This ham and bean soup is one of my favorite pressure cooker recipes! This Instant Pot soup tastes like it cooked all day, but it’s ready in less than two hours!
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Are you in need of a reason to try out that Instant Pot you’ve been afraid to mess with?
Enter my Instant Pot soup that is just full of beans, ham, and veggies!
This soup is hearty and delicious and I think it’s a great way to test out the magic of the Instant Pot. Taking dried beans to cooked beans in less than two hours is pretty awesome.
What Readers are Saying!
“Excellent flavor. This was the first time I’ve made ham and bean soup and my family loved it. Thanks for sharing this recipe.” – Karahi
The soup tastes like it’s been simmering all day and is just bursting with flavor. But! It’s definitely an easy soup and you can use leftover ham from the holidays or just buy the pre-diced ham.
I’ve also made pressure cooker pinto beans that you should try sometime soon! Beans are such a filling food and they’re great for holidays, get togethers, and cool autumn days.
Anyway, I like using a a variety of beans. In this recipe I’m using a package of Hurst’s HamBeens with 15 different varieties of beans and it’s own ham seasoning packet, and it’s so economical and easy!
How to Make:
Start the Pressure Cooker: Set your pressure cooker to “Saute” and begin adding the carrots, celery, and onion. Once that’s all cooked together we’ll add in the ham. Easy peasy!
Prepare the Beans: While the carrots, celery and onion are cooking you can begin rinsing and sorting the beans. When that is finished, add to the pressure cooker with the chicken stock.
Cook: Set the pressure cooker to “high pressure” and cook for 40 minutes. After it has reached pressure and cooked, allow to vent for about 20 minutes. Remove the lid and stir in the seasoning packet, ham, black pepper and red pepper.
Helpful Tip!
- Soup not thick enough for you? Try adding some corn starch, arrowroot starch, or Xanthum Gum.
More recipes you will enjoy:
This is a great recipe for leftover ham from Christmas or Thanksgiving dinners, or for any time of the year. It seems like whenever we make ham there is a lot left over, and this is the perfect way to utilize it.
I also have a few other recipes for you to try that could use leftover ham. My crock pot breakfast casserole is always a win. So is my slow cooker Cajun ham and beans.
Instant Pot Ham and Bean Soup
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 2 large carrots peeled and diced
- 2 stalks celery diced
- 1 sweet onion diced
- 20 ounces Hurst’s Beans 15 Bean Soup 1 bag
- 7 1/2 cups chicken stock
- 2 cups cooked diced ham
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
Instructions
- Turn pressure cooker to “saute” and add the oil to the pot. Once hot, add the carrots, celery, and onion and cook, stirring often, for 5 minutes.
- Rinse and sort through the beans. Add to the pressure cooker along with the chicken stock. Set the seasoning packet aside for later.
- Turn the pressure cooker off. Put on the lid and set the vent to “sealing.” Set the pressure cooker to “high pressure” for 40 minutes.
- Once the soup has reached pressure and cooked for 40 minutes, allow the pressure to release naturally – about 20 minutes.
- Remove the lid carefully and stir in the seasoning packet, ham, black pepper, red pepper flakes. Taste and add salt if needed.
- Stir well and let set for 5 minutes to allow the ham to heat through.
- Serve hot. Sprinkle with fresh parsley as desired.
Kelli @ Hungry Hobby says
Always loving my instant pot! pinning and sharing tomorrow!
Misty says
Christmas dinner is different every year, but it’s never ham or turkey or any of that traditional stuff. The last couple years we’ve done a taco bar with my extended family on whatever day we get together and then lasagna at our house on Christmas day.
By the time we’ve done Thanksgiving at home, Thanksgiving at church, Christmas at church, and Christmas with the inlaws we’ve had at least 4 turkey/ham/stuffing/potato meals in a month’s time and we’re over it. Bring on the taco’s!
Merry Christmas!!!
Karly says
A taco bar sounds amazing!! We do deli sandwiches (usually from Jimmy John’s) on Christmas Eve, so the traditional dinner on Christmas Day is nice. But I’d give up a traditional dinner for a taco bar any day of the week!
Sue says
More Instant Pot recipes would be great.
Thanks for your time posting all these great ideas.
Karly says
Glad to hear you’re interested in more IP recipes! I’ll keep them coming! 🙂
Ivory says
This dish looks amazingly delicious, and I can hardly wait to make it. Yum!
Anne Long says
How do you make this without a pressure cooker? It looks so good!!
Karly says
I’ll update the post to include slow cooker instructions. 🙂
Miranda says
Hi, Karly
I was wondering if I’ll still need to soak the beans overnight in order to use this recipe.
