Photo: Senate Bean Soup Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 pound dried navy beans, picked over
- 1 pound ham (preferably with bone)
- 1 large russet potato, peeled and quartered
- Kosher salt
- 1/2 cup milk
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1 large onion, chopped
- 1 stalk celery, chopped
- 2 cloves garlic, chopped
- 1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
- Freshly ground pepper
Directions
Put the beans in a large bowl and cover with about 3 times their volume of cold water. Soak overnight in a cool place.
Drain the beans and transfer to a large pot or Dutch oven. Add 10 cups water and the ham. Bring to a simmer over medium heat, then reduce the heat to low and cook until the beans are tender, about 1 hour, 30 minutes. Transfer the ham to a plate to cool slightly, then remove the bone, if used, and dice the meat. Return the meat to the pot.
Meanwhile, cover the potato with water in a saucepan and season with salt. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, then reduce the heat and simmer until the potato is fork-tender, 20 to 25 minutes. Drain the potato; transfer to a bowl with the milk and mash with a potato masher or fork until smooth. Add the mashed potato to the bean soup and stir until combined.
Melt the butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onion, celery, garlic and parsley and cook until the vegetables are translucent, 7 to 10 minutes. Add the vegetable mixture to the soup, reduce the heat to low and cook 1 hour, adding up to 2 more cups water if the soup is too thick. Season with salt and pepper.
Photograph by Yunhee Kim
Kitchen Tip:
- Use up your leftover mashed potatoes: Add 1 to 2 cups to the soup along with the diced ham and skip step 3.
Review This Recipe
You must be logged in to review this recipe.
or Sign Up to Review
Newest Ratings and Reviews
Read all 9 reviews
By damanor73_1863513
Southfield, MI
on February 15, 2012
Flag
Flag This Review?
Please provide the reason why you think this review is inappropriate.
or Cancel
This turned out very good! And was even better as the days went on and the ingredients had a chance to marry more. I did not use, parsley because I had none on hand and I added some carrots. I believe the mashed potatoes were supposed to add starch and thickness, but such a small quantity to a big pot of beans had a minimal affect. So when everything was almost done cooking, I scooped out about 2 cups of the soup and blended it in a blender, then added it back to the pot for more thickness. I was really worried that my kids, 11, 10 and 8 would not like, but they loved it (they're not big bean eaters. Even though the ham added tons of flavor, it was naturally very salty and I think next time I will look for an alternative. But I will definitely make this again.
By Lindsay_girl
Louisville, KY
on December 11, 2011
Flag
Flag This Review?
Please provide the reason why you think this review is inappropriate.
or Cancel
I am what you would call a soup-a-holic. This one is one of my favorites. It does take a while to make, but it's worth it, especilly since it make a huge pot. I use pre-diced ham and two small potatoes. I also add some dried thyme and diced carrots just to give it a tiny bit more flavor.
By JDSuarez
Haymarket, VA
on March 06, 2011
Flag
Flag This Review?
Please provide the reason why you think this review is inappropriate.
or Cancel
Loved! Loved! Loved this recipe. I'm a big fan of navy beans and usually make mine without too much prep (no fresh vegetables cut up or meat (either chicken broth or maybe smoked turkey from time-to-time. I was intrigued by the addition of mashed potatoes. This soup was truly delicious and well-worth the effort. Everyone who tried it said it was tasty. I did use country ham and no extra salt was needed. Would like some nutritional data on this though.
Read all 9 reviews