Name: Southern Ham and Bean Soup
Total time: 30 min
Yield: Serves 4 to 6
Cuisine: American, Southern, US & Canada
Ingredients: 3 tablespoons unsalted butter; 1 onion, chopped fine; 2 celery ribs, chopped fine; 3 garlic cloves, minced; 1 pound ham steak, chopped fine; 2 tablespoons dark brown sugar; 3/4 teaspoon dried thyme; 2 (16-ounce) cans white beans, drained and rinsed; 4 cups low-sodium chicken broth; 2 cups frozen chopped green beans

Why This Recipe Works

Southern Ham and Bean Soup is a favorite recipe of the test kitchen, and for good reason: Not only does it cook in just 30 minutes, but leftovers taste even better the following day. For a foolproof recipe, we added more chicken broth to thin out our Southern Ham and Bean Soup if it thickened too much during cooking. We also found that dried white beans could also be used instead of the canned beans—just make sure to soak them for 12 to 24 hours before using.

Instructions

Melt butter in Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Cook onion, celery, garlic, ham, sugar, thyme, and half of white beans, covered, until vegetables are soft, about 8 minutes.

Using potato masher, mash beans and vegetables to rough paste. Stir in remaining white beans and broth. Simmer, covered, until slightly thickened, about 10 minutes. Add green beans and cook until heated through, about 2 minutes. Serve.