Hearty Ham Bone Soups

Posted on Feb 1st 2016

Hearty Ham Bone Soups
By Brenda Hyde

Bone-in hams, when bought on sale, are one of
the most frugal cuts of meat you can use. Your
main meal uses the meatiest part of the ham.
Dice any bigger sections of ham that are left
and use within three days or freeze for using
in casseroles. The bone that is left will have
SO much flavor and a lot of meat closer to the
bone. This is perfect for hearty bean soups. As
with the meat, if you can't use the bone within
three days freeze it in a freezer bag and use in
the recipes below. There really is no need to thaw it
beforehand-just toss it in the soup pan!

Blackeyed Peas and Ham

Ingredients:
1 pound dried blackeyed peas
2 ham hocks or a ham bone with ham left on it
Pepper to taste
onions, sliced
hot sauce

Place the ham bones or hocks in a crock pot, add
the peas after they have been rinsed (but not soaked),
and cover with water completely. Cook all day on low,
or 4 or 5 hours on high. Crock pots vary, so keep checking.
You may need to add more water. Stir a couple of times
while checking. Some people like them almost mushy,
but I like them not quite that soft. Season with pepper
if you wish. Serve with slices of onion and hot sauce-a
smooth cayenne variety.

Bean Soup with Ham

Ingredients:
1 ham bone with some meat left on
2 cups Navy, Northern beans or mixed beans
8 cups water
1 clove garlic, minced
1 bay leaf
1 large onion, chopped
Salt and pepper, to taste

Wash beans the beans and add to a medium
to large pan on the stove. Cover with water,
boil, and turn off the heat. Let these sit about
a 1/2 hour. Drain the beans, and place all the
ingredients in the crock pot. Cover and cook
on high for 4 hours or so, then switch to low
and continue to cook. You want the beans to
be done, but not mushy. Add more water if
needed to make it a soup consistency as it
cooks. Cut the meat off the bone and put
in with the beans and remove the bay leaf
before serving.

Black Bean Soup

Ingredients:
2 cups dried black beans
1 ham bone with meat still on
6 cups water
4 cups vegetable or ham broth
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 onion, minced
1 tomato diced (or about a half can-drained well)
1 cup chopped ham (optional)
1 tablespoon vinegar

You can soak the beans overnight in the refrigerator,
covered with water, but what I usually do is place the
dried beans in a pan, cover with water, and bring to
a boil. Turn off the heat and allow them to sit for
one hour. Drain and rinse with either method, then
add them to a large pot with the water, broth and
the ham bone. You can add salt if you wish, but most
hams are pretty salty. Simmer, covered, for about
1 1/2 hours until the beans are tender. Remove the
bone and take off any meat-add back to the pot.
SautÃ© the onion, tomato and ham if you had extra
that you diced, until the onion is soft. Stir in the
vinegar to this mixture and add all to the soup.
Simmer for 20 more minutes and serve. You can
offer hot sauce and chopped onion as toppings
for each person's bowl of soup.

Split Pea Soup

Ingredients:
one ham bone with remaining meat
1 cup minced onions
2 tsp.. black pepper
1 pound dried split peas, green or yellow
1 cup chopped carrot

Place the ham bone and other ingredients
to a crock pot. Just cover with water, and
cook on low all day long or high for 4-6
hours. I cook my peas til they are fairly
mushy, but you can cook less if you like
them less done. We always ate big bowls
of this soup with bread and butter. Very
simple! If the meat isn't falling off the ham
bone, remove and use a fork to remove it
and place the meat into the soup. Discard
the bone. Season with salt if desired.

Brenda Hyde is a freelance writer, wife and mom
to three kids living in the Midwest United States.
For more family friendly recipes and cooking tips
visit Brenda at http://oldfashionedliving.com/recipes.html