Bacon & White Bean Soup
What’s the difference between soup and stew? Well, essentially, soup is—well, soupy. It has a lot more liquid or broth, allowing your ingredients to swim around in it. A stew, on the other hand, is more like a braise; it requires less liquid and is cooked for a longer period of time. Soup, in contrast, comes together quickly. This recipe is a weeknight favorite—it takes just 30 minutes to perfection, and all you need to do is serve it up with some crusty bread. The key to making a flavorful soup is using a great broth base, which you can create in no time by caramelizing the ingredients at the bottom of your pan. Follow the method in the recipe for the perfect result.
Equipment
- Large soup pot or Dutch oven
- Wooden spoon
- Knife
- Cutting Board
- Can Opener
- Ladle
- Grater (for Parmesan)
- Soup bowls
- Strainer (for rinsing beans)
Ingredients
- 1 pound lightly smoked bacon
- 1 onion diced
- 2 sprigs fresh rosemary
- 2 sprigs fresh thyme
- 3 ribs celery diced
- 2 carrots diced
- 1 delicata squash sliced into half-moons, seeds removed
- 3 cloves garlic crushed
- 1 zucchini diced
- 6 cups chicken broth
- Ham bone optional
- 2 cans navy beans rinsed and drained
- Fresh lemon juice for garnish
- Grated Parmesan for garnish
Instructions
- Place the sliced bacon, rosemary, thyme, and diced onion in a cold pan. Slowly render the bacon over medium heat, allowing it to release most of its fat while retaining some texture. This step will create brown bits at the bottom of the pan, which are key for flavor.
- Once the bacon has rendered, drain off about half of the fat. Add the diced celery, carrots, delicata squash, garlic, and zucchini to the pan. Stir to combine.
- Add the chicken broth and, if using, the ham bone to the pan. Bring the mixture to a simmer and then reduce the heat to low. Cook for 20 minutes, gently scraping the browned bits from the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon.
- Continue simmering for up to 2 hours, allowing the flavors to meld. If cooking for longer than 20 minutes, check periodically to ensure it doesn’t over-reduce.
- In the final 5 minutes of cooking, add the rinsed and drained navy beans to the soup. Stir to incorporate.
- Before serving, squeeze fresh lemon juice into the soup and top with freshly grated Parmesan.
- Serve hot with crusty bread on the side.
I’d say my favorite is white chicken chili!
My fave is anything with smokey sausage and lentils!
Gonna have to go with Gumbo!!
My favorite soup to make is a zucchini bisque! It’s roasted zucchini, leeks, onions and garlic all puréed to perfection with some stock or bone broth and served with a dollop of sour cream and some fresh dill! So good!
First, this soup looks ahh-mazing. So good.
My favorite soup is called Albondiga (Meatball) Soup and it’s one my mother always made for us when we were sick. These passed down recipes are the best ones and so your upcoming cookbook sounds great!
This looks amazing! My go-to fave is green chili pork stew. It cooks up amazing breakfast burritos in the morning!
My favorite soup to make is pho!
This looks beautiful! Bean soup is always my favorite!
My favorite soup is a toss up between smoked sausage, Black lentil soup (I add carrots, corn, sometimes fennel bulb, onion, mixed greens-chard, kale, Spinach) and chicken tortilla soup topped with avocado- I love soups during fall and winter weather! Great giveaway! Thanks!
I just love your posts girl you make me laugh and smile and HUNGRY 😋
My favorite soup to make is albondigas Mexican meatball soup my mom used to make it so it makes me happy when I make it 😊
I love to make hearty soups and chilis, and some stew. Just this week I made up a "Tuscan harvest white bean chili" that I just made with what I had on hand. It became Tuscan Harvest when I threw in some pumpkin butter at the end and Holy Moly! It was a hit!!! I also love Posole! Green Chili… soup is so so easy to make!
This soup recipe sounds magical! I love making seasonal puréed squash soups: basil zucchini in the summer, rosemary butternut in fall/winter.
Looks amazingly soul warming and delicious. My favorite soup to make is Borsch, it’s the Eastern European in me 😉
This soup looks amazing, I have to try it next! My favorite soup to make is actually chili (does that count??) So hearty and heart warming in the fall!
My favorite fall soup is a chicken tortilla soup.
I absolutely love making roasted butternut squash soup! So simple but satisfying
Spinach tortellini
Ever since becoming a vegetarian, I’ve loved a classic, hearty vegetable soup. I throw everything that’s in my fridge in and spice it up. Can eat it for days!
Ooo soups!!! I love making Split Pea, Lasagna Soup, Chili, and Chicken & Dumpling Soup! Now I think I need to make some soup to accompany this windy & rain weekend! Soup makes all things better!
You make me want to be a better (soup) person! My my current favorite soup is white bean and chicken taco soup. My whole family will eat it!
Caldo de Pollo! I love starting it out with the jalapeño, garlic, tomatoes, and onion for that delicious spice.
Classic chicken soup with carrots, onion, parsley, celery. Has to be organic free range whole chicken slow cooked for at least a day, for the bone broth !
Hey Danielle! This soup looks delicious! My favorite soup to make is greek lentil soup (Fakés) –red lentils, tomato, garlic, with a heavy dose of rosemary! Served with red wine vinegar and olive oil. So yummy!
It’s a toss up–either my fam favorite French Onion soup where the onions carmelize for hours and are sooo delish or my fall favorite French Green Lentil and Sausage—both suit the season perfectly!
YUM! can’t wait to try this recipe! our favorite soup is lentil and sweet potato soup.
Italian wedding soup and fresh bread. Wait. No. Chili and cornbread. Or maybe chicken noodle (when my family is sick). NO, I’ve got it butternut squash soup.
Dang it. I can’t decide. But I’m sure it would ALL be lovely in a new pot!!
Chicken Lime Soup is my fave to make, but the family’s favorite is Chicken noodle. I would love to try out this recipe in a new pot though!
Oh my this soup looks outstanding!!!! I love anything creamy and buttery! Butternut squash, tomato bisque with lots of cream, clam chowder…. now I’m hungry!!!
My favorite is always tortilla soup with homemade stock!
I love Portuguese cataplana!! All amazing spices and flavors!!!
Your soup is lovely. My favorite soup to make is Colombian Dinner Soup (topped with avocado salsa – yum!)
Too many favorite soups. But if I had to pick one, right now its my creamy cauliflower soup topped with crispy pancetta and a drizzle of very good quality evoo. I cook the cauliflower in coconut milk which makes it extra yummy and blend in my Vitamix!!