This post may contain affiliate links.
Navy Bean Soup with Ham takes about 50 minutes on the stovetop and simmers navy beans, diced ham, and a ham bone with garlic, carrots, celery, and a blend of savory herbs into a thick, hearty soup with a naturally creamy broth.
This navy bean soup with ham takes about 50 minutes on the stovetop (or 4-6 hours hands-off in the crockpot) and turns navy beans, diced ham, a ham bone, and a handful of herbs into a thick, hearty soup with a naturally creamy broth. Everything simmers together until the beans are tender, then a portion gets mashed right in the pot to thicken the broth without any cream or flour. It’s the recipe I turn to the day after Easter or Christmas when there’s leftover ham in the fridge, and it freezes well enough to make a double batch worth it.
If you make it in the crockpot you can use dried beans and just add extra water. If you want to use dried beans on the stove top you will want to soak the beans overnight. When it comes to soups bean soups are among my favorite. I find them fill me up and give me energy on those cold days. If you like bean soups you also might like this Slow Cooker 15 Bean Soup. A few bean soups I like to rotate with this Navy Bean Soup Recipe is this White Bean Soup with Herbs and Olive Oil, White Bean Soup with Ham, Slow Cooker Sausage Kale White Bean Soup or this White Bean Soup. If you are looking for an Instant Pot Bean Soup recipe try this Instant Pot Bean Soup.
Why You Will Love this Soup:
• Sautéing the herbs with the vegetables, not just adding them at the end, builds real depth. Blooming dried oregano, thyme, and rosemary in the oil for a few minutes wakes up their flavor in a way that just simmering them in broth doesn’t.
• The ham bone does double duty. It flavors the broth as it simmers, and the meat you pull off it afterward adds extra ham without needing more diced ham than the recipe calls for.
•Mashing some of the beans thickens the soup naturally. No flour, no cream, just beans breaking down into the broth for body and creaminess.
Recipe Ingredients
Please see the recipe card below for exact ingredient amounts and instructions.
- Vegetables: I use a combination of fresh garlic, sweet onion, carrot and celery to form the base flavors for the soup.
- Seasoning: A combination of dried oregano, parsley, thyme, rosemary, cayenne pepper (or red pepper flakes), salt and black pepper flavor the soup. The bay leaf also added flavor to the soup.
- Beans: I use 3 – 16-ounce canned beans {navy beans} in this soup or 16 ounces of dried beans. If you want to use dry beans you will want to soak them before using them in this recipe unless you use the crockpot.
- Ham: I use a combination of both diced cooked ham and a smoked ham shank or ham bone to add depth of flavor to the soup. You can use a meaty leftover ham bone from the holidays or even buy already cooked ham at the store to cut down on time. You can find cooked ham that is sold already packaged at the grocery store. Look for it in the meat department.
Ways to Modify this Soup
- Vegetables: Feel free to add extra vegetables to this easy soup recipe. I love adding green beans, peas, bell pepper or fire roasted tomatoes to this soup. If you have frozen vegetables in your freezer those work great too.
- Leafy Greens: Add a handful of spinach, kale, cavolo nero (black kale), chard or other similar greens to the soup towards the end of the cook and allow to wilt.
- Ham: Along with the cooked ham, I’ve added a smoked ham hock. If you wish you could also use a ham bone or even some smoked bacon for flavor.
- Protein: If ham ins’t your favorite try using a different protein like shredded chicken, ground turkey, ground pork or ground chicken.
- Beans: Swap navy beans for another white bean like Great Northern beans, black beans, pinto beans, kidney beans, lima beans or cannellini beans. You also could add a mixture of beans to the soup. Sometimes I will use a can of white beans, navy beans and pinto beans to mix things up!
How to Make Navy Bean Soup with Ham
Step 1: Soak Beans: If you are using dried beans soak them overnight.
Step 2: Sauté Vegetables: In a large dutch oven or large soup pot heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the garlic and sauté for two minutes. Now add the onion, carrot and celery and sauté for 3 minutes.
Step 3: Add Seasoning: Add the oregano, parsley, thyme, rosemary, cayenne red pepper, salt and pepper and continue sautéing for 4-5 minutes, letting the spices bloom.
Step 3: Add Seasoning: Add the oregano, parsley, thyme, rosemary, cayenne red pepper, salt and pepper and continue sautéing for 4-5 minutes, letting the spices bloom.
Step 4: Add Beans & Ham: Add the navy beans, diced ham, ham hock, diced tomatoes, bay leaves and broth. Stir well.
Step 5: Simmer Soup: Bring to a simmer and turn to low heat. Simmer the soup for 30 minutes. Remove any pieces of ham from the ham bone and add to the soup and remove and discard the bone.
Step 6: Serve: Serve the soup with fresh parsley, oregano and thyme along with freshly grated Parmesan cheese.
How to Make this in the Navy Bean Soup in the Crockpot
- Use a large skillet to sauté the vegetables, then add all the seasoning ingredients and allow the spices to bloom. You can also skip this step and just add everything into the crockpot to cook but I like the help the spices bloom with the vegetables.
