Use that leftover holiday ham bone to make this hearty, old-fashioned Crock Pot ham and bean soup. This classic slow cooker recipe cooks all day with dry or canned white beans, a meaty ham bone (or some diced ham), and veggies. Perfect slow cooker comfort food after the holidays.
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Featured Comment by Andie:
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"I am making this for the third time today! This is my go to for ham bone bean soup. I follow the recipe and use dry beans. Perfect every time! So tasty! Thank you!"
📝 TL;DR — Recipe Summary
What: An old-fashioned crock pot ham and bean soup made with a ham bone, white beans, and simple vegetables.
Why: The ham bone builds a rich broth for an easy, hearty comfort-food soup.
How: Use canned beans for the easiest preparation, or soak dry beans first, then cook everything on low until tender.
🐷 Ingredients for Crock Pot Ham and Bean Soup
- 🐖 Ham Bone – Use a ham bone with some meat remaining. Or use diced ham if you don't have a bone.
- 🫘 White Beans – Navy, Great Northern, or Cannellini. Use soaked dry beans or drained and rinsed canned beans.
- 🥕 Vegetables – Onion, carrot, and celery. Carrots and celery are optional but recommended.
- 🧂 Seasoning – Garlic powder, black pepper, and an optional bay leaf. Hold the salt until the end.
- 💧 Liquid – Water to cover, or low-sodium broth if you're not using a ham bone.
👨🍳 How to Make Ham and Bean Soup in a Crock Pot
1. Rinse a meaty ham bone under running water and scrape off any surface fat or coating.
2. Dice the carrots, celery, and onion. If using dry beans, soak them properly before cooking—see the bean section below.
3. Add the beans, ham bone, and remaining ingredients to the crock pot. Cover with water (about 6–8 cups) and cook on low for 8 hours with canned beans or 10 hours with soaked dry beans.
✅ Pro Tip: A slow cooker works best when no more than about ¾ full. Remove a little liquid if needed.
4. During the last 1–2 hours, remove the ham bone. Remove the meat from the bone and return it to the soup.
5. Finish cooking, then adjust the seasoning and thickness if needed. Serve hot, or refrigerate overnight to skim off the fat before reheating.
👇 Scroll to the recipe card for complete step-by-step photo instructions, or keep reading for pro tips, FAQs, and serving ideas.
😊 Tips for Crock Pot Success
- Don’t overdo the liquid: Add just enough water to cover everything—usually about 6 cups and no more than 8. If the ham bone sticks out too far, trim it down.
- Broth: Use low-sodium chicken broth instead of some or all of the water for more flavor, with or without a ham bone.
- Hold the salt: The ham and broth may already provide plenty of salt, so wait until the end to add any.
- Vegetables are flexible: Add potatoes, green beans, or other vegetables you like. Add delicate vegetables later so they don't overcook.
- Bad ham = bad soup: If your ham lacked flavor to begin with, it won’t magically improve in the crock pot. The texture won’t get better either. If the soup tastes flat, try a little ham bouillon or ham soup base to boost the flavor.
- Make it today, eat it tomorrow: The soup is great day one, but chilling overnight lets you skim the fat and brings the flavors together even better.
🐖 Ham Bone Options
A ham bone with some meat left on it gives the soup the best ham flavor.
Remove extra fat and any glaze: Trim off any thick fat. If your leftover ham came from a sweet glazed spiral ham, rinse well and scrape off the glaze—it can make the soup too sweet.
Not much meat on the bone? Add 1–2 cups of diced ham.
No ham bone? Use 2–4 cups of diced ham. Since you won't get as much flavor from the bone, use low-sodium chicken broth instead of water. A little ham bouillon or ham soup base can also boost the flavor, but add carefully because they can be salty.
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🫘 Beans—Types, Prep, and Tips
White beans: Navy beans are traditional, but Great Northern or Cannellini beans also work well.
15-bean soup mix: You can substitute a 15-bean mix, but discard the seasoning packet and soak the beans according to the package directions.
Dry or canned: Dry beans need to be soaked before cooking. Drain and rinse canned beans before adding them directly to the crock pot.
