Navy Bean Ham Bone Soup
by Sommer Collier — last updated on Jan 21, 2026 
Nana’s Epic Navy Bean Ham Bone Soup Recipe is a simple, yet utterly rich and savory, ham and bean soup recipe is a great way to use your leftover holiday ham bone or make on a chilly winter day!
Why We Love This Navy Bean Soup Recipe
Growing up with five kids in our family, and a string of tag-along neighborhood friends, my mom (now known as Nana) made a lot of meals that could either be stretched to feed extra guests, or could be eaten as leftovers.
My mom (now known as Nana) had a special gift for using her resources wisely. Nothing went to waste, ever. And one of my favorite childhood meals was Nana’s Epic Navy Bean Ham Bone Soup, i.e. navy bean soup simmered with a leftover ham bone.
Navy bean soup is rich, filling, comforting, and can feed a large crowd on a small budget.
This soup is especially good when you have a leftover ham bone from a holiday meal! Whether it was from Thanksgiving, Christmas, or Easter, this ham bone navy bean soup is perfect as a nourishing meal following the days after a holiday. Today I will show you exactly how to use your leftover ham bone, to make the most of every last bite of flavor your baked ham can offer!
Ingredients You Need
- Dried Navy Beans – or other small white beans like great northern beans or cannellini beans
- Ham Bone + Ham Scraps – or a ham hock
- Olive Oil
- Large Onion – peeled and chopped
- Cloves Garlic –Minced
- Fresh Thyme Leaves – or dried thyme
- Ground Cumin
- Crushed Red Pepper
- Water – or chicken broth, but be sure to use low-sodium
- Salt and Black Pepper
Sometimes Nana (and I) add 2-3 chopped carrots, and 2-3 chopped celery stalks to the soup for additional veggie goodness. They are not necessary ingredients, but add a bit of extra color and nutrients to this navy bean soup recipe! If using, add the carrots and celery when you add the onions.
Pro Tip: If you didn’t have ham for your holiday dinner, you can buy a ham bone from the butcher for next to nothing.
Why Should I Add a Ham Bone to Soup?
Adding a ham bone to soup is a marvelous way to create a rich depth of flavor, finish off the last scraps of ham left on the bone, and eliminate the need to buy added stock.
A ham bone boiled in water develops a lovely soup base on its own, because the bone itself will add flavor and collagen to the liquid, and the smoked meat will fall off and add salt and a lovely meaty flavor with literally no effort from you!
How to Make Nana’s Epic Navy Bean Ham Bone Soup
Start by soaking dried beans in water overnight to prep them for cooking.
This does take thought to prepare ahead, but it also saves money (on canned beans) reduces sodium, and gives the beans a better texture and consistency.
Place a large 6-quart pot or dutch oven over medium to medium-high heat on the stovetop. Next sauté the ham bone, onions, and garlic in a little oil. This browns the leftover ham and softens and sweetens the aromatics.
Then add in the soaked beans, herbs, spices, and water. Bring the soup to a boil. Lower the heat and simmer for 60-90 minutes, covered, until the beans are very soft. Uncover and stir occasionally, then place the lid back on top.
Use a fork to pull any remaining ham off the bone and stir it into the soup. Discard the bone. Add 1-2 cups additional water if the soup is too thick. Taste, then salt and pepper as needed.
Serve warm. Garnish with fresh parsley, if desired. You may even want to pair a jalapeno cheddar cornbread with this hearty soup.
Tips & Tricks
- You can add any additional vegetables, herbs, or spices you like to this navy bean soup with ham. Bay leaves would be a good option, or add extra ham scraps you might want to use up.
- If you don’t have time to soak your beans overnight, and you own an electric pressure cooker like an Instant Pot, you can pressure cook the beans instead of soaking them to speed things up.
- Do not add any salt until the soup is fully cooked. Hambones have a lot of salt in them, and it’s easy to overdo it if you salt the soup too early. Taste and adjust accordingly.
