Slow Cooker Ham and Bean Soup

The day after Easter or Christmas, when the ham was down to the bone and a few good slices, Grandma knew exactly what was for supper the next night. Out came the bag of navy beans she’d been soaking since morning, the ham bone went into her biggest pot, and by evening the whole house smelled like somebody loved you. That soup was her favorite kind of cooking — nothing wasted, everybody fed.

This is her soup, moved to the slow cooker so it can simmer away while the day happens. The beans go in with the bone, diced ham, carrots, onion and celery, and seven quiet hours later you have a broth that’s rich and smoky all on its own, beans that are tender clean through, and ham that falls into shreds with the touch of a fork.

It’s humble food, and it knows it. Serve it with a pan of cornbread for dunking and there will not be a single complaint at the table — there never was at Grandma’s.

Why This Recipe Works

• The ham bone does the seasoning — a meaty bone simmers all day and turns plain water into a smoky, rich broth with no stock cubes and no fuss.
• Beans soaked overnight — soaked beans cook up tender and even in the slow cooker, with no hard centers hiding in the bowl.
• Salt goes in last — ham is salty and beans toughen if they’re salted too soon; seasoning at the end gives you tender beans and a soup that’s salted just right.

Slow Cooker Ham and Bean Soup

Navy beans, a leftover ham bone and sweet vegetables simmered all day in the slow cooker until the broth is smoky and rich. The day-after-the-holiday soup Grandma lived by.

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Prep Time 15 minutes mins

Cook Time 7 hours hrs

Total Time 7 hours hrs 15 minutes mins

Servings: 8

Course: Dinner

Cuisine: American

Calories: 325

Ingredients Method Notes

Ingredients

  

• 1 lb dried navy beans about 2 1/4 cups, picked over, rinsed and soaked overnight
• 1 meaty leftover ham bone or ham hock about 1 lb
• 2 cups diced cooked ham
• 1 large yellow onion diced
• 3 medium carrots peeled and sliced into rounds
• 3 celery ribs diced
• 3 garlic cloves minced
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 tsp dried thyme
• 1/2 tsp black pepper plus more to taste
• 7 cups water or low-sodium chicken broth
• Salt to taste (added at the end)
• 1 tbsp chopped fresh parsley optional, for serving

Method

 

1. Pick over the beans and throw out any little stones or shriveled beans. Rinse, cover with plenty of cold water, and soak overnight (8–12 hours). Drain and rinse again before cooking.
2. Put the soaked beans in a 6-quart slow cooker. Add the ham bone right in the middle, then the diced ham, onion, carrots, celery and garlic.
3. Pour in the water, then add the bay leaf, thyme and black pepper. Don’t add salt yet — the ham will salt the pot as it cooks.
4. Cover and cook on LOW for 7–8 hours (or HIGH for 3 1/2–4 hours), until the beans are completely tender and starting to fall apart at the edges.
5. Lift out the ham bone and bay leaf. When the bone is cool enough to handle, pull off every bit of meat, shred it, and stir it back into the soup. Throw the bone and bay leaf away.
6. For a thicker, creamier broth, mash some of the beans right in the pot: press a potato masher in a few times, or scoop out 2 cups of soup, blend until smooth, and stir it back in.
7. Taste, then salt a little at a time until it tastes right — every ham is different. Rest 10 minutes off the heat, sprinkle with parsley if you like, and serve hot with cornbread.

Notes

Make ahead: this soup is even better the next day, once the flavors have had a night to get acquainted. Make it a full day ahead and reheat gently.

Stovetop version: simmer everything in a Dutch oven over low heat, covered, for 1 1/2–2 hours, stirring now and then and adding a splash of water if it gets too thick, until the beans are tender. Finish the same way.

Leftovers keep 4–5 days in the fridge (the soup thickens as it sits — thin with a little water when reheating) and freeze beautifully for up to 3 months.

No time to soak? Cover the beans with water, boil 2 minutes, rest off the heat 1 hour, drain, and cook as directed, adding 30–60 minutes to the slow cooker time.

Nutrition is an estimate per serving.

Grandma’s Tips

1. Always save the ham bone. A holiday ham bone is a pot of soup waiting to happen. Wrap it and freeze it — it’ll keep 3 months, ready for a bean-soup day.
2. Never salt beans at the start. Salt and acid early on can keep bean skins tough. Season at the end and the beans will be tender every time.
3. Mash a few beans for body. Grandma never used flour or cream in this soup. A few mashed beans melt into the broth and make it taste like it cooked all day — because it did.
4. Use water, not broth, if your ham is good. A meaty bone makes its own broth. Save the boxed broth for a boneless day, and you’ll taste the ham cleaner.
5. The cornbread is not optional. In Grandma’s house this soup was never served without it. The sweet crumb against the smoky beans is the whole point.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I have to soak the beans first?

It’s strongly recommended. Soaked beans cook evenly and tender in the slow cooker and are easier on everyone’s stomach. If you forgot, use the quick-soak in the notes and give the soup a little extra time.

Can I use canned beans instead?

You can, in a pinch. Use four 15-oz cans of navy or great northern beans, drained and rinsed, cut the water to 4 cups, and cook on LOW just 3–4 hours — canned beans only need to soak up flavor, not soften. The flavor won’t be quite as deep.

Why are my beans still hard?

Usually one of three things: the beans were old (dried beans past a year or so may never soften), the soak was skipped, or salt or something acidic went in at the start. Keep cooking and add hot water — most beans come around with another hour.

Can I make this with a ham hock or smoked turkey?

Yes. A ham hock works exactly like the bone (you may want the extra diced ham too, since hocks are less meaty). A smoked turkey leg makes a fine soup in the same pot, in the same way.

Can I freeze ham and bean soup?

It freezes better than almost any soup — beans and all — for up to 3 months. Cool it completely, freeze in portions, thaw overnight in the fridge, and reheat gently with a splash of water.