Photo: Senate Bean Soup Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 pounds Michigan navy beans
- 4 quarts water
- 1 thick slice leftover spiral ham, cut into small pieces (not country ham, which is too salty)*
- 1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter
- 1 medium onion, chopped
- Salt and pepper
- 1/4 cup fresh parsley leaves
Directions
Rinse the beans in hot water until they are white. Place them in a stockpot, add the water, and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for 3 hours. Heat the butter in a small skillet over medium heat. Saute the onion until lightly browned. Add the onion to the pot of beans. Remove 2 cups of the bean mixture, puree in a blender, and return to the soup. Add to ham to soup mixture. Just before serving, season the soup with salt and pepper, to taste. Garnish with parsley.
*Cook's note: This recipe can also be made with ham hock.
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By jojodavis
Tucson. AZ
on April 01, 2013
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I think it is probably good, BUT, I remember this soup as "Soup of the Inner Sanctum," the name of the dinning room of the Senate. Their recipe uses 4 large onions, a clove of garlic, parsley, thyme, bay leaf, a chopped carrot, and a half lemon. All of the seasonings should be wrapped and tied in cheesecloth. Also, calls for a ham hock, salt and pepper. It is truly a wonderful bean soup. Serve with cornbread. Hail to the Chef!.
By wandmup2_12674407
Purcellville, 86
on November 01, 2012
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As presented, this recipe is too simple to be a really flavorful bean soup. Also, the butter called for in this recipe is gratuitous; I get the feeling it was added just to make this a 'Paula Dean' recipe. If you want a really good, well balanced bean soup, listen to the people who modified it with celery, carrots, stock, bay leaves, etc. Then give it an acid-pop with either lemon juice or champagne vinegar at the end, and toss in a couple drops of liquid smoke too. You won't be sorry unless you make it exactly as presented.
By GEN81465
Farmingdale, ME
on July 31, 2012
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Great soup! I agree about country ham being too salty for this, but a nice spiral ham works great! As for why they call this "Senate Bean Soup", I'm guessing it's because (like Senators it's a lot of "ham" and usually "full of beans".
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