Serving Suggestions
A bowl of navy bean ham bone soup is perfectly satisfying on its own, but you can also serve it with some side dishes to make it a more hearty meal! This is a great idea if you are feeding a large crowd. Try pairing it with some of my personal favorites:
See The Recipe Card Below For How To Make Easy Ham and Bean Soup Recipe + Video. Enjoy!
Frequently Asked Questions
How to Store Navy Bean Soup?
You can freeze Nana’s Epic Soup in an airtight container or freezer bags for later quickie meals.
Even consider pureeing it into incredible bean dip with a blender to eat with tortilla chips.
Can This Be Made With Canned Beans?
You can use canned beans and it will reduce the cooking time, but honestly, it’s best with dried-soaked beans. It takes about 3 of the 15-ounce cans of beans per 1-pound dried beans. Drain the liquid well to reduce the sodium. You can even rinse the beans to make sure you get as much sodium off as possible.
Is There A Crockpot Version Of This Recipe?
You can make this recipe in the crock pot… And you do not need to soak the beans ahead of time! Saute the veggies on the stovetop until tender, then add everything to the slow cooker. Set on low for 10-12 hours, or on high for 5-7 hours. Then serve your slow cooker ham soup warm out of the crock.
Can I Use The Ham Bone More Than Once?
I usually just use a hambone just once. However, I have heard that if there is still meat on the bone and marrow in the center, you can wrap and freeze it for later use. Yet if you’ve “picked the bone dry” in a recipe, throw it out.
What If I Threw My Ham Bone Out?
You could make this with your leftover ham or you could buy a ham bone (or ham hock) from the grocery store. Or, try making my vegetarian navy bean soup recipe instead!
Looking for More Soup Recipes You Will Love? Be Sure to Also Try:
- Portuguese Caldo Verde Recipe
- Creamy Poblano Turkey Soup Recipe
- Simple Egg Drop Soup Recipe
- Creamy Chicken Tortellini Soup Recipe
- Navy Bean Vegetarian Soup Recipe
- Nana’s Creamy Potato Soup Recipe
- Ham and Potato Soup Recipe by Simply Recipes
Check the printable recipe card below for the nutrition information including calories, protein, fiber, and vitamin percentages.
Navy Bean Soup Recipe (with Ham)
Video
Ingredients
- 1 pound dried navy beans
- 1 ham bone + ham scraps
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 large onion, peeled and chopped
- 6 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tablespoons fresh thyme leaves
- 2 teaspoons ground cumin
- 1/2-1 teaspoon crushed red pepper
- 10 cups water
- Salt and pepper
Instructions
- The Night Before: Place the dried beans in a large bowl and cover with three inches of water. Soak the dried beans overnight (up to 24 hours) to soften. Drain when ready to use.
- Place a large 6 quart pot over medium heat. Add the oil, ham bone, onions, and garlic. Sauté for 3-5 minutes to soften the onions.
- Then add in the drained beans, thyme, ground cumin, crushed red pepper, 10 cups of water, and any remaining ham scraps. (Do not salt the soup until the end, because ham bones can be very salty.)
- Bring the soup to a boil. Lower the heat and simmer for 60-90 minutes, covered, until the beans are very soft. Uncover and stir occasionally, then place the lid back on top.
- Use a fork to pull any remaining ham off the bone and stir it into the soup. Discard the bone. Add 1-2 cups additional water if the soup is too thick. Taste, then salt and pepper as needed.
I made this for an evening meal as a double batch. I chose canned Great Northern beans-rinsed and put into the pot. I sautéed onions, carrots and celery in butter. For seasonings we used one Tbs. of dried Italian seasoning, minced garlic and 2 tsp cumin. The ham bone had a quite a bit of meat so we put it in the pot for the boil and simmer. Picked meat off the bone and added to soup when it was finished. It received rave reviews from the pickiest of eaters ranging from 6 to 80! There was plenty for everyone to have generous seconds. We only had one generous helping left with one piece of cornbread. We enjoyed this delicious recipe!
