This easy Ham And Bean Soup Recipe mingles nutty cannellini beans with tender chunks of smoky ham for an old-fashioned hearty soup favorite. It’s quick, comforting, and a great way to use leftover holiday ham.

If you’re looking for another delicious, creamy homemade soup, try making Creamy Chicken And Wild Rice Soup, Broccoli Cheddar Soup, or, Old Fashioned Vegetable Beef Soup. There are few things heartier than a steamy bowl of Bacon Potato Soup or Creamy Chicken Gnocchi Soup, especially on a chilly day.

Comforting bowl of ham and bean soup served in a dutch oven

Why We Love This Ham And Beans Recipe

This comforting ham soup is full of flavor and matchless on a cold winter day with a side of cornbread.

  • Easy – It’s a great way to use up leftover ham or use store-bought ham steaks to make it a really simple soup that doesn’t take much time to prepare.
  • Convenient – This ham and beans recipe is not a soup that you have to plan a whole day to make! It’s ready in under an hour, making it a great weeknight meal.
  • Versatile – Since ham and beans is a hearty soup with protein, vegetables, and beans, it can be a whole meal or you can serve smaller bowls and have it with a side salad or as a starter.
ingredients for ham and bean soup recipe

Ingredients for Hearty Ham and Beans Soup

You can quickly combine these simple ingredients to make this filling, savory ham and bean soup.

For specific amounts, please refer to the printable recipe card at the bottom of the post.

  • Cooked ham – We like to use ham steak because it is the easiest to cut into cubes but you can choose the cut you prefer or use leftover ham.
  • Olive oil – Use your favorite that you typically like to saute vegetables in.
  • Yellow onion – Be sure to dice the onion into uniform pieces so that they cook evenly.
  • Carrots – Peel the carrots before slicing or dicing them into even pieces.
  • Celery – Chop the celery into small pieces — it helps to slice the celery lengthwise and then chop both halves simultaneously into smaller pieces.
  • Minced garlic – You can mince a fresh garlic clove or use the jarred variety.
  • Cannellini beans (canned) – While you can use other varieties, these add a nuttiness to the soup.
  • Chicken broth – Use boxed or jarred chicken stock from the grocery store or your own homemade broth.
  • Black pepper – Fresh cracked black pepper gives the soup the best flavor.
  • Fresh thyme sprigs – You can tie the thyme sprigs together with kitchen twine to make it easier to remove them.

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How to Make East Ham Soup with Beans

With this easy recipe, you’ll have a hot pot of the best ham and beans soup simmering on the stovetop in nearly no time. Grab a dutch oven or soup pot and soup ladle and let’s get cooking!

When you are making this recipe, you’ll want to use the full recipe at the bottom of the page.

  1. Add the oil to a large dutch oven or soup pot with the diced ham and saute.
  2. Transfer the browned ham from the pot to a clean plate.
  3. Add the onions, carrots, celery, and garlic to the pot and saute.
  4. Pour the beans as well as the juice from the can into a blender or food processor and blend.
  5. Drain the juice from the remaining cans of beans and add those, with the blended beans to the vegetable mixture in the pot. 
  6. Pour the broth into the vegetable and bean mixture along with the pepper and thyme.
  7. Stir the ingredients together and bring the mixture to a boil.
  8. After boiling, remove the thyme sprigs and add the ham back into the broth. stir together.
  9. Add pepper to taste, then serve.

Recipe Notes And Tips For The Best Soup

This recipe is super simple but there are a few things that can make sure you have the best ham soup.

  • Cut the ham into any size you prefer as long as the pieces are fairly similar in size. 
  • If you’re looking to save time, some grocery stores have mirepoix (the sliced celery, onion, and carrot mixture) already prepared in packages in the produce section. Then, you can skip the slicing and dicing.
  • Find the type of ham that you want in the deli section (or at your local butcher)  Just ask for a 1-pound piece of the ham of your choice. — that way you don’t have to cook the ham before making the soup.

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hot bowl of ham and bean soup

Ham and Beans Soup FAQs

What kind of beans do you put in ham soup?

This recipe uses cannellini because their creamy nutty flavor is my favorite in ham and beans. However, navy beans, small white beans, great northern beans, or white kidney beans and all acceptable and popular choices as well.

How can I thicken ham and bean soup?

We thickened it using the smooth bean mixture but if you want it thicker, or to use a different technique, you can make a slurry. Mix equal parts of either flour or cornstarch with water and add it to the soup.

Never add the flour or cornstarch without making the slurry first. It can clump up in the broth and become challenging to incorporate.

Can bean soup be overcooked?