Gina says
I’d like to know this too!
Karly says
Nope, no need. 🙂
Holly says
Oh good, I was worried that I messed up my soup by not soaking the beans first.
kittyninja says
I grew up having Ham and lasagna for Christmas! A lovely combo, if you ask me, easy to skip mashed potatoes, just a plate of lasagna and ham, delightful
Karly says
Sounds delicious!
Leanne | Crumb Top Baking says
I totally got an Instant Pot for Christmas, so I might need to try out this recipe! It looks cozy delicious!
Albert Bevia says
Recipes like this remind me I need to get an instant-pot….like right now! this soup looks and sounds delicious!
Becky says
I cooked this but I added a can of diced tomatoes and all ingredients at once but the seasoning pack and cooked for 40 minutes and it turned out perfect. My first instant pot dish a success!
Becky says
Oh and I used country ham chips, no need for salt
Karly says
Glad you enjoyed it!
Renee says
Can I throw the ham bone in with this recipe as well? Never used a bone in IP so just want to clarify! Thank you!
Karly says
I think so, but haven’t tried it myself. I know people make bone broth in the IP all the time, so I think it’d be great.
drew c burch says
Yes you can put the bone in just take it out when soup is done will turn out great enjoy the great soup
Lisa Culbertson says
When you saw let the pressure release naturally for 20 minutes does that mean turn to vent or let sit for 20 minutes? Sorry, Instatpot newbie here.
Karly says
Natural release means let the pressure drop on it’s own, so don’t turn the vent. 🙂 After the 20 minutes is up, go ahead and flip your vent and open it up.
Jules says
What a perfect EASY winter soup!! This looks so delicious, and full of flavor 🙂 I’m a sucker for ham in soup!!
Daja says
By beans didn’t come with a seasoning packet….any suggestions?
Karly says
I would probably just add a little bit of smoke flavoring and some extra salt, as needed.
Kathryn Moore says
I received an Instant Pot for Christmas and am using the slow cooker method for this delicious looking soup, on a snowy day at The Jersey Shore! I can’t adjust the time – it automatically set at “normal” for slow cooking and 4:00 hours! Seems to be a real PAIN! I’ve got the lid tight, it’s vented, UGH!!!!
Karly says
Sorry to hear you’re having issues with your Instant Pot, Kathryn. I’ve never tried using mine as a slow cooker, so I can’t help. Hopefully there’s some info in the manual that can help.
Michelle says
A year later and I got an Instant Pot for Christmas! We had ham & veggie lasagna & smoked salmon. (Something for everyone.) I usually make a pea soup or bran soup with the ham leftovers, but wanted to test out my IP… I found your recipe and it looked easy peasy (and it was)! It came out perfect! It was the second time using my new IP… I used it earlier in the day for sesame chicken. My soup thickened up quite a bit. I ate it with a hearty roll, but the flavor kind of reminded me of red beans & rice. I am going to make some rice in my IP tomorrow and see how it is over that. I’ll save this recipe because I’ll definitely make it again! Thanks!
Karly says
So glad it was a hit! And good for you – getting the IP out of the box and using it. So many people are scared of them at first. 🙂
Kat says
I think that I had all the adjustments made on the instant pot. Steam was being released the entire cooking time.
At the end of the 40 minutes, there was no liquid left. I had to add an additional 7 cups of broth. It was delicious after I did that.
What did I do wrong?
Karly says
It sounds like you didn’t close the steam valve. A little bit of steam might release at times, but it shouldn’t be much.
Karen Lacey says
This will be my first use of my new IP. Can I add the ham bone prior to adding pressure without screwing anything up? Thanks!
Karen Lacey says
Sorry– I see you’ve answered this above!
karahi says
Excellent flavor. This was the first time I’ve made ham and bean soup and my family loved it. Thanks for sharing this recipe. May God Bless you.
Karly says
Glad your family enjoyed it!
Barbara says
I tried this with a bone from an 11lb half ham. It needed another 20 min of time under pressure (total of 60min) for the beans to soften. That may have been, at least partially due to the extra salt the ham added by the ham (or so I’ve been told). Overall, it was the best bean soup that I have ever made. Thank you for the recipe!!!
Karly says
So glad you enjoyed the soup! I’m wondering if the need for extra time had to do with the bone in the pot as well. Interesting! 🙂
Melissa Faris says
Did you use the chicken stock as well? I’m wondering if the bone is in the pot if it is similar to making bone broth and the chicken broth isn’t needed. Any thoughts from anyone?
Mari Moffitt says
Can you make this in a 3 qt instant pot? Do I need to half the recipe.
