Whoever discovered beans gets a big fat medal of appreciation from yours truly. They’re just incredible. Incredible and cheap. And so is this Slow Cooker White Bean Soup. This soup is thick, warm, comforting, and flavorful… and cost me LESS THAN FIVE DOLLARS FOR THE WHOLE POT. That, my friend, is the magic of beans.
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What Kind of White Beans Should I Use?
I suggest using navy beans first, because they are creamy and break down easily when cooked, which will give you this nice thick texture in the finished soup. If navy beans are not available, my second choice would be great northern beans. DO NOT use cannellini beans, which are part of the kidney bean family, and require a heavy boil to break down a natural substance called Phytohaemagglutinin, which is a gastrointestinal toxin. The slow cooker does not get the soup hot enough for long enough to break down the toxins in those beans.
Do I Need to Soak the Beans?
Nope! This recipe does not require pre-soaking the beans. Some people claim that soaking beans then discarding the soaking water can reduce flatulence, but I, personally, find no difference. If you prefer to pre-soak your beans, you will need to add less water to this recipe and will probably need less cooking time. I have not tested that method, so I do not have a specific amount of water or cooking time to suggest.
Can I Use Broth in Place of Water?
This awesome Slow Cooker White Bean Soup uses a medley of spices, herbs, and vegetables to make its own flavorful broth right in the slow cooker – no Better Than Bouillon soup base this time around, folks. Of course you always have the option to use broth in place of water if you wish, just be aware that you probably won’t need to add salt at the end of the recipe, as directed below.
Can I Add Meat?
Sure, if you prefer meat in your soup I would suggest adding a ham hock or a smoked turkey leg to the slow cooker with your soup as it cooks. They will provide a wonderfully smoky flavor and will reduce the amount of salt you’ll need to add at the end.
Is This Soup Freezer Friendly?
Yes! This Slow Cooker White Bean Soup freezer beautifully. Make sure to divide it into single portions and chill it in the refrigerator first, then transfer to the freezer once cold. I like to freeze my soups in reusable Ziploc containers, but freezer bags also work great. To reheat either use the defrost function on the microwave, or transfer to a soup pot and reheat over low, stirring often, until heated through.
Love white bean soup? Check out my Chunky Ham and Bean Soup or Easy Rosemary Garlic White Bean Soup.
Slow Cooker White Bean Soup
Servings 6 about 1.5 cups eachIngredients
- 2 Tbsp olive oil ($0.32)
- 4 cloves garlic ($0.32)
- 1 yellow onion ($0.11)
- 4 carrots (about 1/2 lb.) ($0.30)
- 4 ribs celery ($0.46)
- 1 lb. dry navy beans* ($1.25)
- 1 bay leaf ($0.30)
- 1 tsp dried rosemary ($0.10)
- 1/2 tsp dried thyme ($0.05)
- 1/2 tsp smoked paprika ($0.05)
- Freshly cracked black pepper (15-20 cranks of a pepper mill) ($0.05)
- 6 cups water ($0.00)
- 2 tsp salt, or to taste ($0.05)
Instructions
- Mince the garlic, dice the onion, slice the celery, and peel and slice the carrots. Add the olive oil, garlic, onion, celery, and carrots to a large (5qt or larger) slow cooker.
- Give the beans a quick rinse in a colander and then add them to the slow cooker, along with the bay leaf, rosemary, thyme, paprika, and some freshly cracked pepper.
- Add six cups of water to the slow cooker and stir to combine the ingredients. Place the lid on the slow cooker and cook on low for 8-9 hours or on high for 4-5 hours.
- After 8 hours on low or 4 hours on high, stir the soup and begin to mash the beans against the side of the slow cooker to thicken the soup. Once the soup is thickened to your liking, start adding salt to taste. Begin with 1/2 tsp and add more until the soup tastes flavorful to you. I used about 2 tsp total.
- Serve the soup hot with crackers or crusty bread for dipping.
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Notes
Nutrition
Have you tried this recipe?Mention @budgetbytes or tag #budgetbytes on Instagram!Scroll down for the step by step photos!
How to Make Crockpot White Bean Soup – Step by Step Photos
Dice one yellow onion, four ribs of celery, and peel and slice 1/2 lb. carrots (about 4 carrots). Mince 4 cloves of garlic. Add the onion, celery, carrot, garlic and 2 Tbsp olive oil to a slow cooker (5 qt. or larger).
You’ll need one pound of dry navy beans or great northern beans. Again, DO NOT use cannellini beans, which are part of the kidney bean family, and require a heavy boil to break down a natural substance called Phytohaemagglutinin, which is a gastrointestinal toxin. The slow cooker does not get the soup hot enough for long enough to break down the toxins in those beans.