Quick soak: Cover the beans with water, boil for 2 minutes, remove from the heat, cover, and let stand for 1 hour. Drain and rinse before using. Quicker and more effective than an overnight soak.
Classic overnight soak: Cover dry beans with plenty of water and soak for 8–12 hours. Drain and rinse before adding them to the crock pot.
🍽️ How to Serve
This hearty soup is great with something to mop up the bowl:
❄️ Leftovers and Storage
Refrigerate in an airtight container for 3–4 days, or freeze for 3–4 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator before reheating.
To reduce the fat: Chill the soup overnight, then skim off the solidified fat before reheating.
📖 More Ham Bone Recipes
- Ham and Vegetable Soup — A lighter ham bone soup packed with vegetables.
- Puerto Rican Chuletón Soup AKA Xmas Ham Bone Soup — Our Christmas tradition and a delicious change from traditional ham soups.
❓ FAQs
Mash or blend about a cup of the cooked beans and stir them back into the soup, or stir in ¼ to ½ cup of potato flakes near the end. I don't recommend cornstarch because it can gel when cooled and change the texture.
Soaking improves texture and helps remove some of the indigestible carbohydrates that can cause gas or GI upset. You can use a traditional overnight soak, but the quick soak is faster and more effective.
📖The Recipe Card
Crock Pot Ham and Bean Soup (With Ham Bone)
Video Slideshow
Ingredients
- 1 ham bone - meaty
- 48 ounces Canned Navy, Great Northern, or Cannellini beans—drained and rinsed - (may use 1 pound dry beans, properly prepared)
- 2 carrots - medium, diced (optional)
- 2 ribs celery - diced (optional)
- 1 onion - medium, diced
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- 1 bay leaf - optional
- 6 to 8 cups water or low-sodium chicken broth - enough to cover ingredients
Step-by-Step Instructions
Prepare the beans, ham bone, and veggies
- If using canned beans, drain and rinse 48 oz. (about 3 cans).
- If using dry beans, rinse 1 pound of beans. Cover with plenty of water, boil for 2 minutes, remove from the heat, cover, and let sit for 1 hour. Drain and rinse.
- Rinse a meaty ham bone under running water to remove any coating or glaze. Scrape off excess surface fat.
- Dice two medium carrots, two celery ribs, and one medium onion. Carrots and celery are options, but recommended.
Load the crock pot and cook
- Add the beans, ham bone, diced vegetables, garlic powder, pepper, and bay leaf to a large crock pot. Add just enough water or broth to cover the ingredients—usually about 6 to 8 cups. Cook on low for 8 hours (canned beans) or 10 hours (dry beans).
Strip the ham bone
- About 2 hours before the end of cooking, remove the ham bone to a cutting board and let it cool 5–10 minutes. Remove the meat, discard the bone, fat, and other waste
Finish and serve
- Return the meat to the crock pot and finish cooking. Taste and add salt only if needed.
- Serve hot, or refrigerate overnight and skim the fat off the top before reheating.
Recipe Notes
Pro Tips:
- Use a 6-quart or larger crock pot.
- Ham bones and hams vary, so amounts are guidelines.
- For glazed ham, rinse well and scrape off the glaze.
- Ham is salty. Use low-sodium broth and canned beans, and add salt only at the end if needed.
- For easier fat removal, refrigerate overnight and skim off the solidified fat.
- No ham bone? Use 2–4 cups diced ham and low-sodium broth; add ham bouillon or soup base if needed.
- Refrigerate for 3–4 days or freeze for 3–4 months.
Your Own Private Notes
To adjust the recipe size:
You can adjust the number of servings above; however, only the amount in the ingredient list is adjusted, not the instructions.
Nutrition Estimate (may vary)
Editor's Note: Originally Published December 13, 2014. Updated with expanded options, refreshed photos, and improved organization for easier navigation.
