Navy bean soup

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vagriller

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I am making bavy bean soup this week and would like some guidance. I know I could flub my way through it and turn out a good soup but would like top eliminate mistakes. I am using dried beans, and I have a large ham bone, and some beef broth from tonight's pot roast. Please post tips! Thanks, Roger.
 
Soak the beans overnight in salt water. If your recipe calls for onion or bacon or pancetta, saute them first. Then add the soaked, drained beans, broth, seasonings and ham bone. Cook until the beans are soft and adjust the seasonings.

You can take some of the coooked beans out of the soup and puree them and return them to the soup to thicken the broth.
 
I add some roasted garlic cloves (just squeeze out of the head of garlic right into the cooking beans) and I like to add some dried oregano, dried basil, dried parsley (this came from an Italian restaurant so it's looking rather Italian right now) when done add your cooked bacon, sauteed onions, and a bit of water to thin a bit and when it's in the bowls and nice and hot place a cube of fresh mozzarella right in the middle and top with cilantro. VERY yummy.

I've never heard of soaking in salted water - only plain water. I thought the salt prohibited the beans from cooking keeping them hard.
 
elf, salt does not effect the beans other than to flavor them. However, adding acidic ingredients early in the cooking will toughen the beans. Got this info from America's Test Kitchen.
 
Thanks Andy M. - I guess it's one of those tales that keeps getting passed around - probably by people that have opened up an package of old beans and they won't cook if they are cooked for a week!
 
I just started trying more bean recipes. There's a lot you can do with them. Black beans are a favorite.

I've also made the navy bean soup from ATK and it's pretty good.
 
WHEN i MAKE MY "BEAN SOUP"
I USE HAM/BONE OR OTHER SUITABLE SEASONING CHOPPED ONION,
AND SALT/PEPPER, I COOK MINE ON SIMMER(AFTER THEY COME TO A BOIL) FOR ABOUT 2-3 HOURS...
BE SURE TO ADD WATER AND ADJUST SEASONING IF NEEDED.
 
I like ATK. The food tasting and cookware tests are really good.

Also, black beans are a favorite in my house too. I don't make a pot of chili without them!
 
You could also try this. Boil the dried beans for about 5 minutes and then let them sit in the water for an hour. Drain beans, add chicken broth, onion, canned tomatoes, and ham pieces, and hot sauce to taste. Really good on a chilly evening with some cheesy cornbread.
 
carolelaine said:
You could also try this. Boil the dried beans for about 5 minutes and then let them sit in the water for an hour. Drain beans, add chicken broth, onion, canned tomatoes, and ham pieces, and hot sauce to taste. Really good on a chilly evening with some cheesy cornbread.

I immediately looked to see where you are from!!!!! Yep, I guess you could say we're sort of neighbors! lol You are absolutely right about that being a great chilly evening meal - how do you make your cheesy spoonbread (cornbread) - here's my recipe in the same post as the bean salad - I'd love to see yours. Thanks!

I guess you could still say this follows the line of the post - nothing better with navy bean soup than a slice of cornbread!
 
carolelaine said:
You could also try this. Boil the dried beans for about 5 minutes and then let them sit in the water for an hour. Drain beans, add chicken broth, onion, canned tomatoes, and ham pieces, and hot sauce to taste. Really good on a chilly evening with some cheesy cornbread.

Seems like the beans will be hard after being in water for an hour and 5 minutes. Am I missing something?
 
I think she means then cook as usual - it's another way of "soaking overnight". You bring to a boil, turn off burner, let sit 1 hour. I'm pretty sure that is what she is implying. This is considered the quick method of soaking.
 
kitchenelf said:
I think she means then cook as usual - it's another way of "soaking overnight". You bring to a boil, turn off burner, let sit 1 hour. I'm pretty sure that is what she is implying. This is considered the quick method of soaking.

I thought maybe that was the case. Just checking!
 
I am so sorry, I did mean to cook the beans in the chicken broth as usual, or until they are tender. Elf, I make my cornbread almost like yours except that I use sauteed onions, and buttermilk instead of milk, and sour cream in place of the oil. I know I am off the subject of the thread, but it really is perfect with the bean soup.
 
I use some crushed red pepper flakes in most of my dried bean dishes. It really perks them up!
 
carolelaine said:
I am so sorry, I did mean to cook the beans in the chicken broth as usual, or until they are tender. Elf, I make my cornbread almost like yours except that I use sauteed onions, and buttermilk instead of milk, and sour cream in place of the oil. I know I am off the subject of the thread, but it really is perfect with the bean soup.

Sometimes when I don't have enough time to soak the beans for hours and hours, I pour boiling water over them and let them sit for a couple of hours. It's almost as good as letting them sit overnight.

As per the above quote, sometimes I make my cornbread - very much like caroleaine's - and instead of baking it in my cast-iron skillet, I drop it onto a hot greased griddle and serve it as corn cakes. My husband says he might like it better this way. The leftovers if there are any are good warmed up for breakfast with butter and syrup.
 
sure, if they start to sprout or mold, you've gone too far.

I always like to add a few carrots to the soup and mash then up with the beans abit to thicken the broth. Love bean soup!
 
OK, the beans have been cooking for 4-5 hours now. I added the hambone, beef broth, and some salt & pepper & a pinch of italian seasoning. It seems like it's missing something. It seems a little too thin. Maybe I added too much water. I put about 8 cups, and it was large bag of beans. Maybe after I take the hambone out and cut the ham off of it and drop it in the pot it will be ok. Did I mention that it was a spiral cut honey baked ham? Would that make a difference? Also, there was lots of fat left on it. A lot of the fat has separated and is floating in the pot.
 
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