Instant pot bean and ham soup

This post may contain affiliate links. There is plenty of old-fashioned flavor in this Instant Pot Navy Bean Soup. The pressure cook method results in a creamy, satisfying and super wholesome soup without the need to soak instant pot bean and ham soup beans in advance.

A white bowl filled with navy bean soup. Since there is no better method for cooking beans from scratch than pressure cooking, my Instant Pot was the obvious choice. It makes this soup a breeze to put together and it is FAST! Forget about pre-soaking and simmering the beans for hour and hours. With the press of a couple of buttons you will have this delicious, substantial soup ready to serve in just over an hour. Two bowls of navy beans soup with saltine crackers.

Cayenne pepper adds a very slight kick. It’s not super spicy but you can leave it out if you’re feeding kiddos or sensitive folks. You can also add more if you’d like a more prominent spicy flavor. If you’re thinking about adding salt, only do it at the end of the cooking time and definitely taste it first. I don’t add any additional salt and it is perfection. Seasoning Ham You can use a meaty leftover ham bone, a ham shank, or a ham hock in this recipe. If you happen to have a leftover ham bone from a holiday ham, great!

If I’m going with the store-bought variety, I prefer a ham shank over the hock because they tend to be meatier. In addition to the flavor the bone is going to impart to your soup, you want a little meat on that bone. The Cook’s Ham Shank I used worked perfectly. If using a leftover ham bone, be sure to rinse it thoroughly to remove any glaze you might have used when cooking your ham. Sweet ham glazes are great for the ham, but not so great for your Navy Bean Soup! How to Make Instant Pot Navy Bean Soup Place one pound of navy beans in a colander, rinse them well with cold water and allow to drain.

Pick through the beans and remove and discard any debris. Ingredients are added to an Instant Pot. Add the beans, low-sodium chicken or vegetable broth, water, thyme, cumin, cayenne, and the bay leaves. Tuck your seasoning ham of choice down into the mixture.

Press the MANUAL or the PRESSURE COOK button, select HIGH, and cook for 40 minutes. An immersion blender purees ingredients in an Instant Pot. 3 or 4 times, just to break up some of the beans. Don’t go overboard, you want lots of whole beans and a few pulses will yield a nice and creamy result. I highly recommend not skipping this step.

A bowl of navy bean soup in front of an Instant Pot. How to Freeze Bean Soup Bean soups freeze very well and what’s better than being able to have a warm bowl of made from scratch Navy Bean Soup whenever the craving strikes? Use a ladle to transfer the completely cooled soup into freezer-safe plastic storage bags. Remove as much air as necessary and seal.

You can place it all in one gallon sized bag or portion it out into several quart size bags for individual servings. Lay the bags flat in your freezer until frozen solid. I recommend laying them on a rimmed baking sheet for this task in the rare case that a bag might open up or leak while freezing. Once they are frozen solid they can be stacked and stored in your freezer. Be sure to label the bags with the date. I recommend using the soup within 4 months for the best quality.

Thaw the bags of soup completely in your refrigerator before reheating in the microwave or on the stove. A bowl of navy bean soup with a spoon and crackers. Looking for more Instant Pot inspiration? Check out our Low Sodium Instant Pot Ramen and Instant Pot Broccoli.