Bacon, Beer, & Dried Navy Bean Soup

Don’t be afraid to break out a bag of dried beans to make your next pot of soup. An overnight soak in water is all that is needed to help them plump up and soften. Add in some bacon, beer, a few veggies, and some seasonings, and you’ll have a pot of navy bean soup that’s almost impossible to resist.

Soup, soup, and more soup. That’s pretty much been our diet lately, with the addition of sandwiches for lunch, some sort of quick bread for breakfast, and an occasional quiche thrown in for variety. Why so much soup? Because I’m tired and soup is just so darn easy. After working tense stress-filled days and dealing with the cold/sinus/allergy issue I’ve had going on for over a month, I’m just done. Like done, done. The last thing I want to do is make dinner and do dishes yet again. Seriously folks, if I see one more dirty dish, I may just scream. When it comes to making three meals a day and cleaning up afterward, I’ve come to the conclusion that I’d almost rather spend more time working. And that’s truly saying something, seeing as I currently loathe my job and the company I work for. Maybe next week will be better. Fingers crossed y’all, fingers crossed.

Ingredients:

• 1 Cup Dried Navy Beans
• 1/2 Pound Thick-Sliced Bacon, Diced
• 1 Large Sweet Yellow Onion, Peeled & Finely Diced
• 2 Cloves Garlic, Peeled & Finely Minced or Crushed
• 1 (32-oz.) Carton Low-Sodium Chicken Stock
• 2 Cups Whole Milk
• 1 (12-oz.) Bottle Lager Beer
• 3 Carrots, Peeled & Finely Diced
• 1 Teaspoon Dried Thyme
• 1/2 Teaspoon Dried Oregano
• 1/2 Teaspoon Freshly Ground Black Pepper
• 1/2 Teaspoon Ground Paprika
• 2 Bay Leaves
• Kosher Salt (Optional)

Directions:

1. Place the dried beans in a large bowl, cover with water, and allow to soak overnight.
2. Drain and rinse the beans; set aside.
3. Brown and crisp the bacon in a large Dutch oven or stockpot over medium-high heat. Remove and drain the bacon on a paper towel-lined plate.
4. Remove all but 1-teaspoon of the bacon grease. Add the onion; sauté 5 to 8 minutes, stirring often, or until softened.
5. Add the garlic; sauté 1 minute stirring constantly.
6. Add the beans, bacon, stock, milk, lager, carrots, thyme, oregano, pepper, paprika, and bay leaves. Stir to combine and allow to come to a boil.
7. When the soup comes to a boil, cover, lower the heat to low, and continue to cook the soup for 1 1/2 hours, stirring occasionally.
8. Remove and discard the bay leaves.
9. Use an immersion blender or traditional blender to blend half of the soup. Combine the blended and unblended soup. If desired, salt to taste.

Suggestions:

• Make sure to soak the navy beans for at least 8 to 24 hours.
• Don’t forget to remove and discard the bay leaves before blending the soup.
• Blending half of the soup helps to make this soup creamier without adding heavy whipping cream to it.
• If using a traditional blender, make sure to blend half of the soup in small batches to prevent a soup explosion.
• When cooking beans, it is always best to add the salt at the end, to prevent the beans from becoming overly tough.

Improvements:

• Cook an entire pound of bacon for this recipe. Reserve half of the bacon for garnishing the soup.
• For a richer soup, replace some of the milk with heavy whipping cream.
• Garnish the soup with finely chopped fresh thyme or oregano.
• Serve with grated cheddar cheese or a dollop of sour cream.

Print

Yum

Bacon, Beer, & Dried Navy Bean Soup

Ingredients:

• 1 Cup Dried Navy Beans
• 1/2 Pound Thick-Sliced Bacon, Diced
• 1 Large Sweet Yellow Onion, Peeled & Finely Diced
• 2 Cloves Garlic, Peeled & Finely Minced or Crushed
• 1 (32-oz.) Carton Low-Sodium Chicken Stock
• 2 Cups Whole Milk
• 1 (12-oz.) Bottle Lager Beer
• 3 Carrots, Peeled & Finely Diced
• 1 Teaspoon Dried Thyme
• 1/2 Teaspoon Dried Oregano
• 1/2 Teaspoon Freshly Ground Black Pepper
• 1/2 Teaspoon Ground Paprika
• 2 Bay Leaves
• Kosher Salt (Optional)

Directions:

1. Place the dried beans in a large bowl, cover with water, and allow to soak overnight.
2. Drain and rinse the beans; set aside.
3. Brown and crisp the bacon in a large Dutch oven or stockpot over medium-high heat. Remove and drain the bacon on a paper towel-lined plate.
4. Remove all but 1-teaspoon of the bacon grease. Add the onion; sauté 5 to 8 minutes, stirring often, or until softened.
5. Add the garlic; sauté 1 minute stirring constantly.
6. Add the beans, bacon, stock, milk, lager, carrots, thyme, oregano, pepper, paprika, and bay leaves. Stir to combine and allow to come to a boil.
7. When the soup comes to a boil, cover, lower the heat to low, and continue to cook the soup for 1 1/2 hours, stirring occasionally.
8. Remove and discard the bay leaves.
9. Use an immersion blender or traditional blender to blend half of the soup. Combine the blended and unblended soup. If desired, salt to taste.

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