Aliceyn says
Our “funny” family story... I was a young single mom, granddaughter of farmers, dating the son of San Francisco socialites. We were served a ham dinner during one of the holidays. (from the honey baked stores). I was helping clean the kitchen and GASPED when my future mother in law put the bone (with MOST of the meat) in the trash. She looked up and realized that as a single working mom barely able to feed my 2 children- what she had done. She said, “oh dear, I had heard you make soup from bones...do you want this?” That “bone” fed my children for a week, THEN I made the navy bean soup. 34 years later my husband still looks forward to ham bone soup. His mother is still shocked and possibly a little proud of all the things I can do and no one else they know can...
Jodie Knop says
DrDan
Thank you for this recipe. I am making it today (with the vegetables) It looks like the soup my husband’s Grandmother Millie always made, without the vegetables. She never used a recipe. He has wanted me to make this for a long time. It is a bland soup, but she had always put a bottle of ketchup, bottle of hot sauce, chopped purple onions, and brown sugar on the table. We would add what we wanted to our bowl. Can’t wait to eat!
Michel says
I'm making this one..after reading many recipes.! Going to add leftover mash yam (about one)..at the last hour of cooking time
DrDan says
Hi Michel,
Good touch with the yam. It should thicken some and add taste.
Dan
Cathrine Livingston says
I have made this soup twice in the past 5 days and followed the recipe as posted, except I used chicken stock instead of plain water in the crock pot. I did not have to add any seasoning at the end and the ham provided enough salt to the soup. I did mash some of the beans as suggested in the recipe. My husband said it was fantastic!! Will add this to my permanent recipe book.
DrDan says
Hi Cathrine,
Glad you like it. I have a ham coming this weekend and I think my wife is more excited for the soup.
Dan
Trudy says
I have been cooking for over 60 years. I have made all kinds of soups, cooking many meals teaches one a lot of things. One thing for sure, I no longer soak beans, it is a waste of time, leaches out the vitamins, and slows the cooking of a meal. The fastest, easiest, and most economical is to wash thoroghly, sorting if necessary, and placing in an appropriate size container e.g. Stainless Steel covered 2 quart or larger. Ratio of beans to water 1:2. 1 cup beans, 2 cups of clean, filtered water. Cook on HIGH for five minutes, let sit for an hour. The beans if cooked enough, when you draw out a teaspoon of cooked beans and blow on them will split and curl the shell. Never, ever add anything to the water, other than the beans. If the beans are old they will need more cooking time, and willnot split their shell when you blow on them. Then While all that was going on I was busy chopping the veggies. The onion, celery, carrots, and peeling fresh garlic to crush later into the soup. I saute the veggies in EVOO (Extra Virgin Olive Oil) or EV Coconut Oil. This brings out the flavor and seals in the vitamins in the vegetables. Here you can add precooked Acorn Squash, Sweet Potatoes, etc. Herbs of choice can go here as well. Potatoes added to the soup will serve as a thickener. Also, as the soup cooks, mash some of the Beans to thicken it as well with the back of a large spoon or a bean masher. This creates a smoother texture, besides thickening it. Add the sauteed veggies, cooked beans, meat (like Ham or even a smoked spicy summer sausage cutup); next, add the homemade soup stock, bay leaf, a little salt, black ground pepper. All these hints makes the soup quick, tasty, digestible, and easy to ladle up. I usually cook it on High four hours, and low for 4-6 hours. Your nose will tell you when it is ready. Add picante sauce, zucchini, kale, etc. if you wish to have more nutrious spicy, veggie soup. The length of cooking at 600 minutes is off-putting. Hours is more palatable. e.g. 6-10 hours
Donna says
I love this soup! I think it has great flavor exactly as it is written. I was thinking of using this recipe as a basis for split pea soup. Do you think it would work with split peas?
DrDan says
Hi Donna,
I have never made a split pea soup but it seems to me it would. I would need to investigate a number of other recipes to be sure but it makes a ham broth and seems to have about the right composition. I know mostly they use chicken broth but the ham would be better taste wise. I might be a great soup.
Dan
Sandra Cullen says
Started this recipe & have a time lapse between ending the 8 hr soaking of dry beans & actual time I will prepare crockpot due to having to make trip to grocery for veggies. Do soaked beans need to be refrigerated while awaiting crockpot? Is it ok to substitute a can of celery soup instead of celery rib since hate to purchase whole big bunch when only need one or two individual ribs?
