
- Dried beans should have an overnight soak in water to decrease gas production.
- It is a good idea to cool this soup in the refrigerator and when cold, remove any fat on top.
- If you don't have a ham bone, you can still make this soup with about two cups of diced ham and use low-sodium chicken broth for the water.
- The total cooking time for the dry bean version is 10 hours and 8 hours using pre-cooked beans.
- Stores well refrigerated for 3-4 days. And will freeze well for 3-4 months.
Your Own Private Notes
To adjust the recipe size:
You may adjust the number of servings in this recipe card under servings. This does the math for the ingredients for you. BUT it does NOT adjust the text of the instructions. So you need to do that yourself.
Nutrition Estimate
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Editor's Note: Originally Published December 13, 2014. Updated with expanded options, refreshed photos, and a table of contents to help navigation.
Andie says
I am making this for the third time today! This is my go to for ham bone bean soup. I follow the recipe and use dry beans. Perfect every time! So tasty! Thank you!
Maria says
Hi. I plan on making this next week. I just want to know, how big is a serving?
Dan Mikesell AKA DrDan says
Hi Maria,
Welcome to the blog.
I have a honey-baked ham coming for Christmas, so I have plans for this for New Year's.
The volume and nutrition are a bit variable; You don't know how much meat, sodium, or fat cooks off the hambone. Having said that, I have done this recipe many times, and the serving size is usually 1 1/2 cup or a little more. So it is not a huge amount of soup like some other recipes.
I hope that helps. Enjoy some soup.
Dan
Christina says
My mom made this a lot when I was a kid. So excited to have come across this recipe as it’s exactly as I remember it. Lately, she started adding all kinds of uncommon leftovers like stuffing (I didn’t get to try it).
Alas, I am making this soup as I type and wondering if adding leftover turkey gravy at the end will thicken up the broth and still taste good!! I’ll keep you posted!!
Dan Mikesell AKA DrDan says
Hi Christina,
Welcome to the blog.
I hope the soup works for you. A suspect that adding the gravy will thicken some. The thickening works by the starch (usually flour) absorbing liquid. I think the ham taste will dominate the taste so it will probably taste fine.
Dan
Christina says
Thank you Dan! The soup turned out wonderfully and I ended up in a hurry and forgot to add the gravy after all! Since so much was eaten, I decided to add to what was leftover. So the next day I added more ham (this time, country style), chicken broth, and orzo (cooked in the pot after the broth came to a boil). Also added some dried thyme and parsley which really enchanted the already wonderful flavor!!! Thanks for sharing your recipe!
Karen says
I keep my recipe for this soup pretty simple. I prefer to use navy beans, don’t use chicken stock, carrots or celery. I use water, white onion and lots of ground black pepper with a meaty ham bone studded with whole cloves. This was my mother’s way of making it and I find it very tasty.
Trudy K Spicer says
I like Navy beans and I use half chicken broth and water in my bean soup. It really gives the soup a great flavor
Sam says
Try a bowl with a squirt of ketchup. Got that idea as kid from a neighbor who was a cook on a battleship in WWII.
DrDan says
Hi Sam,
Welcome to the blog. Sorry for the delayed response, a bit of minor surgery.
I love old ideas like this. And it sounds tasty.
Thanks for the note.
Dan
Carol says
In the crock pot now and thinking about adding spinach at the end of cooking time. Thoughts?
DrDan says
Hi Carol,
Welcome to the blog.
I see the spinach as a more "delicate" taste. I think the ham might just over power it. But it won't hurt to try.
Thanks for the note.
Dan
Carol says
Thanks for the quick response. I tried a small handful in a sample bowl and just let the heat of the soup wilt it. Didn’t like the texture it added. I’ll leave well enough alone! Thanks for the great recipe.
Heather C says
Super excited to have found this recipe! We make a ham along with turkey for Friendsgiving and I found your recipe yesterday - I appreciated the simplicity of it. I soaked the beans and let it sit all day in the crockpot. I used the immersion blender to make it a bit creamier - seriously the best soup ever. We are hot sauce people so we added a few dashes at the end and poured the soup over cornbread. Thank you for the awesome recipe!!
DrDan says
Hi Heather,
Welcome to the blog.
Glad it worked so well for you.
Thanks for the note.
Dan
Bill Conklin says
You can use instant mashed potatoes as a thickener. I also use my immersion blender.
Amy says
Just made this and it was amazing. I did add about 1/2 cup of left over mashed potatoes the last 30 minutes and it thickened up perfectly. Definitely making again.
Lynne says
What do you prefer to use : Northern beans or Navy beans- and why ? Love to hear everyone's responses as I am a new chef!
