Dutch Bean Soup Food

NAVY BEAN SOUP

Steps:

• Place the beans in a large saucepan and cover with cold water by about 2 inches. Bring to a boil and lower the heat to a simmer. Cook for 5 minutes; remove from the heat, cover, and let sit for one hour. Drain and reserve. Tie the parsley, thyme, and bay leaf together with kitchen twine.
• In a large soup pot or Dutch oven combine the beans, herb bundle, hocks, onions, and garlic with the water. Bring to a boil, cover, and adjust the heat so the soup cooks at a gentle simmer. Cook, stirring in the carrots after 1 hour, until the beans and hock are completely tender, about 1 1/2 hours total.
• Turn off the heat and remove the hocks. Cool slightly. Remove the meat from the hocks, discarding the bones, fat, and skin. Cut the meat into small cubes. Remove the herb bundle and discard.
• Puree about 3 cups of the beans with a some of the liquid in a blender. (For a smoother soup, puree all the beans.) Stir the puree and diced meat into the soup. Heat the soup and adjust the seasoning as needed with salt and pepper.
• Pour into heated bowls, place a small pat of butter on top of each soup, and serve.

HEARTY NAVY BEAN SOUP

Steps:

• Rinse and sort beans; soak according to package directions., Drain and rinse beans, discarding liquid. Place in a Dutch oven. Add the tomatoes with juice, onion, ham hock, broth, water, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer until beans are tender, about 1-1/2 hours., Add more water if necessary. Remove ham hock and let it stand until cool enough to handle. Remove meat from bone; discard bone. Cut meat into bite-sized pieces; set aside. (For a thicker soup, cool slightly, then puree beans in a food processor or blender and return to pan.) Return ham to soup and heat through. Garnish with parsley if desired.

CAMPFIRE BEAN 'N' HAM SOUP

Steps:

• Place beans in an ovenproof Dutch oven; add enough water to cover by 2 in. Bring to a boil; boil for 2 minutes. Remove from the heat; cover and let stand for 1-4 hours or until beans are softened., Chop 1 onion; slice second onion and separate into rings. Set onions aside. Drain and rinse beans, discarding liquid. Return beans to the pan. Add reserved onions; stir in the remaining ingredients. Cover pan and place on the grill rack over indirect medium heat., Cover grill; cook for 1 hour or until beans are almost tender. Uncover Dutch oven; cover grill and cook 30 minutes longer or until beans are tender. Discard ham hocks.

DUTCH BROWN BEAN SOUP

Steps:

• Put the beans in a pan with the water and bay leaf, bring to the boil.
• Boil rapidly for 10 minutes, then simmer for 1 1/2 hours or until the beans are tender.
• Then add the leeks, carrot, potato, Worcestershire and salt and pepper, simmer for another 30 minutes.
• Taste the soup or you want to add a stock cube.
• You can puree the soup at this point, but it is nicest when you just mash the beans and potatoes a bit so it thickens.
• Add the celery leaves 5 minutes before serving.
• Other additions/fillings for the soup: left-over cooked beef or pork, tiny meatballs, slices of smoked sausage, hot sauce, ketchup.
• Fried onions and bacon for serving.

HAM AND BEAN SOUP

Steps:

• Heat a Dutch oven (you can also use a thick-bottomed soup pot, but may need to stir more often to prevent burning) over medium heat for about 3 minutes or so, until it's nice and hot. Add the oil and the onions. Cook until the onions begin to turn translucent. Add the garlic and cook for 1-2 minutes.
• Stir in the chopped celery and carrots, and cook for an additional 5-6 minutes. Add the beans, followed by the water. Increase the heat to high.
• Add the bay leaves, dried thyme, garlic powder, onion powder, white pepper, black pepper, paprika, and chicken bouillon paste. (If you don't have chicken bouillon paste, simply use chicken stock in place of the water.) Bring to a boil.
• Stir in the ham. I like to cut it into big shards/shreds for extra texture. (Sarah likes hers cubed and orderly though. I won't judge either way!) If you're using a ham hock instead of ham, you can add it in now.
• Reduce the heat to medium-low so the soup is at a somewhat energetic simmer--it should always be at a low bubble. Cook for 4-5 hours, stirring periodically. If the soup isn't cooking down, you may want to increase the heat to medium. Every stove is different, so don't just set it and forget it. Periodically check liquid levels.
• In the last hour of cooking, add the fresh parsley, and cook for another hour. It's done when the beans and carrots are tender, and the soup is thickened. If you used a ham hock, fish out any bones, and chop up any large pieces of meat and skin (keeping the skin is optional) that don't break down during the cooking process before serving.
• This soup is quite forgiving. If it ends up too salty for your tastes, just add water, and lightly mash some of the beans to release their starchiness and re-thicken the soup. If you are reheating the soup and there is not enough liquid, just add 1-2 cups of water to bring it back to your desired consistency.

DUTCH BROWN BEAN SOUP (NETHERLANDS)

Steps:

• In a large pot, fry the bacon in the butter, then add shallots, carrot, leek & ground paprika, mixing well.
• Add beans, tomato puree, beef stock & bay leaves, then bring the soup to a boil. Reduce heat & simmer 15 minutes.
• Remove bay leaves, then season to taste with salt, pepper & Worcestershire sauce.
• With a stick blender of food processor, process the soup until somewhat smooth. Add celery leaves just before serving.