Navy Bean Bacon Soup Canning Recipes

NAVY BEAN AND BACON SOUP

Steps:

• Pick over the beans and soak them in water for at least eight hours.
• Slice the bacon into half-inch strips and fry them until they're brown and crispy. Drain the bacon thoroughly and pour away all but about two tablespoons of the fat. (You can save the fat for other uses, as it has a nice smoky flavor.).
• Chop the onion and saute it in the reserved bacon fat until it's soft and translucent.
• Peel the garlic and slice the cloves into halves or thirds vertically. Add to the frying onions. Be extremely careful not to burn the garlic, as that will make it bitter and nasty.
• Put the soaked beans, fried bacon, sauteed onion and garlic, peppercorns, and bay leaves into the pressure cooker. Add water to cover by about an inch, Stir and process for 11 minutes under pressure. Allow to cool naturally (don't vent). Or, cook at a low simmer until the beans are soft all the way through.
• Remove the bay leaves and wizz with a stick blender to make a puree. Add the salt carefully, stirring thoroughly after each addition, until it tastes good to you. The amount, 2 tsp, is just an approximation, because the saltiness of the bacon varies.

BEST NAVY BEAN & BACON SOUP

Steps:

• In the bottom of your pot, saute celery, garlic, carrot, onion, and bacon until the bacon is cooked through and the vegetables are soft.
• Add navy beans and chicken broth to the vegetables.
• Simmer until heated through.
• Add seasoning to taste.
• Bring to a boil, then lower heat and simmer for 20 minutes or so.
• If soup gets too thick, add more chicken broth.
• Discard bacon.
• Remove half of soup and place in a blender or food processor. Pulse a few times and add mixture back to the pot.
• Serve with fresh chopped green onions. Can substitue other fresh onions if desired.
• Diced ham may be substituted for bacon and left in the soup.

NAVY BEAN & BACON SOUP (CANNING)

Steps:

• Notes: 1 medium onion is about a cup; 2 medium stalks celery is about 1 cup; 1 lb pkg carrots is about 4 cups; 5 medium potatoes is about 8 cups.
• Combine all ingredients except bacon and onion in large pot.
• Cook over medium heat until soft.
• Cut bacon into small pieces and fry in skillet.
• Remove bacon and cook onion in bacon grease until soft.
• Add bacon and onion to bean mixture and heat until it simmers.
• Taste for salt and pepper.
• Remove bay leaves before putting in jars.
• Fill hot mixture into sterilized jars, filling to within 1" of tops of jars.
• Pressure can 1 hour at 10 lbs.