DrDan says
Hi Lynne,
Welcome to the blog.
Old habits die hard and if using dry, I tend to grab Navy beans. If precooked, I tend to buy Great Northern.
The obvious difference is the size. Navy is a bit smaller and the Great Northern is slightly bigger and slightly firmer.
I think I prefer the Great Northern a bit due to size. But when cooking dry, the smaller Navy bean will cook a little faster and I'm sure it is done.
So no big preference for me.
Dan
Jonette says
Used a honey baked ham bone, but the beans turned out too sweet. Any idea how to fix this?
DrDan says
Hi Jonette,
Welcome to the blog.
Most of mine are honey baked for the "Honey Baked Ham Store". A lot of running water to rinse off the sugar and if there is crust on it, take a knife to it. Some brands get the sugar down into the cuts on the meat and it will be hard to get them clean.
You are right, you need to get as much of the sugar gone as possible.
Dan
Ash the Homelyhappychef says
Hi Dr.Dan I have a ham bone from my family easter, I had removed almost all the meat, as much as possible anyway lol. It is mainly bone with a little bit of meat and not much fat on it from what I can tell. This is my first time making this soup, I remember it fondly from my early childhood. Would it still work with just the bone and some meat added?
DrDan says
Hi Ash,
You do need some "meat on the bone" so if you stripped it, you don't have much to work with. You could try it by adding some ham from elsewhere like a slice of ham from the meat department. I'm not sure how well that would work. Or just wait until next time.
Melissa says
I made this ham and bean soup for New Years Day. I made it with smoked ham hocks-it was absolutely fabulous. Super thick and tasty, effect for a winter day. I’m making it again tomorrow for my Community “Soup” Pot Luck. I’m sure it will be a major hit!! Thank you so much for such a GREAT recipe!! I’m now going to look at all of your other recipes as I believe they will be just as good.
DrDan says
Hi Melissa,
It is one of my favorite soups.
Thanks for the note.
Dan
Michele Anderer says
Do you put any broth in this?
Dan Mikesell AKA DrDan says
Hi Michele,
Welcome to the blog.
I doubt that Melissa will see this, so I will jump in.
No broth is needed as long as you have a ham bone and it is used as directed. That will produce its own broth. I do discuss an option in the post in the Ham Bone section making this without the bone and suggest broth if you do that.
Dan
Deborah Watson says
I made this soup tonight with a good, meaty hambone that had been frozen from our Christmas ham. Ample bone and about 1 lb of meat. Instead of using 2 crockpots, I cooked the soup on high instead of low and added the hambone after about 1.5 hours of cooking. Total cooking time was 5.5 hours. I also did not soak the beans but picked through them, rinsed them andded them straight away. The meat gave the broth a great flavor and it needed only a small amount of salt at the end. My last alteration was removing 1/3 of the beans and 2 cups of broth to a medium sized, deep container and using an immersion blender to puree it smooth to add thickness and body to the finished product without using cream/ milk and flour or cornstarch. This is a definite make again! Excellent comfort food! It was served with fresh, hot cornbread.
DrDan says
Hi Deborah,
Thanks for sharing your experience. Your thickening method is probably the preferred. At this point, I don't think corn starch is a good idea due to the trouble with reheating. Other options would be some potato flakes, tapioca or arrow root.
Thanks for the note.
Dan
Lynne says
This soup is incredibly good. I soaked a pound of white peas to use and found 8 hrs on low to be perfect in my 6 qt. pot. It didn't need any more spice and the smokey flavour from my spiral ham gave it the right touch. After it was done I added about a tbsp. of potatoe starch to thicken it up a bit. My husband raved about it and I will definately be making this version again....thank so much
Terry says
Hi Doc, love your site. I'm making ham and bean soup as I type. My recipe is very similar except I use chicken broth instead of water (or 4 cps broth 2 cps water) and don't soak the beans (I don't get the gas). I also add a teaspoon of thyme and rosemary and about 1/8 cup of ketchup and a teaspoon of red wine vinegar. Give it a try. Like you say recipes are guidelines, and I'm always tweaking recipes to my liking. I also am impressed with your recipe calculator so much I made my own excel spreadsheet to mimic it, I bet many don't know it's even there. Thanks for that and having recipes for us that don't have children at home anymore (retired folks).. and hate wasting food, nice. Wonderful job keep it up.
DrDan says
Hi Terry,
Glad you are enjoying the site. It is a great hobby for me. I'm glad you saw the "guidelines" comment. That is something many people just don't understand about recipes. But I try to make them complete enough as written for most people.
You soup modifications sound great but watch the salt.
Thanks for the note.
Dan