Yes!! Bean soup can be overcooked so you want to make sure to follow the cooking time recommendations. Ham and bean soup that has been overcooked will have beans that are mushy.

ham and bean soup in a white soup bowl

How To Store This Satisfying Ham and Beans Soup

Refrigerate/Leftovers

Leftover soup can be stored in the refrigerator for 3-4 days in an airtight container. Allow it to come to room temperature before refrigerating.

Freeze

Freeze ham and beans soup for up to 3 months in a freezer-safe container. You can also use a freezer bag and lay the soup flat to save freezer space.

ham and beans with a spoon in a white bowl

Variations on Ham and White Bean Soup

  • Country ham – For salty flavor and a slightly different texture, try using country ham.
  • Kielbasa – Smoked kielbasa is a great swap to try something new.
  • Dried thyme – Use a ¼ teaspoon of dried thyme instead of the fresh sprigs of thyme.
  • Acid – Add just a splash of lemon juice or vinegar to add brightness to the soup. 
  • Bay leaf – To add more depth to the flavor profile, add a bay leaf. Just be sure to discard any bay leaves before serving.
  • Crockpot Slowcooker – You can also adapt this recipe to make it in a slow cooker, pressure cooker, or Instant pot.
  • Dry beans – To make it even more economical, you can soak dry beans overnight before using them for this recipe.
  • Fresh parsley – Roughly chop fresh parsley and use it as garnish to add bright color.
  • Broth – Instead of regular chicken broth you can cut some of the salt by using a low-sodium chicken broth. You can also substitute vegetable broth.
  • Hot sauce – If you like spicy food you can add a few dashes of hot sauce or cayenne pepper.
Hands warming on a bowl of ham and beans

Serving Suggestions

warm pot of ham and beans
hot bowl of ham and bean soup

Easy Ham and Bean Soup Recipe

Yield: 4 servings
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 40 minutes
Total Time: 50 minutes

This easy Ham And Bean Soup Recipe mingles nutty cannellini canned beans with tender chunks of smoky ham for an old-fashioned hearty soup favorite. It’s quick, comforting, and a great way to use leftover holiday ham.

Ingredients

  • 1 pound cooked ham, cubed (two 8 oz. ham steaks work well)
  • 2 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 small yellow onion, diced
  • 3 carrots, peeled and sliced
  • 3 ribs celery, sliced
  • 2 teaspoons minced garlic
  • 3 (15 ounce) cans cannellini beans
  • 2 cups chicken broth (+ extra if needed to thin)
  • fresh cracked black pepper
  • 2-3 thyme sprigs

Instructions

  1. In a large dutch oven or soup pot over medium heat saute the diced ham and oil until brown (about 3-5 minutes). Use a slotted spoon to remove the browned ham and set it aside on a clean plate.
  2. Place the onions, carrots, celery, and garlic in the large pot over medium heat and saute for 5 minutes until soft and the onions are translucent.
  3. Add the entire contents of one can of beans (juice + beans) to a blender and process until smooth. Open and drain the remaining two cans of beans.
  4. Add all of the beans to the pot with the vegetables. Then add the chicken broth, fresh cracked black pepper, and thyme sprigs and stir to combine. Turn the heat up to medium-high and bring to a boil.
  5. Reduce heat to medium, and continue to boil stirring occasionally. Add a little additional broth if the soup ends up thicker than you’d prefer. 
  6. Remove the thyme stems and stir the ham back into the soup.
  7. Serve with a little more fresh pepper on top and enjoy!

Notes

  • Storing: Leftover soup can be stored in the refrigerator for 3-4 days in an airtight container. Allow it to come to room temperature before refrigerating.
  • Freeze ham and beans soup for up to 3 months in a freezer-safe container. You can also use a freezer bag and lay the soup flat to save freezer space.
  • Navy or Great Northern Beans can be used in place of cannellini beans. I prefer cannellini because they have a touch of nutty flavor.
  • You can get the ham at the deli, just ask for a 1-pound piece of the ham of your choice. Then you can cut it into whatever size chunks you like in your soup!
  • This recipe would also be good with smoked kielbasa in place of ham.
  • Swap ¼ teaspoon of dried thyme for the fresh thyme. 
  • Serve with cornbread or homemade Irish soda bread.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 4 Serving Size: 1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 315Total Fat: 13gSaturated Fat: 2gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 9gCholesterol: 75mgSodium: 1619mgCarbohydrates: 19gFiber: 5gSugar: 4gProtein: 31g

Nutrition information is estimated based on the ingredients and cooking instructions as described in each recipe and is intended to be used for informational purposes only. Please note that nutrition details may vary based on methods of preparation, origin, and freshness of ingredients used and are just estimates. We encourage, especially if these numbers are important to you, to calculate these on your own for most accurate results.

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ham and beans in a dutch oven