A hearty soup is an easy meal and the perfect way to enjoy leftover ham.
This hearty homemade ham and bean soup recipe is easy to make – no soaking required! A mixture of beans, ham, onion, and broth simmer in the crockpot for a meal that is as easy as it is delicious!
Serve it with a piece of cornbread or a crusty loaf for dipping.
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I am excited to have partnered with Hurst’s HamBeens® 15 BEAN SOUP® to bring you this belly-warming bean soup recipe.
Hearty Homestyle Goodness
- A hearty family meal, this slow cooker Ham and Bean Soup recipe is easy to prepare.
- This simple soup requires few ingredients, starting with Hurst’s® HamBeens® 15 Bean Soup®, onions, and ham – no soaking required.
- Budget-friendly, this soup can be made with leftover ham or a ham bone from Christmas or Easter dinner. You can also use smoked turkey or a ham hock.
- This soup freezes perfectly and reheats well.
Ingredients for Ham and Bean Soup
- Beans – This ham and bean soup starts with a blend of dried beans. I use Hurst’s® HamBeens® 15 Bean Soup® as it has a great variety of beans including great northern beans, navy beans, and more. They are sold in the dry bean section of almost any grocery store or online.
- Seasoning – Hurst’s 15 Bean Soup includes a seasoning packet to flavor. If you don’t have the seasoning packet add a cube of bouillon (any flavor). You can also add dried herbs or bay leaves if you’d like. You can add a little bit of thyme or some minced cloves of garlic if you’d like.
- Ham – If you have a leftover ham bone from baked ham add it to the soup while it’s cooked for extra flavor. If you don’t have a ham bone, ask the butcher or deli for either ham bones (they’re usually inexpensive) or ham hocks. If you don’t have either, leftover chopped ham works beautifully in this recipe, too.
- Broth – As the ham adds a lot of salt, I prefer a reduced sodium broth in this recipe.
- Vegetables – Canned tomatoes are great in this recipe and can be replaced with canned tomatoes with chilis (like Rotel) to add a little bit of spice. Sliced celery or carrots can be added.
How to Make Slow Cooker Ham and Bean Soup
- Rinse beans and add to the slow cooker with onions, ham, broth, and seasonings (per the recipe below).
- Cook on high for 5 hours (or low for 7-8) or until beans are tender.
- Stir in the remaining ingredients and cook for an additional 30 minutes.
Easy peasy! Serve warm with cornbread for dipping.
Important: Do not add acidic ingredients, like canned tomatoes, until the beans are soft.
Tips for Bean Soup
- Rinse the beans well and check for any debris. No soaking is needed when using a slow cooker.
- If you have already soaked the beans, you can reduce the liquid in the recipe by 1 cup.
- IMPORTANT: Add acidic ingredients (such as canned tomatoes or lemon juice) after the beans have softened (these ingredients can sometimes interfere with rehydration).
- For a thinner consistency, add one extra cup of broth or water to your slow cooker. For a thicker bean soup, remove a cup or so of the beans, blend them, and add them back into the soup.
Storing Leftovers
Fridge: Leftovers can be kept in the refrigerator for up to 4 days in an airtight container.
Freezer: This ham and bean soup recipe makes a large batch and it freezes well. I divide it into individual portions so it’s easy to thaw as many portions as needed. Thaw in the fridge overnight and heat in the microwave or on the stovetop.
More Favorite Bean Soups
Did your family love this Slow Cooker Ham and Bean Soup? Be sure to leave a rating and a comment below!
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 package HamBeens® 15 BEAN SOUP® with seasoning packet
- 8 cups reduced sodium chicken broth or chicken stock
- 1 meaty ham bone or ham hocks, diced ham or 1 lb. cooked sausage
- 1 medium yellow onion diced
- 1 clove garlic minced
- 1 teaspoon chili powder optional
- 15 ounces canned diced tomatoes with juices, 1 can
- 1 lemon juiced
- hot sauce or red pepper flakes to taste, optional
Instructions
- Rinse the beans and drain. Sort any unwanted debris and set seasoning packet aside.
- In a 6qt crockpot, add the beans, broth, ham bone (if using), onion, garlic, and chili powder in a 6qt slow cooker. Do not add lemon or tomatoes until the beans are softened.
- Cook on high for 5 hours (or low for 7-8) or until the beans are tender.
- Once the beans are tender, remove the ham bone (if using), chop any meat left on the bone, and add it back to the slow cooker.
- Stir in the diced tomatoes, ham seasoning packet, and lemon juice.
- Cook for an additional 30 minutes. Season with salt and black pepper to taste and garnish with fresh parsley if desired.
Video
Notes
Nutrition Information
Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.
Course Pork, Slow Cooker, Soup
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I am excited to have partnered with Hurst’s HamBeens® 15 BEAN SOUP® to bring you this belly-warming recipe. While I was compensated for this post, all thoughts and opinions are my own. Working with great brands I love allows me to keep bringing you the great recipes you love!
My family loved this recipe. It was very flavorful and easy to make. Thanks for sharing!
I’m so glad your family loved it Loretta!
