This old fashioned navy bean soup is my favorite way to use leftover ham from a Holiday dinner. So hearty with tons of healthy veggies and flavorful with homemade ham broth and fresh herbs. And it makes a ton of soup for leftover lunches or for the freezer.
Why this soup is just so good....
- Don't we love using up leftover ingredients from one meal to create another delicious simple meal? It's a great way to save time and money. This soup is so perfect to use a ham shank or ham bone to make a flavorful broth.
- It makes a huge amount of soup. Since this soup is even better the next day as the flavors meld together, you'll love that it makes so many different meals. Also, there is plenty left over to freeze.
- Beans are so nutritious and full of fiber. And with the addition of all the vegetables, this soup is a lower carb, healthy meal.
Some other favorite bean soup recipes to try: Lima bean soup and Butter bean stew.
Ingredients
You need these ingredients to make this delicious navy bean soup recipe:
- white beans, rinsed
- leftover ham bone
- water
- chopped ham
- vegetable or chicken stock low sodium
- olive oil
- yellow onion, chopped
- carrots, peeled and chopped
- celery stalks, chopped
- red pepper, chopped
- red cabbage (or coleslaw mix)
- fresh thyme or dried
- fresh rosemary or dried
- bay leaf
- garlic powder
- crushed red pepper flakes *
- salt and black pepper
Ingredient Notes
- The ham is from a butt portion with very little fat on it. You could also use a shank portion or whatever leftover ham you choose.
- If you don't have a leftover ham bone, you can use a large ham steak to cut up for the meat. You would have to buy ham broth or extra chicken or vegetable broth instead.
- Since we are using dried navy beans and not canned beans, the soup has less sodium. If you do use canned, make sure you rinse and drain well. Some other options are Cannellini beans, Pinto or Great Northern beans.
How to Presoak Beans
- There are two main ways to presoak beans in preparation for cooking. According to NY Times, To soak beans the traditional way, cover them with water by 2 inches, add 2 tablespoons coarse kosher salt (or 1 tablespoon fine salt) per pound of beans, and let them soak for at least 4 hours or up to 12 hours. Drain them and rinse before using.
- The quick soak method allows you to make a pot of beans within a few hours flat without sacrificing flavor or texture. Put the beans in a pot on the stove, cover with water by two inches, add salt if you like, and bring to a boil. Turn off the heat and let them soak for an hour. Drain, rinse and proceed with your recipe.
- Or you can decide not to presoak your beans. You would need to cook them an extra 1 - 2 hours to make sure they are soft enough. A good way to test is to press the beans with the back of a spoon. The beans should feel medium softened and will continue to soften as they cook.
- If you use a ham steak instead of a leftover ham bone, for best results, don't add salt to the soup before tasting after it has cooked. If you feel it needs it, then add it then.
How to make Old Fashioned Navy Bean Soup
- Remove ham from bone, chop and reserve about 2 cups. Use the rest in casserole, salad or freeze.
- To make ham broth for soup: Fill large pot with the 6 cups of water to cover bone. Bring to boil, turn down to low heat and simmer for 1 - 1 ½ hours. Discard ham bone and strain broth.
- Determine your choice of presoaking the beans. I prefer the overnight method. Rinse beans, drain. Fill large soup pot or Dutch oven with cold water to cover beans by about 2 inches. Let soak for 12 hours, rinse again and drain.
- Heat olive oil in large soup pot and saute' the vegetables until softened and slightly browned, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and stir well.
- Pour in the remaining ingredients, ham broth, additional vegetable or chicken broth, ham, soaked beans and herbs. Stir well.
- Cover and bring to a boil. Lower heat and simmer for 30 - 40 minutes or until beans and vegetables are cooked through.
- Remove dried herbs and bay leaves, serve hot with bread for dunking.
Cooking Tips
- To avoid hard bits in the beans, make sure they are softened enough before putting in the soup. Press down on a few and they should be tender but still a bit firm. Don't overcook or they will get mushy.
- If you use a ham steak instead of a leftover ham bone, for best results, don't add salt to the soup before tasting after it has cooked. If you feel it needs it, then add it then.
