Ham Navy Bean Thyme (Printable Format)

A rustic stew with smoky ham, navy beans, fresh thyme, and vegetables simmered to perfection.

# What's Needed:

→ Beans & Meats

01 - 1 pound dried navy beans, rinsed
02 - 1 pound smoked ham hock or diced cooked ham

→ Vegetables

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

→ Liquids & Flavorings

07 - 8 cups low-sodium chicken broth or water
08 - 2 sprigs fresh thyme or 1 teaspoon dried thyme
09 - 2 bay leaves
10 - 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
11 - Salt to taste

→ Finishing

12 - 2 tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped
13 - Crusty bread for serving

# How To Make It:

01 - Place navy beans in a large bowl and cover with water. Soak overnight, then drain and rinse. For quick soaking, cover beans with water in a pot, bring to a boil for 5 minutes, let sit off heat for 1 hour, then drain.
02 - Heat a splash of oil in a large Dutch oven or soup pot over medium heat. Add diced onion, carrots, and celery; cook until softened, about 5 minutes.
03 - Stir in minced garlic and cook until fragrant, approximately 1 minute.
04 - Add soaked navy beans, ham hock or diced ham, chicken broth, thyme sprigs, bay leaves, and black pepper. Stir thoroughly to combine.
05 - Bring mixture to a boil, then reduce heat to low. Cover and simmer gently for 1 hour 30 minutes until beans are tender.
06 - Remove ham hock from soup, discard skin and bone, and shred any meat. Return shredded meat to the soup.
07 - Discard thyme sprigs and bay leaves. Taste and adjust seasoning with salt and additional pepper as needed.
08 - Ladle soup into bowls, garnish with fresh parsley, and serve hot with crusty bread if desired.

# Expert Advice:

01 -
  • The beans become impossibly creamy while staying whole, absorbing every bit of that smoky ham flavor.
  • One pot, minimal fussing, and it tastes even better the next day when flavors have had time to get cozy with each other.
  • It's naturally hearty enough to feel like a complete meal but honest enough that you won't feel heavy afterward.
02 -
  • Don't skip the initial sauté of vegetables—those five minutes of caramelization build layers of flavor that make the entire soup taste less one-note and more dimensional.
  • If your beans never quite get tender after an hour and a half, it usually means your broth was too salty from the start; stick with low-sodium versions so you have control over the final taste.
03 -
  • If you're cooking without a ham hock and using diced ham instead, brown it in the pot for a minute before adding vegetables—it deepens the flavor and gives the soup a more complex taste.
  • Taste the soup near the end of cooking and resist the urge to add salt too early; as the broth reduces, it becomes naturally more concentrated, and adding salt at the beginning can make it unbearably salty by the end.
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