Ham and Bean Soup

 10 November 2022

Recipe from Cook's Country, December 2007

My search for a good bean soup continues. I have tried various recipes over the course of many years but I have yet to hit upon one that I liked well enough to make on a regular basis. I don't recall how I found this old recipe from Cook's Country but it looks promising. It is a simple recipe with just a few ingredients and simple directions. Will this be the one?

One pound of dried small white beans (in lieu of dried navy beans as I cannot find them in local stores) was soaked in cold water over night. Vegetable oil was heated in a Dutch oven and used to brown diced ham. Diced onion, carrots, and celery were added and cooked until softened. Minced garlic was added and cooked briefly followed by the addition of water, chicken stock, ham hocks, and the beans. The mixture was brought to a boil then simmered until the beans were tender. The hocks were removed then minced fresh thyme, black pepper, red wine vinegar, and salt were added. Total time, excluding soaking of the beans, was 3 hours.

We liked this soup when it was freshly made and even better, as is expected for soups, as a leftover. The beans are nice and tender without being mushy and the broth has a nice, smoky flavor. Meat from the ham hocks was tough and so can be omitted. The prep time was about half an hour. The ham took longer than predicted to brown because it gave off a lot of liquid. The initial boiling generated foam which dissipated as the soup simmered. I think this is the best bean soup I have made and unless I find something better it will become the go-to recipe!