Classic Ham Bean Soup Recipes

CLASSIC HAM & BEAN SOUP

Steps:

• Place beans into 5- to 6-quart heavy saucepan; cover with water to 2 inches above beans. Cook over high heat until water comes to a boil. Boil 3 minutes; remove from heat. Cover; let beans soak 1 hour. Rinse; drain.
• Return beans to saucepan. Add ham shank, water, chicken broth, onion, celery, garlic and bay leaf. Cook over medium-high heat 8-10 minutes or until mixture comes to a boil. Reduce heat to low. Cover; cook 85-90 minutes or until beans are tender.
• Remove ham shanks with tongs. Cool slightly. Cut meat from bone; discard bone, fat and skin.
• Chop meat; add back to soup. Add carrots, bell pepper, salt and pepper. Cook over medium-high heat 5-6 minutes or until mixture comes to a boil. Reduce heat to low; cook until carrots are tender.
• Heat oven to 400°F.
• Brush both sides of baguette slices with melted butter. Place bread slices onto ungreased baking sheet. Bake 3-5 minutes or until bottoms begin to turn golden brown. Turn slices over; sprinkle with chopped parsley, if desired.
• Serve toasted bread slices with soup.

HAM AND BEAN SOUP

Steps:

• 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.

OLD-FASHIONED HAM AND BEAN SOUP

Steps:

• Prepare the beans: rinse and discard broken or discolored ones. Bring water to a boil and flavor it with salt. Remove from heat and add the beans. Let the beans soften in the hot water for at least 1 hour.
• After soaking, place the pot on high heat and add the ham bone, carrots, celery, onion, garlic, mustard powder, and bay leaves. Stir well and bring to a boil. Reduce to low heat and let the soup simmer for 1 more hour.
• Remove the ham bone and stir in the chopped ham. Let it simmer for 30 more minutes, stirring occasionally. Season with ground white pepper to taste. Serve hot and enjoy!

OLD FASHIONED BEAN AND HAM SOUP

Steps:

• Put rinsed beans in pan and cover up to 2 inches past beans in large pot -- let sit overnight.
• Drain, put beans back in pot, add water and the rest of ingredients.
• Bring to boil, turn to simmer and cover.
• Simmer for at least 3 hours or until beans are soft.
• Take out bones and dice up any meat on bones and put back into pot -- You can add more ham if you want.
• Discard fat and bones.
• Season to taste with pepper and salt and parsley.