Ham Butter Bean Soup (Printable)

Southern-style soup blending smoky ham, butter beans, and fresh herbs in a comforting, flavorful broth.

# What You'll Need:

→ Meats

01 - 1 lb smoked ham hock or diced ham

→ Legumes

02 - 2 cups dried butter beans or 3 cans (15 oz each) butter beans, drained and rinsed

→ Vegetables

03 - 1 large yellow onion, diced
04 - 2 medium carrots, diced
05 - 2 celery stalks, diced
06 - 3 cloves garlic, minced

→ Liquids

07 - 8 cups low-sodium chicken broth
08 - 2 cups water

→ Herbs and Seasonings

09 - 2 bay leaves
10 - 1 teaspoon dried thyme or 1 tablespoon fresh thyme, chopped
11 - 1 tablespoon fresh parsley, chopped, plus extra for garnish
12 - 1 tablespoon fresh chives, chopped
13 - 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
14 - Salt to taste

→ Optional Accompaniments

15 - Hot sauce for serving
16 - Crusty bread for serving

# How To Make It:

01 - If using dried butter beans, soak them overnight in plenty of cold water. Drain and rinse thoroughly before use.
02 - In a large soup pot or Dutch oven, heat a splash of oil over medium heat. Add diced onion, carrots, and celery. Sauté for 5 to 7 minutes until softened.
03 - Stir in minced garlic and cook for 1 minute until fragrant.
04 - Add ham hock or diced ham, prepared butter beans, chicken broth, water, bay leaves, thyme, and black pepper to the pot.
05 - Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer uncovered for 1 hour (45 minutes if using canned beans), stirring occasionally, until beans are tender and flavors are well integrated.
06 - Remove the ham hock from the pot. Shred the meat and return it to the pot, discarding the bone and excess fat. Remove and discard bay leaves.
07 - Stir in fresh parsley and chives. Taste and adjust salt and pepper as needed.
08 - Ladle soup into bowls and serve hot, garnished with additional fresh herbs and hot sauce if desired. Accompany with crusty bread.

# Expert Advice:

01 -
  • The butter beans get creamy and luxurious without any cream, just pure bean goodness and time.
  • Smoked ham does all the heavy lifting flavor-wise, so you can make this with pantry staples and feel like you've cooked something special.
  • It tastes even better the next day, making it perfect for batch cooking or feeding unexpected guests.
02 -
  • If you're using dried beans, don't skip the overnight soak—I learned this the messy way when undercooked beans split open halfway through cooking and I spent an hour fishing out broken skins.
  • The ham hock's job is flavor, but remove it before eating so you don't break a tooth on bone chips; this is also when you taste and adjust seasonings because the broth will have concentrated as it cooks.
03 -
  • If your soup tastes flat halfway through cooking, it's probably just needs salt—taste before adding broth because salty ham keeps releasing salt as it cooks, and you want control over the final balance.
  • Save the ham hock's cooking liquid after you remove it; strain it and use it as stock for your next pot of soup or to cook grains, and you've just extended the flavor magic.
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