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This Slow Cooker Ham and Bean Soup combines sweet yellow onion, celery, carrots, garlic, Great Northern beans, and smoked ham in a flavorful broth with fresh thyme and rosemary. You are going to love this tasty soup and wonder how you made it this far in life without it.

A slow cooker and ladle full of ham and bean soup.

We love a good slow cooker soup; really, what’s not to love about it?

Ingredient Notes and Substitutions

See the recipe card below for the full ingredient list.

Great Northern Beans: You can substitute cannellini beans or navy beans. If substituting canned beans, use 3 (15-ounce) cans of drained and rinsed beans.
Chicken broth: Preferably low sodium, with all the salt that is in ham.
Carrots: Peel them to bring out that beautiful bright orange color.
Ground mustard: Use dry ground mustard available in your grocery spice aisle.
Pepper: Use white or black ground pepper. I use ground white pepper to complement the color of the soup, but black works too. As a food blogger, I have an extensive spice cabinet.
Red pepper flakes: They add a little zest without overpowering the soup.
Fresh herbs: Thyme and rosemary sprigs are perfect for this soup, and they add so much flavor.
Ham steak: Preferably bone-in. The ham steaks cut with bone-in are the most tender and have the best flavor.

A white serving bowl full of ham and bean soup with crackers and salt and pepper shaker in the background.

How To Make Slow Cooker Ham and Bean Soup

This is a summary; for the complete list of ingredients and instructions, see the recipe card below.

Soak the beans overnight. Rinse and place them in the bottom of the slow cooker.
Add the chicken broth and bay leaves. Cover and cook on high.
Sauté the onion, celery, and carrots in a little olive oil over medium heat. Reduce the heat to low and add the garlic, ground cumin, ground mustard, white pepper, and red pepper flakes.
Add the vegetable mixture, brown sugar, and rosemary and thyme sprigs to the slow cooker. Cover and cook on high for 2 hours.
Add the bone-in ham steak and cook on high for 2 hours.
Remove 1½-2 cups of the soup, leaving out any ham, into a measuring cup or deep bowl. Purée it using an immersion blender or stand blender. Stir the blended soup into the slow cooker.
Remove the ham steak. Trim and dice the ham steak into bite-size pieces. Add the trimmed pieces back to the slow cooker.
Remove the ham bone, bay leaves, rosemary, and thyme sprigs. If desired, season with salt and white pepper to taste.

Some of the steps for making slow cooker ham and bean soup. Soak the beans overnight. Rinse and place them in the bottom of the slow cooker. Add the chicken broth and bay leaves. Cover and cook on high. Sauté the onion, celery, and carrots in a little olive oil over medium heat. Reduce the heat to low and add the garlic, ground cumin, ground mustard, white pepper, and red pepper flakes. Add the vegetable mixture, brown sugar, and rosemary and thyme sprigs to the slow cooker. Cover and cook on high for 2 hours.

Some of the steps for making slow cooker ham and bean soup. Remove the ham steak. Trim and dice the ham steak into bite-size pieces. Add the trimmed pieces back to the slow cooker. Remove the bay leaves, rosemary, and thyme sprigs. If desired, season with salt and white pepper to taste.

Cook’s Culinary Tips

Resist the urge to lift the lid of the slow cooker except when necessary. Every time you lift the lid, it adds 15-20 minutes to the cooking time.
If desired, purée a portion of the soup using an immersion blender. Blend as little or as much as you like to reach your desired consistency.
I recommend not adding any salt until the the recipe is done. Chicken broth and ham add plenty of salt.
Before serving, remove the ham bone, bay leaves, rosemary, and thyme stems.

A close up view of ham and bean soup in a crockpot.

Serving Suggestions

Skillet Cornbread
Potato Bread
Hot Water Cornbread
Cornbread Muffins
Cottage Cheese Bread
Jalapeno Cornbread
Corn Fritters

Slow Cooker Ham and Bean Soup

This Slow Cooker Ham and Bean Soup combines sweet yellow onion, celery, carrots, garlic, Great Northern beans, and smoked ham in a flavorful broth with fresh thyme and rosemary.

Print Pin Rate

Course: main meal soup, Soup

Cuisine: American

Prep Time: 25

Cook Time: 4 30

Soaking Time: 8

Total Time: 12 55

Servings: servings

Calories: 211kcal

Author: Beth Pierce

Ingredients

1 lb. Great Northern beans
6 cups low-sodium chicken broth
2 bay leaves
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 medium yellow onion chopped
2 ribs celery chopped
3 large carrots peeled and chopped
3 cloves garlic minced
2 teaspoons ground cumin
½ teaspoon ground mustard
½ teaspoon ground white pepper
¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes
2 tablespoons brown sugar
2 sprigs rosemary
2 sprigs thyme
1¼ -1½ lbs bone-in ham steak

Instructions

The night before, rinse the pinto beans and sort through them to remove any pebbles. Add the beans to a large pot, cover them with cold water, and soak overnight in the refrigerator.
Rinse the beans and add them to the slow cooker. Add the chicken broth and bay leaves. Cover and cook on high.
Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Sauté the onion, celery, and carrots until the onion and celery are soft. Reduce the heat to low and add the garlic, ground cumin, ground mustard, white pepper, and red pepper flakes.
Add the vegetable mixture, brown sugar, and rosemary and thyme sprigs to the slow cooker. Cover and cook on high for 2 hours.
Add the bone-in ham steak, cover, and cook on high for 2 hours.
Remove 1½-2 cups of the soup, leaving out any ham, and place it in a measuring cup or deep bowl. Purée it using an immersion blender or a stand blender. Stir the blended soup into the slow cooker.
Remove the ham steak. Trim the ham steak and dice it into bite-sized pieces. Add the trimmed pieces back to the slow cooker.
Remove the ham bone, bay leaves, rosemary, and thyme sprigs. If desired, season with salt and white pepper.

Notes

Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
Reheat on the stovetop over low heat or in the microwave at 50% power.

Nutrition

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Nutrition Disclaimer: All nutritional information shared on this site is an approximation. I am not a certified nutritionist and any nutritional information shared on this site should be used as a general guideline.