Ham and bean soup made with your favorite mix of beans, diced ham, veggies, and savory seasonings is the perfect cold weather comfort food.
This classic ham and bean soup recipe can be made on the stove top, in the slow cooker, or with an instant pot. Serve it with your favorite fresh bread like our no knead beer bread or even a slice of homemade white bread!
Ham and Bean Soup
Ham and Bean Soup
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Ham and Bean Soup Ingredients
- 15 bean soup blend – If it comes with a spice or seasoning packet, you can discard it. Alternatively, choose your favorite combination of beans that amounts to 20 ounces of dried beans.
- Soup stock – Chicken stock or vegetable stock. Broth will also work.
- Ham – Cooked, diced ham.
- Onion – Yellow onion, diced. White onion can be substituted.
- Carrots – Peeled and sliced.
- Celery stalks – Sliced.
- Garlic – Minced. Fresh will give you the most robust flavor, but jarred also works.
- Bay leaf – Whole/dried.
- Salt and pepper – To taste.
Stock, vegetables, ham, and beans.
How do you make ham and bean soup? (step-by-step)
⭐ First, discard the seasoning packet that came with your bean blend. Rinse beans and soak overnight, if desired.
⭐ Then, drain beans and rinse. Add beans, ham, onion, carrots, celery, garlic, and bay leaf to pot. Pour broth over and stir to combine.
⭐ Next, cook until beans are tender.
⭐ Finally, remove bay leaf and season with salt and pepper, to taste.
Combine everything in your cooking vessel, then mix well.
Stove top ham and bean soup
To make this on the stove, add soaked beans, ham, onion, carrots, celery, garlic, stock and bay leaf to a heavy stock pot (I am partial to using our enameled cast iron). Stir, then simmer covered for at least two hours, or until beans are tender. Remove bay leaf and season with salt and pepper, to taste.
Crock pot ham and bean soup
To make this in a slow cooker, add soaked beans, ham, onion, carrots, celery, garlic, stock and bay leaf to the slow cooker. Stir, then cook on low for up to 10 hours or high for up to 6 hours. Remove bay leaf and season with salt and pepper, to taste.
Instant pot ham and bean soup
For the instapot, add soaked beans, ham, onion, carrots, celery, garlic, stock and bay leaf to the pot. Stir, then cover and turn to sealing. Set pot for 15 minutes, then allow a 15 minute natural pressure release. Remove bay leaf and season with salt and pepper, to taste.
Cook until beans are tender.
Preparation
What type of beans for ham and bean soup?
We used a 15 bean soup blend so we’d have a wide variety of beans, but you can use any kind you like! I love making this with all cannellini beans or white northern beans too.
Can I use canned beans in ham and bean soup?
Absolutely! The recipe calls for 20 ounces of dried beans, so you’ll want to use four or five 15 ounce cans of beans as a substitute.
Drain and rinse before adding to the recipe, but there’s no need to soak canned beans.
Do I have to soak my dry beans?
This is a matter of preference. Despite what you may have heard, un-soaked beans will cook and will not make you sick.
That said soaking beans reduces the amount of time they need to cook, it will also give the cooked beans a the best possible finished texture.
Can you make ham and bean soup ahead of time?
Yes, this soup is a great option for making a large batch at the beginning of the week and enjoying it for lunches all week long.
Make sure to remove the bay leaf before serving.
Storage and leftovers
How long is ham and bean soup good?
Leftovers will keep up to a week in the refrigerator. For best results, store in an airtight container. Reheat in the microwave on high power or on the stove top over medium heat.
Can you freeze ham and bean soup?
Absolutely! Allow the soup to cool, then store in a freezer-safe container for up to 6 months. Make sure to leave headroom in the container for expansion.
Thaw overnight in the refrigerator or directly on the stove top while heating up.
Try adding some jalapeno or crushed red pepper if you like it spicy.
Tips, tricks, and frequently asked questions
How do you make it spicy?
My husband likes his soup on the spicy side so he’ll often add pickled jalapenos, or crushed red pepper to the bowl. If you want to make the whole pot spicy, try adding one or two diced jalapeno peppers to the soup while it cooks or some ground chipotle to taste (I like smoked!).
How do you thicken ham and bean soup?
The easiest wat to thicken your soup is to add a cornstarch slurry at the end. Whisk together equal parts cornstarch and cold water then stir it into the simmering soup until you reach the desired consistency.
I like to work in 1 tablespoon starch + 1 tablespoon water increments. Do not add straight cornstarch to your hot soup or it will clump.
Try swapping the ham for hot Italian sausage for a kick!
