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Easy Slow Cooker Bean Soup Recipe with Ham or Vegetables

Easy Slow Cooker Bean Soup

This cozy crockpot bean soup combines tender dried beans, vegetables, broth, and herbs for an easy 6 to 8 serving meal. Add a smoked ham hock or diced cooked ham for extra savory flavor, or keep it vegetarian with vegetable broth.
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Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 8 minutes
Total Time 8 minutes
Servings: 6 servings
Ingredients Method Notes

Ingredients
  

Main Ingredients
  • 1 pound Dried great northern, navy, or mixed beans, rinsed and picked over
  • 1 medium Medium yellow onion, diced
  • 3 medium Carrots, sliced
  • 3 stalks Celery stalks, sliced
  • 3-4 cloves Garlic cloves, minced
  • 6 cups Low-sodium chicken or vegetable broth
  • 2 cups Water
Seasonings
  • 1 leaf Bay leaf
  • 1 teaspoon Dried thyme
  • 1 teaspoon Dried rosemary
  • 1/2 teaspoon Freshly ground black pepper
  • 1/2 teaspoon Salt, plus more to taste at the end
Optional Ingredients
  • 1 ham hock Smoked ham hock
  • 1 cup Diced cooked ham, alternative to ham hock
  • 1 14-15 ounce can Diced tomatoes, added only after beans soften
Garnish
  • 2 tablespoons Fresh parsley, chopped

Method
 

Step-by-Step
  1. Rinse and pick over the dried beans, removing any shriveled beans or debris. For the best texture, cover them with several inches of water and soak for 8 hours or overnight, then drain and rinse.
  2. Add the beans, diced onion, carrots, celery, minced garlic, broth, water, bay leaf, thyme, rosemary, black pepper, salt, and optional ham to the slow cooker. Stir gently to distribute the vegetables and seasonings.
  3. Cover and cook on LOW for 8 to 10 hours or HIGH for 4 to 6 hours, until the beans are tender. Cooking time can vary slightly depending on the age and variety of the beans.
  4. Remove the bay leaf and ham hock, if used. Pull the ham from the bone, chop the meat, and return it to the soup before serving.
  5. If using diced tomatoes, stir them in only after the beans have softened. Cover and cook for another 20 to 30 minutes so the tomatoes warm through without slowing the bean-cooking process.
  6. Taste the soup and add more salt as needed. Thin with additional water or broth if it is thicker than you prefer, then rest for 10 to 15 minutes and garnish with fresh parsley.

Notes

Soaking the beans overnight and discarding the soaking water gives the best texture. Do not add tomatoes, vinegar, lemon juice, or other acidic ingredients until the beans are tender. If using dried red kidney beans, boil them vigorously in fresh water for at least 10 minutes before transferring them to the slow cooker because raw kidney beans contain a toxin that slow cooking may not destroy reliably. Refrigerate leftovers promptly and reheat gently with a splash of broth or water.