Recipe Overview
Why you’ll love it: Smoky bacon and creamy white beans are combined in this familiar homestyle bean and bacon soup. It’s such a satisfying and delicious soup that reheats well.
How long it takes: 50 minutes
Equipment you’ll need: soup pan, stove, sharp knife, immersion blender
Servings: 6
If you’re a fan of the red and white can of Campbell’s Bean with Bacon soup, you’re gonna love this soup. It tastes similar but so much better!
My mom used to heat up the canned version often for a quick lunch or dinner. It truly was a family favorite. She got the extra large sized can because we ate a lot. She’d say that there’s no reason to pick up expensive fast food when you had a can of bean with bacon soup in the pantry. (My sister and I probably would have preferred McDonald’s once in awhile but we really did love that soup. )
If you love bean soup, you might want to try these recipes, too: 15 Bean Soup, White Bean Soup, Ground Turkey Soup with Beans & Spinach which is ready in just 20 minutes, or Frijoles Borrachos (Drunken Beans). Another really popular “bean” soup is this Creamy Queso Chili. I guess chili isn’t really bean soup but the queso chili is loaded with beans and lots of cheesy goodness. It’s super good!
Homemade Bean With Bacon soup
It’s better tasting than canned soup. Homemade bean and bacon soup is very much like the canned but yes, it’s so much better. (Oh, did I say that already?) More bacon flavor, more beans, lots of good veggies, less watery, and just much better tasting. No surprise there, right?
Bean with bacon soup is easy to make. It freezes well, too, so you can enjoy homemade soup whenever you want it.
Make it with canned beans or with dried beans. The recipe card will show you two different methods for making this soup: quick with canned beans or slower with dried beans. Dry beans are more economical and have a slightly better texture but canned beans are quicker. It’s up to you which one you prefer. The end result is pretty much the same.
Ingredient Notes
- Bacon: We love a thick, center-cut bacon for the most amount of meat with the least amount of fat. Ham will also work, and you won’t need to brown it first.
- Great Northern Beans: Cooking time will increase if you use dry beans (1 hour and 15 minutes), and you’ll have to plan ahead and soak them overnight. We love the texture and flavor that comes with dried beans, but canned beans also make a great soup and turn this recipe into a perfect weeknight meal, ready in 40 minutes.
- Vegetables: Onion, celery, carrots, and some tomato paste give this soup so much flavor and provide added nutritional value.
- Flavor: Flavor is added to this soup with fresh garlic, bay leaves, and thyme. It tastes so similar to the store-bought version! (But better!)
- Chicken Broth: We always recommend using a salt-free or low-salt chicken broth so that you can control the salt in your final recipe. Bonus points for making homemade chicken broth. You could also use a bone broth.
How To Make Bean and Bacon Soup
Sauté. Begin this easy soup by browning thick cut bacon slices until crisp. Remove the bacon and most of the grease and in the same pan sauté carrots, onions, and celery until they soften a bit. Add garlic and a couple tablespoons of tomato paste, and cook, stirring a minute more.
Simmer. Add broth, beans, bay leaves, and thyme and simmer the soup. Put half of the bacon back in, too. Reserve some bacon for garnishing the soup, or just put it all in, totally up to you.
Purée. When the beans are tender and the soup is done, remove about half of it and purée it with a stick blender. Stir the puréed soup back into the pan. This step is optional but it does add a nice creamy texture to the soup. Truthfully, you’ll love it either way! If you don’t want to blend the soup, just mash some of it against the side of the pan with a large spoon. Mission accomplished.
Serve. Ladle the bean and bacon soup into a soup bowl or mug, and serve it steaming hot with crackers or bread. It’s pure comfort food, especially on a cold day.
Recipe Variations
- Make it in your slow cooker with dry great Northern beans. Rinse the beans well, and brown the bacon, then add everything to your crockpot. Cook on low 8 to 9 hours, or on high four to five hours, or until beans are tender.
- Use a different type of bean. Red beans, white beans, pinto beans, or black beans all work well.
- Replace the bacon with diced ham. You won’t need to brown it.
- Vegetarian: Omit the bacon and sauté the veggies in olive oil instead. Add a teaspoon or two of smoked paprika, if desired.
- More canned soup classics: Try my beef barley soup , loaded with tender chunks of beef, or broccoli cheese soup (make it in your Instant Pot!).
About Dried Kidney Beans
Dried kidney beans (and cannellini beans are in the same family) have a toxin called lectin that is normally removed by boiling. Sometimes slow cooking may not achieve the high temperature needed to remove the toxins. According to the USDA, it is recommended that dry kidney beans be boiled at least 30 minutes. Canned beans are fine.
Head start: To get a start on the soup the night before, soak the beans, and cut up the veggies, storing them in a plastic bag or bowl in the fridge.
Food prep: Make a big batch of soup and freeze it in individual sized containers for a handy lunch.
Refrigerate/Freeze: Bean with bacon soup will keep in the fridge for 3 to 4 days or in the freezer for up to six months.
Reheat: If the soup is frozen, thaw overnight in the fridge for best results. Reheat on the stovetop over medium-low heat or in the microwave for 1 to 2 minutes or until heated through.
