Old-fashioned means starting with dried beans and a ham bone. Doing things the good old way does take a little time, but the resulting soup is so savory you won't mind the wait.
1 pound dried navy beans
1 ham bone, excess fat trimmed
12 cups water
2 bay leaves
2 medium celery stalks, sliced
3 medium carrots, peeled and sliced
1 medium onion, diced
salt and black pepper to taste
Pick over the navy beans and soak in water overnight. Rinse and drain.
Combine the soaked beans, ham bone, water, and bay leaves in a Dutch oven. Bring to a boil over high heat. Skim any accumulated foam from the surface.
Reduce the heat to a simmer and cook for 1 1/2 hours or until the beans are very tender.
Remove the ham bone from the soup. Let cool. When cool enough to handle, cut off any meat.
Remove the bay leaves. Gently mash some of the beans in the pan (you can puree it if you prefer a smooth soup). Add the celery, carrots, onion, meat from the ham bone, and salt and pepper as desired. Let the soup simmer for another 20-30 minutes or until the vegetables are tender.
Yes, you can. For 1 pound of dried beans use 3 (15 ounce size) cans of canned navy beans. Add them to the recipe as you would the soaked beans. Cook until the meat on the ham bone is tender, about 1 hour. Then proceed with the recipe as directed.
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reviews & comments
September 11, 2020
Love this. I add a little cummin to mine n a touch of smoked paprika.. also pretty much the same recipe as my pea soup that I add a touch of sage. Thank you for sharing an awesome recipe.