Karly says
I haven’t tried in a 3 quart pot, but I believe I’ve heard that you never want to fill it more than halfway full with beans. I would probably halve this recipe.
Rae Nikolai says
Nutmeg goes great with ham. I would use 1 tablespoon in this recipe if I would try it.
Bridgette Riggin says
I am going to make this with my left over ham bone from Easter. Would you recommend I use water instead of chicken broth since I am using the ham bone? Thank you!!
Karly says
I think chicken broth or water would be fine.
Whitney Smith Hallier says
Best ham & bean soup we’ve ever had over here! I used 3.1 lb leftover bone-in ham & increased time to 60 minutes. Everything was perfect! I am so grateful for the introduction to Hurst’s Beans. Thank you so much for sharing!!!
Karly says
So glad it was a hit!!
Jackie says
What I found I already soaked the beans overnight before seeing your recipe? Can I still cook with the IP?
Karly says
I would probably reduce the cook time a bit, but I can’t say by how much as I haven’t tried it.
Linda says
Jackie, my manual (for the Breville Fast Slow Pro) says to change the pre-programmed time for beans from 40 minutes to 20 minutes if the beans are pre-soaked.
Victor says
Still discovering the world of pressure cooking for myself. This looks like a great recipe.
Rachel C says
How long do I cook the beans in the instant pot if I double the recipe?
Karly says
I’ve not tried doubling this recipe, so I can’t say.
Rachel C says
I doubled the recipe. It took 65 minutes instead of 40. 🙂
Kelli says
Hi. If I wanted to use my own seasoning do you know which spices I should use??
Jen says
I skipped the packet and added:
1tsp savory
1tsp sage
1 tsp Herb de Provance or you can do Italian
1 bay leaf
1/2 tsp salt
Pepper to taste
It’s SUPER yummy 🙂
Julia says
I used this one and it was delicious!
https://www.bobsredmill.com/recipes/how-to-make/bean-soup-seasoning/
Mary says
How big of an IP?
Karly says
I use a 6 quart.
Mary Ellen Meadows says
I made this last night in my 6 Qt. It was so easy! And my husband had seconds! Thank you!
Jamie says
I made this after discovering my grocery store sold pork hocks. I followed the recipe as directed except I didn’t want to use the seasoning pack in the beans so I threw in some seasonings. First, I was also afraid that the hocks smelled too ‘smokey’. The soup did not taste ‘smokey’ at all, but very very flavorful. Secondly, I’m not sure I would make this again exactly like this for one reason – the mix of beans cook at different times and several varieties were totally gone by the time the large beans were done enough to eat. I actually started to give it 5-10 more minutes at pressure after I took out the hocks and put in the chopped ham, but I got a burn warning and sure enough the disintegrated beans/veggies were forming a crazy paste on the bottom. It honestly tastes amazing but I feel like it needs something to account for the varieties of beans. Maybe lower pressure for a different length of time? the soup button on the pot instead of manual high pressure? Dunno, but thank you for encouraging me to try dry unsoaked beans in a pot, it was really good!
Melonie Brown says
I found that 40 minutes with a 20 minute NR had some beans a little am dente yet. So I threw the ham and seasoning in for another 5 min and NR for 10. Perfect. When I make beans on the stove top I find that its a little thicker, but this still has a wonderful taste with so many less steps!
Gina says
We did get one for Christmas. Roasted a whole chicken in 35 minutes not counting cool down. Also made a pot roast in 70min, Delicious.
Do you prefer the slow cooking or pressure cooking for your ham and bean soup? I’m making that next, looks so good.
Karly says
I prefer the pressure cooker, just because it’s so quick and I’m not tortured by the yummy smell coming from a slow cooker all day. 😉
Jane Hitch says
I made this in my Instant Pot exactly as the recipe is written using a 15 bean mix soup packet from my local grocery. It’s an absolutely delicious soup and hearty. Do not skip the red pepper flakes, it makes it over the top good. I gave some to my son and some to my sister and brother-in-law. They all raved about it. My sister is going to make the crock pot version.
Thank so much for this recipe.
Karly says
So glad to hear you enjoyed! 🙂
KW says
I think this is definitely 5 stars! I tweaked it of course, added bacon, garlic and some more spices but other than that I thought this was great and very easy!
chicook13 says
This was fantastic!! I did add two cloves of garlic (minced) & a bay leaf. I used 5 cups of my homemade pork stock and used ham BTB for the rest of the broth. It was so delicious when the windchill here was -55°!!! I will definitely make this again.
Mark says
You made the big time , they posted this on their website .
I made it and didnt think Ham Been’s could get better,
it was awesome!