Briefly rinse the beans in a colander, then add them to the slow cooker along with 1 bay leaf, 1 tsp dried rosemary, 1/2 tsp dried thyme, 1/2 tsp smoked paprika, some freshly cracked pepper, and six cups of water.
Briefly stir the contents of the slow cooker to make sure all the flavors are distributed, then place a lid on top and cook on high for 4-5 hours or low for 8-9 hours.
After cooking on high for 4-5 hours or low for 8-9 hours it will look a little something like this. All the vegetables will have floated up to the top and the beans will have absorbed most of the water. Test a bean to make sure they are very soft. If they’re not yet soft, cook for one hour more (they should definitely be soft by this point, unless your beans are very old. Old beans sometimes do not soften no matter how long they are cooked).
Stir the soup and smash the beans against the side of the pot, which will thicken the soup (or you can use an immersion blender). The soup at this point does not contain ANY salt, so now it’s time to add salt so you can really taste all the different flavors. Begin adding salt, starting with 1/2 tsp and adding more until the soup is flavorful. I added 2 tsp total.
Serve hot with some crusty bread for dipping!
This has become one of my favorite recipes. It’s great because my toddler child will eat it, my vegetarian husband loves it, and my omnivore self also loves it. I’ve started to give people small jars of it when I make it and have been converting others to this. I love how easy it is, and the minimal dishes involved. I cook it on low for 8 hours.
I made this today and it was absolutely amazing! Mine actually cooked to perfection, on low, for about 6 1/2 hours. So good with a piece of garlic bread for dunking :-)
I made this yesterday and had to give it an extra 3.5 hours for the beans to soften. I even soaked the beans the night before, so it was a bit perplexing, especially since I err on the side of shorter cooking times because my crockpot tends to cook on the high side (even at its lowest). I also halved the thyme and rosemary and still found it a bit too thyme-y…a tasty end result, regardless!
I’ve heard that the mineral content of your water can affect how/if the beans will soften. If you are having trouble, adding a little baking soda to the cooking water might help (read this, question #6).
I have learned by sad experience that I must always presoak my beans– my water is too hard. Here’s my question: if I presoak the beans, should I add less water , or still the 6 cups? Thanks!
Yes, I’d definitely add less. Maybe four cups? You can always add more at the end if it’s too thick.
Making a batch of the again, I this must be my 8 or 9th time ,, so easy to make & freeze. The only real change I made is adding 1/4 tsp of red pepper flakes & this batch I added a ham bone because I had one. Everyone enjoys this soup.
Made this today. It’s good, very filling, but if I make it again I will omit the rosemary and thyme. And maybe a little more liquid. I added a bit of sour cream and some bacon bits as garnish. Definitely a simple recipe.
Hi I wanted to know if I use canned beans do I cut the time in half from 8 to 4 hours? Also do you think I could substitute chick peas?
I don’t think chickpeas would work in this because they don’t get super creamy like white beans do. Yes, you can use canned beans, but you’ll need to reduce the liquid considerably. Four hours should be plenty for canned beans, too.
Made this over the weekend. It was delicious and the beans were perfectly cooked. Been eating it all week for lunch.
Add a pinch of baking soda to soften up the beans. :)
Do you think it would work without the olive oil?
Yes, but having some type of fat in there really helps give the soup body and flavor balance. You can use a different type of oil if you want.
I made this today…it was very good…but too much garlic. I will put much less next time.
Reading through the comments I see a lot of questions about mineral content in water; I came across this website and thought it might help. :)
http://www.mgwater.com/mgrank.shtml
Would liquid smoke be a good alternative to the ham hock? I’m not very experienced with using it. Has anyone tried this?
I’m not experienced with using liquid smoke, either, but from what I’ve heard it is a good substitute. I don’t think you need a lot, just a few drops and I’d add it at the end to taste.
I much prefer McCormick’s smoked pepper to liquid smoke. I use about 1/8 teaspoon for an entire crock pot.
I’ve cooked with dry beans before, soaked overnight, rinced, boiled for 2 hours, then added to a recipe, and they still come out semi-firm. I love this recipe but would probably use canned, and not add any salt.
What have others’ experience with just popping the dry beans in the crock pot for 8 hours with this recipe? I’d love to hear. :)
I’ve made this recipe several times as written – with the dry beans – and it has always turned out wonderfully with a soft, cooked texture. This is a recipe I return to again and again.
Hi,
Your recipes are fab and I have been inspired to try loads of them, and would urge others to try them too – I haven’t had a disaster yet! Thanks for doing all the hard work for us.
When you froze the left over carrots and celery, did you blanch them first? Being lazy, I like the idea of being able to just slice and freeze!
Nope, I don’t bother to blanch them, but you do want to make sure to use them up within a few months. They get kind of dried out and shriveled after that.