I tried the recipe today, and that is the best soup I’ve ever had. It’s perfect comfort food for a cold day. Thank you for sharing this recipe
I’m so glad you loved it Sharon!
Is there a meat substitute you would recommend for vegetarians?
I haven’t tried this with a meat substitute.
WOW! I just found this recipe and cooked it for dinner tonight. What a way to kick-off the fall season! Absolutely delicious and everything turned out perfectly. I will look forward to trying this with a ham bone, I just used a package of cubed ham and even that turned out great. I just need to make a mental note to make more corn bread next time! :)
Glad you enjoyed it Chelsea. You’ll love it with a ham bone!
This is absolutely DELICIOUS! Husband said the best hes ever had (and trust me, hes had a lot! )…followed the recipe exactly as written using leftover ham. Will definitely be making this again! Thanks for the awesome recipe !
So glad that you and your husband loved this as much as we do!
Hey there, I’m making this as we speak. If I just accidentally added the seasoning packet at the beginning of the cook time instead, will it mess anything up?
It should hopefully work out ok! Sometimes added salt can interfere with rehydration of the beans.
I think tomatoes and green chilis (rotel) instead of diced tomatoes would be good in this. I want to make it!
That sounds great! Let us know how it works for you Deborah!
I just made this bean soup. It is awesome! Cooked it on low for 8 hours and used a big meaty ham bone I had in the freezer. Had some smoked bacon and added it too. Canned two jars and enjoyed the rest. The beans add color to a normally blah looking soup lol. Will definitely add this one to my card box.
So glad you enjoyed it Dave!
This is an awesome soup..it was easy to make! I altered a little bit by using 2 big chicken broth boxes and 2 cans of diced tomatoes.
I will be making it again!
I’ve made this several times and it’s my favorite slow cooker meal by far! Super easy and delicious!!
So glad you loved it has much as we do!
My husband said he thought these were the best beans he has ever ate. I , myself liked them better before adding the tomato’s. It’s a win win situation, I can remove some of the soup before adding the tomatoes!!!
So glad you guys enjoyed it Kathleen!
Do you have a suggestion for using the juice I collected preparing our ham in a cooking bag or should I just toss it? It was a bone-in, pre-cooked half ham that just needed to be heated through
in a low oven for 20 min per pound.
Very easy and tasty soup to make with left over ham and bone.
Very mediocre
I mistakenly bought the Cajun 15 bean soup instead of the other one. Do you think it’s season packet can be used instead?
It may change the taste a little, but I’m sure it would work. Let me know if you try it!
I made this soup, and it is incredible. I highly recommend using a hambone in the doul because I think it gives it that extra added flavor. I found one st my local grocery store, and there was plenty of meat on it. Also, I cooked mine on low for about 8 hours, and the meat fell off the hambone. This will be my go to ham and bean soup recipe
I tried this recipe and a friend told me if you put mustard in ham and bean soup it would give it some kick. That’s what I did and I really liked it.
This is the best ham and bean soup I’ve made.
I am so glad that you enjoyed this recipe!
I made this tonight & it turned out great! I used beef smoked sausage instead of ham & I did soak my beansa over night. I tasted it before I added the tomatoes, lemon jiuce & seasoning packet & was yummy without those ingredients but I’m still going to add them. I’m from Texas & we used to make a pot of beans & had cornbread & fried potatoes with them & it was soooo good. That’s what I’m doing tonight. Thanks for the recipe. Ya enjoy!
I am so glad that you enjoyed this recipe Sherry! I love the idea of using smoked sausage! I am going to try that soon!
9 hours on low, without tomatoes or lemon, and the beans are still tough and gritty. Completely inedible. What a shame. I was hoping it would be as easy as described. Now i have to scramble to make an entirely different dinner…
How disappointing this didn’t work for you Mike. I’ve only had great results with this recipe (and from the reviews, readers have also had great success). I wish I knew why it didn’t work for you.
Hi, this is a message for Mike, but I also want to say hello – I just found this site, and can’t wait to try some new slow-cooker recipes!
Mike, it sounds to me like you must have “hard water” in your area. Hard water means that certain minerals in the local water supply cause your water to be acidic. I have hard water in my area, too, and have learned that the only way to get soft, yummy beans is to add a couple tablespoons of baking soda to the soaking water, and then soak the beans overnight. It works perfectly, and now all my dried bean dishes come out soft and yummy, whether slow-cooked or not. Just be sure to rinse the soaked beans thoroughly before you assemble the rest of your recipe – you don’t want the baking soda to kill the flavors of the more-acidic ingredients you want to add after your beans are soft.
Holly, I have a question about this recipe myself, too — what spices are in the spice packet? I can’t get Hurst beans in my area, so I will be using Goya 16-Bean Blend, which doesn’t come with seasonings. Thanks for any suggestions.
Marion, thank you for the suggestion about the hard water and how to get your beans to soften, that is such a great tip!
As for adding flavor to replace the spice packet, Hurst recommends: bouillon cubes (whatever meat you prefer). You can also use an equal amount of chicken or beef stock instead of water. A great way to add flavor is to add your favorite herbs as well. You can order Hurst beans online as well.