Well, I've been quite slack in posting recently, although it looks as though I may be getting back into the swing of things. I promised a couple of weeks ago that I'd post my super-easy, even-an-idiot-can-do-it recipe for Ham 'n' Bean Soup, and I think this is a good time.
Therefore, without further ado,
Romeocat's Ham 'n' Bean Soup for Morons (and a huge crowd)
1 package ham and bean soup starter (this is found in the dry beans section of your supermarket, and is basically a bag of beans with a "ham flavoring" packet)
- 1 cup dry pinto beans
- 2 cups diced cooked ham (you can even find diced ham pre-packaged, but if not, just get a ham steak and dice it)
- 1/2 cup oil (I like olive oil, but don't use the nice stuff: an ordinary, everyday olive oil will work fine)
- 2 cups chopped onion
- 2 cups diced carrot
- 1 cup diced celery
- 2 tablespoons minced garlic
- 3 bay leaves
- freshly ground pepper
- salt
- lots and lots of water!
All right. Take all the beans, and put them into a colander to clean them and pick out any bad ones. Rinse them well under running water. When you're satisfied that they're clean and picked over, dump them into a large stockpot (needs to hold about a gallon and a half of liquid), and add water. The water level ought to be at least two inches above the level of the beans. Put it on the stove on high heat and bring it to a boil. Boil the beans for five minutes, cover and remove from heat. Let the beans sit for at least an hour (or two, or three... they're not fussy at this point), and then drain off the water.
For an efficient use of time, while the beans are soaking, you can get the rest of the ingredients ready, have a glass of wine, snuggle with your significant other and/or munchkin(s) (whether or not they have fur), catch up on the latest soap opera (ew!) or Stargate SG-1 (yummy!), prepare a salad, knit an afghan, surf the 'Net, or whatever serves to amuse you.
When the beans have finished soaking and are drained, put them into another bowl or something while you heat the oil in the stockpot on medioum heat and then sauté the onion, carrot, celery and garlic until they're soft and transluscent. Throw the beans back in the pot along with the ham, bay leaves, and more water (oh, and DON'T forget the "ham flavoring" packet) to cover everything (I told you "lots and lots of water"!) plus three inches. If the soup seems not "soupy" enough as it cooks, feel free to add more water. Actually, I suppose you could use a nice chicken stock, too, but I wouldn't use the stock for more than about half of the total liquid.
Oh, add your freshly ground pepper now (be generous), but NOT YOUR SALT! Bring everything up to a boil, then cover the pot and lower your heat to a nice, low simmer. Forget about it for about two hours, then come back and stir the pot, checking the beans to see if they're done.
How do you know the beans are done? I'm so glad you asked! The beans should still hold their shape, but be soft. The skins ought to be holding the beans together, but should be very tender. At this point, the soup should also look a little "creamy," due to the beans soaking up a lot of the liquid and the onions and celery breaking down as they cooked. You can also make the soup more "creamy" by mashing some of the beans against the pot and stirring them back into the soup.
All right. Last cooking steps; ready? Taste the soup. Does it need salt? NOW you can add some - a little at a time, only, because salt can quickly overwhelm a dish. Or you can do as I do and allow everyone to add salt to their taste. But remind them to taste first! It's very rude to season your food before you taste it: it's an expression of distrust of the chef (although I will allow you to add freshly ground pepper whenever you like, since there is rarely enough freshly ground pepper for the discerning palate, LOL).
I recommend serving this soup with a very fresh and crisp salad, and a loaf of rustic bread (nice and warm) and butter. Mmmmmm!
See how easy that was?
(Ooops, I forgot: this recipe will feed an army! Well, a squad, at least... And, it freezes very well, so don't be afraid to make it, even if you have a small family.)