I made this soup today with chicken stock in lieu of water, added finely chopped carrots and celery along with 6 thick slices of cooked and finely chopped bacon. Threw in a bay leaf and a little fresh rosemary in addition to the stated spices. Absolutely delicious and very flavorful. (Would’ve been just as tasted without my additions!) Highly recommend
I did make this navy bean recipe with great northern beans. Everyone that has tried it thought it was delicious and hardy.
Thank you very much for yott for the recipe
This soup was comforting and delicious. My entire family loved it!
This is a great ham bone soup recipe. I love soup recipes for fall/winter and this one is definitely going on my list of must-makes!
Third time making this soup and it’s perfect each time!
Can this be made with canned beans? I have a can of dark red kidney and one of cannelini beans I would like to use
Hi Kari!
Yes, I takes about 3 – 15 ounce cans of beans per 1 pound dried beans. Draine them well to reduce the sodium.
Is there a crockpot version of this recipe and can I use canned great northern beans?
Hi Willy,
You can make this recipe in the crock pot… Soak the beans, sauté the veggies on the stovetop, add all the ingredients to crock pot, and cook 4-6 hours. You can use canned beans and it will reduce the cooking time, but honestly, it’s best with dried-soaked beans.
Can I use the ham bone more then a couple of time?
Hi Brenda,
I usually just use a hambone once. However, I have heard that if there is still meat on the bone and marrow in the center, you can wrap and freeze it for later use. Yet if you’ve “picked the bone dry” in a recipe, throw it out. ;)
This was a wonderful way to transition from our scorching hot summer and fires to autumn. This recipe works really well precisely because it’s so basic. We followed it to the letter because that’s how we work. Then we tweak it if need be.
Didn’t have a ham bone, so I used a couple of big ham hocks, and they were perfect. After reading the comments below, some observations:
(hmm, why doesn’t the return key work in this field?). If your dried beans have been hanging around for a long time, get new ones. Old ones, sometimes, never soften up. Be careful with your ham bone. If it’s the bland supermarket version, you should be fine, but if it’s from a true Virginia or country ham, it’ll bring all the sodium with it. And, yes, you can use black-eye peas or black beans, but they have different flavor profiles, so you may need to add some sherry (NOT “cooking” sherry) to soften the sometimes musty flavor. And if you want a thicker soup, drop an immersion blender into it and pulse it a few times. Really good!
Interesting soup. I followed the recipe, something I rarely do. Found it to be pretty spicy with 1/2tsp crashed red pepper, so I suggest using it sparingly if you’re not a fan of heat. The beans soaked about 15 hours but had to cook longer to get them to a texture I liked.
I then added 3 Bay leaves, chopped celery , 1/2 stick unsalted butter and simmered until the celery was cooked. THIS was delicious!!! The bay leaves pulled the flavors together, celery have it some crunch and the butter toned down the burn and added extra yummy.
Disappointing. The beans weren’t even close to cooked after 90 minutes. I finally ate some of the soup after 3 hours, but the other person I was cooking for didn’t find it palatable (the beans were still not soft) and ate bread and cheese for dinner. :-(
Note, I soaked the beans for about 20 hours beforehand, and I followed the recipe exactly.
You probably didn’t have enough water to soak the beans in. They need a lot of water, I usually put my beans in 8 cup bowl and fill it almost to the top with water.
Dry beans, peas, lentils (any type dried legume) always require plenty of H2O to achieve proper texture once cooked, unless you are using a pressure cooker of course.
I would hardly rate this recipe badly for your incapable cooking knowledge.
Sounds like the rest of your meal lacked if you guest had only cheese & bread to eat. At least bake some fresh biscuits with the soup and have something as an alternative, obviously you aren’t a frequent hostess and if so, should be a better cook. ;)
What a ridiculous thing to say. All dried beans can behave differently and when I read this recipe I thought to myself that 90 minutes might not be enough cooking time. You’re making assumptions about what kind of a cook she is, making assumptions about how much water she used, and in general just being unkind. There is no need for this kind of behavior.
If any type beans re old they will take a long time to cook.
Same issue, New Bag of Bean, 20 hrs soak, water well over the top of the beans all the way to the end. 120 minutes cook, beans were just beginning to get soft. In the end, I was not a fan.