Cooking Tip
If the soup seems too thick, add a bit of water. If it seems too thin, simmer with the lid removed until it thickens.
Free Meal Plan
Interested in a weekly meal plan that includes this recipe? Take a look at my Meal Plan #35. You’ll find a wholesome recipe for each weekday plus a categorized grocery list. Let me do the planning for you this week! We add a new meal plan weekly.
More Soup Recipes
Bean and Bacon Soup (canned or dry beans!)
Ingredients
- 8 ounces thick cut bacon, diced
- 1 cup diced yellow onion (about 1 medium onion)
- 1 cup diced carrots (about 2 carrots)
- 3/4 cup diced celery (about 2 ribs of celery)
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 4 cups chicken broth, unsalted
- 3 cups water
- 3 (15 oz) cans great northern beans, rinsed and drained (or 1 lb. dry beans, see note)
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 teaspoon fresh thyme or ½ teaspoon dried thyme
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/4 teaspoon coarse ground black pepper
Instructions
- In a large heavy bottomed pan, cook the bacon over medium heat. Remove bacon to a paper towel-lined plate. Remove all but 1 tablespoon of the bacon fat.8 ounces thick cut bacon, diced
- Add vegetables to pan and cook until onions are translucent and carrots and celery are beginning to soften, 4-5 minutes.1 cup diced yellow onion, 1 cup diced carrots, 3/4 cup diced celery
- Add garlic and tomato paste and cook, stirring, for another minute or until fragrant.1 clove garlic, minced, 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- Add chicken broth, water, beans, bay leaves, thyme, salt, pepper, and half of bacon. Bring to boil, reduce to simmer and cook, partially covered, for 15-20 minutes or until vegetables are soft.4 cups chicken broth, unsalted, 3 cups water, 3 (15 oz) cans great northern beans, rinsed and drained, 2 bay leaves, 1 teaspoon fresh thyme, 1 teaspoon kosher salt, 1/4 teaspoon coarse ground black pepper
- Remove and discard bay leaves. Remove about half of the soup, and puree the remaining soup using either a hand-held immersion blender or a traditional blender. Stir blended and unblended soup together and add remaining bacon, reserving some to garnish, if desired.
Notes
- Slow Cooker Directions: Use dry great Northern beans. Rinse the beans well, and brown the bacon, then add everything to your crockpot. Cook on low 8 to 9 hours, or on high four to five hours, or until beans are tender.
- Consistency: If the soup seems too thick, add a bit of water. If it seems too thin, simmer with the lid removed until it thickens.
- Bacon: If desired, replace the bacon with diced ham. You won’t need to brown it.
- Vegetarian Option: Omit the bacon and sauté the veggies in olive oil instead. Add a teaspoon or two of smoked paprika, if desired.
- Dry Beans: For dried beans, soak overnight as directed on package, and increase cook time to 60-75 minutes or until beans are tender.
Video
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Did You Make This?Share a comment and rating below! I love hearing what you think!
This is addictively delicious, and although very similar to other bean soup recipes I frequently make, tastes amazingly like hubby’s childhood favorite. My first attempt was definitely too salty, probably because I used Better Than Bouillon instead of the specified unsalted broth–a mistake not to be made again. I did not add additional salt, but the bacon was salty, too, and I’ll cut back slightly next time. I used less liquid, about 5 c instead of 7 as the soup pictured was pretty thin, and the texture of mine was just about perfect. I think the tomato paste, properly sauteed to bloom, is an important part of the wonderful taste profile. Even using canned beans, this soup needs a fairly long simmer to really blend the flavors. I was disappointed when tasting it half an hour after putting it together, then blown away after letting it barely simmer another hour.
Thanks for leaving a review! I’m so glad you liked it!
And thank you very much for this terrific–and economical–recipe! I make soup at least once a week, and this one will be high in my rotation. Even though my 1st attempt was a bit too salty, Hubs LOVED it, and he’s the one I try to keep happy! Probably works–we’ve mostly been happily married 61 years. He still seems to enjoy my cooking, although he definitely complains if one of my experiments is a dud. I gave this soup a 2nd try, and with lower sodium products (salt free canned beans, which I had to order online), low sodium broth) that required me to add some salt later in the cooking process. it produced the same deliciousness. I’ll do it with dried beans–which will give me more control over sodium–next time. LOVE my pressure cooker!
I love that!
Thank you for sharing this AMAZING recipe! Our family thinks this soup is delicious! I refuse to use canned beans so I put in the extra effort to start with dry beans and for me it is always worth the effort. Thank you, thank you!
They really are worth the extra effort! Glad you like this soup!
Yum! Made this soup with leftover Christmas ham and bone. Super easy (a bit of chopping) and wonderful soup! I used dried beans and soaked them for 7 hours. This is a keeper!
I bet it was so good with the ham bone!
Absolutely delicious soup!! Made as written except used black pepper bacon because that’s what I had. Helpful hint…if you use an emersion blender, do take some soup out and blend, then add it back to the pan. I took a short cut and did a quick blend in the pan for just a moment and wasn’t left with as many full beans as I’d like.
I’m so glad you liked the soup! Thank you for leaving a review!