DrDan says
Skip the celery if you want. Like all soups, use what you have. I like to refrigerate the beans during soaking although many don't. I see a water nutrient mixture that bacteria can grow in.
Joann Colan says
Rake through beans when they are DRY first before rinsing and cleaning with water. This way the beans won't stick together when combing for rocks, dirt clods, rotten or broken beans with skins off. I rinse and scrub several times to make sure they are clean before I cook.
Gillian says
Oh My!!! Made this soup today and boy was it delicious. As with every dish I usually make, I start with a basic recipe and make it my own but I always give credit where credit is due. So the only changes I made were to use homemade chicken stock, fresh thyme, fresh garlic and fresh parsley. I also added about a half cup to three quarter cup of finely diced butternut squash because I love it in most of my soups as a natural, slightly sweet, thickener. Plus its another sneaky veggie my kid wouldn't eat otherwise. I threw in a couple diced potatoes at the end along with a tsp or so of seasoned salt. I'm very close to saying that this is now my absolute favorite bean soup. Thanks for sharing.
Pauly P in NC says
Good think I like Celery in my soups!!
Are you sure there are to be TWO STALKS of celery as opposed to 2 RIBS?
I could not fit two stalks worth of celery in my 8 qt pot...I stopped at one stalk.
Admittedly, I did have a hefty ham bone, but....
Otherwise a wonderfully easy and delicious recipe...THANK YOU!!!
DrDan says
Hi Pauly,
You caught me on the computer. We appear to have a terminology difference. When I grew up we called a rib of celery a stalk and what you call a stalk a bunch. I did a fast Google https://www.seattletimes.com/life/food-drink/celery-question-8212-whats-a-rib-vs-stalk/
I think I will keep my present terminology.
Have a good holiday season.
Dan
Mark says
Ham bone is really cheap now. I might have to pick one up and give this one a try.
DrDan says
Hi Mark,
Thanks for the note. I have a Honey Baked in the mail now for the weekend. So I'm doing this next week.
Dan
Marsha says
Really good recipe! I followed your recipe and used the ingredients you suggested, using 4 carrots and 3 celery per my family's taste. Took 8 hours on low, after soaking the beans for about 8 hours. I actually kept the beans covered in the refrigerator for a couple of days before I cooked the soup today and they came out the very right consistency. I had to add more seasoning at the end but did not add any salt to this soup. Thank you! I will be trying more 😀
Robert says
My ex wife made very good bean soup using smoked turkey (I'm a heart patient) but she also made dumplings using Bisquick. She made her soup on the stove and added the dumplings just before serving. This also added some thinking to the soup. She also add carrots and onions.
DrDan says
Hi Robert,
Thanks for the note. I can see it now...
Dan
Jane Montello says
Made the bean soup and it turned out great. My mom (who has passed away and left no written instructions) used her leftover bean soup to make baked beans. I have been unable to find such a recipe on the internet. Do you have one? I am going to try to adapt various baked bean recipes using the leftover soup, but would love to get your take on it. Thank you. Your site is wonderful for cooking for 2.
DrDan says
Hi Jane, Thanks for the note. I have not heard of doing that. It seems like the liquid to bean ratio would be off but you could drain some. I guess I would drain the liquid, call the ham as bacon. then add the ketchup/BBQ sauce, onion and other things. Honestly, I have not found a baked bean recipe I really like. I find most of them way too sweet for my taste. The best I have had is at Marlowe's in Memphis but they don't publish their recipe.
Dan
Jennifer Szalach says
Delicious! My husband and I absolutely loved this recipe, we will definitely be making this again!
Tammy says
This is very good. I will never throw out a ham bone again.
DrDan says
Hi Tammy
I grew up never wasting anything so tossing the hambone is just wrong.
Thanks so much for the note.
Dan
Nancy says
Great recipe and similar to my own. I add a couple of small potatoes to absorb some of the salt. A jalapeño pepper also adds some great flavor and and little heat. I like my soup a little thicker and creamier, so I take about a half cup of soup, add a little milk and cornstarch and blend it together and return to soup to finish cooking. No salt is ever needed.