Thanks
Mark
Rose says
I was taught to always soak beans to help eliminate gas and aid in digestion. Soaking the beans also has the added bonus of making them “creamy” and downright delicious. I know that I will have to reduce the cook time and the amount of broth. Do you have any idea how much broth I would need?
Karly says
I don’t, sorry.
Tiff’s Twisted Kitchen says
This was so Freak’n Lick’n Good! Didn’t stray to much, but added 3 rough minced Ga and 3 Celery stalks, and 1 box Low Sodium Chicken broth and 1 box of regular ( total about 8 cups). I could only get my hands on the Cajun variety, so I planned on adding some Hickory Liquid Smoke. I was about 10 minutes into the initial pressurizing when I realized I forgot to add some liquid smoke; so I manually released the pressure and added about a 1/2 teaspoon and added another cup of water fortified with chicken boullion . I locked her down and ran for the 40 mins. / 20 mins. NPR. Everything seemed good at this point but I wanted to add some canned Fire Roasted Garlic Tomatoes. So I taste tested then added the Tomatoes, Season Packet, about a cup of leftover Easter Ham, 2 cups of packaged diced Ham smidge more Salt, Chicken Boullion, and cracked Pepper. I then ran under pressure for another 7 mins. / 10 mins. NPR. Since I was feeling lazy we served over some frozen Baked Steak Fries with Everything French Bread. Oh it was wonderful; and that’s coming from someone whose not a big bean fan or into split peas. Hubby thought it was Great too.
Karly says
Sounds like you made some delicious soup! So glad the recipe was a hit! 🙂
Karl says
I made this per the recipe once already and it turned out perfect. I am however not finding red pepper flakes at the grocery. I just assumed crushed red pepper was the same… it was delicious but boy did it have a hot kick to it. Still no luck finding red pepper flakes so tonight while making again I cut the crushed red pepper to a half tsp and tried to pick out as many seeds as possible to see if it helps. Any advice?
Karly says
Hi Karl…you were correct that they are the same thing. Definitely cut the red pepper if it’s too spicy to you. 🙂
Bluvsu2 says
Enjoyed this soup. I used a ham bone also. Since I only had a bog of 16oz of beans I only used 6 cups of broth. I like a thicker soup. I am as HUGE fan of the Instant Pot. I am down 30 pounds since August. I love that I can cook a good meal an am no longer eating all the junk.
Only think I would do a little different is use less of the Pepper Flakes. I do feel that it was a bit to spicy. I also added a bay leave.
Don’t get me wrong..this is AMAZING! Looking forward to all the hams my boyfriend wants to cook. He knows save me the bone. There is soup in the future.
Kim says
Trying this as I type. We like potatoes in our soup. If I put them in from the begging would they be over cooked?
TIA!
Kim
Karly says
Hi Kim! The potatoes will be overcooked if you add them at the beginning. I normally do potatoes for potato salad at around 5 minutes in the pressure cooker, so I think 40 minutes would turn them to mush.
Pamela Chesbrough says
I LOVE this recipe! Today will be my 2nd time making this soup. Instant Pot both times. I do not have carrots or celery to add today, but I am confident enough that it will still be delicious! Thank you for sharing?
David Careaga says
I have had my Instant Pot for a couple of years now, and had not yet done ham and bean soup in it, or as my dad calls it, hammybean soup. I make it every year on the last weekend of winter break before going back to teaching, and that was tonight.
This was hands down, the best hammybean soup we have ever had. I have always just used white navy beans and seasoned it to taste, but I picked up a 15 bean mix with the seasoning packet and loved it. My dad said it’s the best hammybean soup he has had in his life!
I will definitely be making this one again.
Karly says
So glad to hear that, David! 🙂
Freddy Fudpucker says
I started farting as soon as I started cooking ?. Looking at beans gets me going ?. This is a great recipe and my gf loves it too.
JimontheBeach says
If you get a new hammer, everything you see becomes a nail. So it is with new kitchen gadgets. I got a 6 quart Instant Pot last Christmas and have been using it for every recipe I could think of. I generally have made bean soup in a stock pot, so I was anxious to try this recipe. I soaked the beans over night as a matter of habit, sauted the celery, carrots and onions, and dumped in the beans, a hambone and about 2 cups of chopped ham. I used two cartons (32oz each) of chicken broth. Set the pressure, but changed the time to 60 minutes as another commenter had suggested because of the bone. I have never used the flavor packet Hurst includes in their soup kit, because I have no idea what’s in it and they do not list the ingredients. I use my own herbs and spices and that has worked out just fine. The soup was excellent. Thank you for this recipe.
BTW, I bet your buns are pretty and very sweet!