- Add the remaining soup ingredients to the crock pot, cover with the lid and cook on LOW for 6 hours or HIGH for 4 hours. Remove any pieces of ham from the ham bone and add back into the soup, discard the bone. Serve the soup warm with a garnish of fresh herbs and Parmesan Cheese.
Pro Tip: If you use a crockpot you can use dried navy beans which I find to have more flavor than the canned navy beans. Since you are cooking them in the crockpot you don’t need to soak them overnight just make sure to add 2 cups of water for the beans to soak up.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
- Forgetting to remove the ham bone and bay leaves before serving. Easy to overlook once the soup’s this fragrant, pull them both before ladling into bowls.Storage Tips
- Skipping the herb bloom. Adding dried herbs straight into the broth instead of sautéing them first with the vegetables mutes their flavor.
- Not mashing any beans. Without this step the broth stays thin and watery instead of thick and hearty, see the FAQ below for exactly how.
- Using table salt to season before tasting the ham. Ham varies a lot in saltiness, taste the soup after the ham has simmered in before adding more salt.
- Boiling instead of simmering. A hard boil can break the beans apart unevenly and toughen the ham, keep it at a gentle simmer once everything’s in the pot.
Storage Tips
- Refrigerator: Store leftovers in an airtight container for up to 5 days. This soup tastes even better the next day once the flavors have had time to deepen.
- Freezer: Navy bean soup freezes well. Cool completely, then transfer to freezer-safe containers or bags and freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the fridge before reheating.
- Reheating: Warm gently on the stovetop over medium heat, or microwave in 1-2 minute intervals, stirring between each. If the soup has thickened too much in storage, loosen it with a splash of broth before reheating.
Recipe FAQ
Yes! Leftover diced ham or a ham bone from the holidays works great in this soup and is actually the easiest way to make it. If you don’t have leftover ham, packaged cooked ham from the grocery store’s meat department works just as well.
Yes, use 16 ounces of dried navy beans in place of the canned. Soak them overnight if cooking on the stovetop, or skip the soak entirely if using the crockpot, just add 2 cups of extra water so the beans have enough liquid to absorb as they cook.
Yes you can! Leave out the ham and ham bone, use vegetable broth in place of chicken broth, and add a splash of smoked paprika to replace some of the smoky depth the ham would normally add.
More Soup Recipes to Try
Tried this recipe? Leave a star rating and comment below! Subscribe to my newsletter or follow me on Facebook, Instagram, or Pinterest for the latest.
Navy Bean Soup with Ham
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 4 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 small, sweet onion, diced
- 1 large carrot, diced
- 1 stalk celery, diced
- 1 teaspoon oregano
- 1 teaspoon dried parsley
- 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1/2 teaspoon dried rosemary
- 1/2 teaspoon cayenne red pepper or crushed red pepper flakes {optional}
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, plus more as needed
- 1/8 teaspoon black pepper
- 3 – 16 ounce cans Navy Beans {or sub Great Northern Beans} drained and rinsed or dried beans
- 8 ounces cooked ham, diced
- 1 smoked ham hock or ham bone, optional
- 1 – 16 ounce can of diced tomatoes or petite tomatoes
- 2 bay leaves
- 6 cups low-sodium chicken broth or vegetable broth
Instructions
- Soak the navy beans overnight if you are using dried beans. If using canned beans skip this step.
- In a large dutch oven heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the garlic and saute for two minutes. Add the onion, carrot and celery and saute for 3 minutes.
- Add the oregano, parsley, thyme, rosemary, cayenne red pepper, salt and pepper and continue sauteing for 4-5 minutes, letting the spices bloom.
- Add the navy beans, diced ham, ham hock, diced tomatoes, bay leaves and broth. Stir well.
- Bring to a simmer and turn to low heat. Simmer the soup for 30 minutes. Remove any pieces of ham from the ham bone and add to the soup and remove and discard the bone.
- Serve the soup with fresh parsley, oregano and thyme along with freshly grated Parmesan cheese.
Notes
- Thicken the broth: Once the beans are tender, mash about 1/2 cup of beans against the side of the pot and stir back in. This creates a naturally creamy texture without any added flour or cream.
- Bloom the herbs: Sautéing the dried oregano, thyme, and rosemary with the vegetables for a few minutes wakes up their flavor — don’t skip this step or add them straight into the broth instead.
- Using dried beans: Sub 16 ounces of dried navy beans for the canned. Soak overnight for the stovetop method, or skip the soak for the crockpot and just add 2 cups of extra water.
- Taste before salting: Ham varies in saltiness by brand, so taste the soup after it’s simmered with the ham before adding extra salt.
- Refrigerator: Store leftovers in an airtight container for up to 5 days — the flavor deepens overnight.
- Freezer: Freezes well for up to 3 months. Cool completely before transferring to freezer-safe containers, and thaw overnight in the fridge before reheating.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