- Stir the soup frequently to avoid the beans sticking to the bottom of the pot. And cook on a low-medium simmer to avoid overcooking.
- Add salt to the soup last. Taste as you go is the best method.!
Storage and Reheating
- The soup will keep in the refrigerator for about 3 days. Store in air tight containers. Reheat in a pan on the stovetop for 3 minutes or until hot. Add a little water if it too thick.
- You can freeze the cooled soup in airtight containers for 3-4 months. Defrost overnight in the refrigerator.
FAQ
Some people prefer their soup very 'brothy' and some like a thicker soup. This soup is very hearty and filling with all the vegetables. But you may like it a bit creamier or thicker without adding cream or flour. The easiest way is to use an immersion blender to puree some of the beans and/or vegetables. You can do this while the soup is still in the pot. If you don't have an immersion blender, use a potato masher and mash by hand.
Since this is such a rich and filling soup you may not need to add much to the meal. We always love to have some type of bread or roll to dunk into the broth. Try Keto Corn Muffins or Keto Yeast Rolls.
Soup and salad is a pretty standard meal choice as well. You can try one of these salads with any soup; Butter lettuce salad, Red lettuce salad.
If you tried this recipe and enjoyed it, I'd love if you gave it a 5 star rating. This tells me what you like and want to see more of. Thank you!
Try these other delicious soup recipes!
Old Fashioned Navy Bean Soup
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 2 hours
- Total Time: 2 hours 15 minutes
- Yield: 10 servings 1x
- Category: Dinner
- Method: Stove Top
- Cuisine: American
Description
This navy bean soup is my favorite way to use leftover Holiday ham! So hearty with tons of healthy veggies and flavorful with homemade ham broth and fresh herbs. And it makes a ton of soup for leftover lunches or for the freezer.
Ingredients
- 1 pound white navy beans, rinsed
- 1 leftover ham bone
- 6 cups water
- 2 cups chopped ham
- 2 - 3 cups vegetable or chicken broth, low sodium
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 yellow onion, chopped
- 3 medium carrots, peeled and chopped
- 2 medium celery stalks, chopped
- 1 small red pepper, chopped
- 1 ½ cups red cabbage (or coleslaw mix)
- 3 sprigs thyme or 1 teaspoon dried
- 2 sprigs fresh rosemary or 1 teaspoon dried
- 3 dried bay leaves
- 2 teaspoons garlic powder
- ¼ - 1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes *
- salt and black pepper to taste
Instructions
- Determine your choice of presoaking the beans. I prefer the overnight method. Rinse beans, drain. Fill large soup pot with water to cover beans by about 2 inches. Let soak for 12 hours, rinse again and drain.
2. Remove ham from bone, chop and reserve about 2 cups. Freeze the rest.
3.To make ham broth for soup: Fill large pot with the 6 cups of water to cover bone. Bring to boil, turn down to low heat and simmer for 1 - 1 ½ hours. Discard ham bone and strain broth.
4. Heat olive oil in large soup pot and saute' the vegetables until softened and slightly browned, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and stir well.
5. Pour in the ham broth, additional vegetable or chicken broth, ham, beans and herbs. Stir well.
6. Cover and bring to a boil. Lower heat and simmer for 30 - 40 minutes or until beans and vegetables are cooked through.
7.Remove herbs and bay leaves, serve hot with bread for dunking.
Notes
* Before soaking the beans, look through them in a strainer and remove any little stones or hard bits in the pile of beans.
* Taste the soup before adding salt, pepper or red pepper flakes.
*Use low sodium broths since the ham is salty.
*The cabbage is added for making the soup a bit more filling and hearty, but still low carb. If you don't care for cabbage, simply leave it out, the soup will be still be healthy and delicious!
*The total cooking time does not include the 12 hours 'overnight soak method'.
Melissa says
Can you leave out the cabbage?
Deb Belsha says
Yes absolutely! The cabbage is purely optional for garnish or if you like a bit of crunchy texture. Definitely let me know if you try it, it is one our favorites and freezes really well.