What to eat with ham and bean soup (serving suggestions)
I love to enjoy this with homemade crusty French bread or quick yeast dinner rolls. For dessert maybe a slice of Dutch apple pie or classic chocolate cake.
If you don’t have diced ham, try using a couple ham hocks, then cutting the meat off when it’s cooked.
More delicious soup recipes
- Creamy pumpkin soup
- Taco soup recipe
- Easy beer cheese soup
- Lasagna soup
- Homemade stuffed pepper soup
- See all our soup recipes!
This soup is a great place to use up vegetable leftovers. Toss in whatever you have going on in the crisper drawer!
Other recipes with ham to try
- Brown sugar glazed ham
- Ham salad recipe
- Apricot glazed ham
- Cheesy scalloped potatoes and ham
- Classic club sandwich
- See all our delicious recipes with ham!
Ham is salty by its nature, so make sure not to add any extra salt until you’ve tasted the finished dish.
Enjoy these bean recipes next
- Pork and beans casserole
- Classic baked beans
- White chicken chili
- Chili cornbread casserole
- Crock pot beef chili recipe
My kids love a little fresh grated parmesan on theirs too.
Tools we love
- Enameled cast iron pot – This is a great and super versatile pot that can be used in both the oven and on the stove top.
- Slow cooker – A slow cooker is fantastic for getting dinner prep done in the morning and coming home to a cooked meal!
- Instant pot – My favorite way to save a night when I forgot to plan for dinner!
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How to make ham and bean soup
Ham and Bean Soup
Ingredients
- 20 ounces dried beans we used a bag of 15 bean soup blend
- 8 cups stock chicken or vegetable
- 1 pound cooked ham diced
- 1 yellow onion diced
- 2 carrots medium sized, sliced
- 3 celery stalks medium sized, sliced
- 1 tablespoon minced garlic
- 1 bay leaf
- salt & pepper to taste
Instructions
STOVE TOP
- Rinse beans, then add to a large pot and cover with water and soak overnight in the refrigerator (about 8 hours). Drain water and rinse once more.
- Note: If using beans from a soup mix, discard seasoning packet.
- Add broth, beans, ham, onion, carrots, celery, garlic and bay leaf to soup pot. Stir and bring to a simmer on medium high heat.
- Turn heat down to low, cover, and continue to simmer for at least two hours or until beans are tender.
- Note: if you are choosing not to soak beans, increase cook time to at least 4 hours for best results.
- Remove the bay leaf and season with salt and pepper to taste.
SLOW COOKER
- Rinse beans, then add to a large pot and cover with water and soak overnight in the refrigerator (about 8 hours). Drain water and rinse once more.
- Note: If using beans from a soup mix, discard seasoning packet.
- Add broth, beans, ham, onion, carrots, celery, garlic and bay leaf to soup inner pot. Stir and cover. Set to high and cook for 4 -6 hours or low and cook for 8- 10 hours, until beans are tender.
- Remove the bay leaf and season with salt and pepper to taste.
INSTANT POT
- Rinse beans, then add to a large pot and cover with water and soak overnight in the refrigerator (about 8 hours). Drain water and rinse once more.
- Note: If using beans from a soup mix, discard seasoning packet.
- Add broth, beans, ham, onion, carrots, celery, garlic and bay leaf to soup inner pot. Stir, cover, and set to sealing. Cook on manual (high pressure) for 25 minutes, then allow a 15 minute natural pressure release.
- Note: if you are choosing not to soak beans, increase cook time to 45 minutes.
- Release remaining pressure carefully, pausing if it sputters.
- Remove the bay leaf and season with salt and pepper to taste.
Notes
The recipe calls for 20 ounces of dried beans, so you’ll want to use four or five 15 ounce cans of beans as a substitute. Drain and rinse before adding to the recipe. Soaking versus not soaking
Despite what you may have heard, un-soaked beans will cook and will not make you sick. That said soaking beans reduces the amount of time they need to cook, it will also give the cooked beans a the best possible finished texture.
Nutrition
Ham and Bean Soup
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Andrea Thueson says
My family loved this soup; it was so full of flavor! The perfect hearty winter soup!
katerina says
Such a warm and hearty soup! I love the flavors!
Natasha says
I made this soup for dinner tonight and my family cannot stop raving about how good it is. My family absolutely LOVED it! I have tried a lot of your recipes and was never disappointed.
Hope says
Add broth the same time as vegetables?
April Woods says
Yes, just fixed the instructions. Thanks!
Mark says
I love using ham hocks in the slow cooker. Couple should be fone