Southwestern Navy Bean Soup
One of my favorite “go-to” recipes in the Fall is Southwestern Navy Bean Soup, simply because of the zesty, rich flavors and the creamy texture. The inclusion of Rotel™ Stewed Tomatoes and Green Chiles is what makes this soup more flavorful than the traditional “navy beans with ham”- you can make this as mild or spicy as you like with dried or canned navy beans.
Use dried or canned Navy Beans and make it on the stovetop or slow-cooker!
I’ve been making this navy bean soup for years! It’s always a healthy, filling bowl of goodness, especially when it’s served with a slice of homemade cornbread.
Ingredients
Navy beans (dried or canned), chicken broth, Rotel stewed tomatoes, onion, garlic, ground cumin, bay leaves, salt and pepper. If you want to include meat in the soup, add a smoked ham hock, cooked sausage (Polish sausage or Kielbasa) or leftover ham.
How to make it-stovetop instructions
This is an overview; please see recipe card below for details.
- Soak dried navy beans overnight. However, If you don’t have time to overnight soak dried beans, use canned navy beans – just rinse and drain them first. Use a high-quality brand like Bush’s™ Navy Beans or S&W™ brand.
- In a Dutch oven, saute onion and celery in a little oil; add Rotel tomatoes (with the juice), dried and soaked navy beans or canned navy beans, broth, garlic, seasonings and bay leaf
- If you want a creamier version, transfer 1/4 – 1/2 of the soup to a food processor, pulse a few times, then transfer the pulsed mixture back to the stockpot.
- Allow to simmer till tender; season to taste with kosher salt and ground black pepper
Crock pot or slow cooker instructions
If you make this recipe in a crock pot or slow cooker, soak the dried beans first, either overnight or the “quick-soak” method. The slow cooker/crockpot method is not recommended for canned beans because they turn to mush.
Place soaked dried beans and remaining ingredients into slow cooker and add plenty of water or broth (8-10 cups).
The dried beans will absorb the liquid, so if you leave the slow cooker unattended you’ll want to ensure there’s plenty of liquid. Cook on low for 8-10 hours or on high for 5-6 hours. Add more liquid if necessary.
Recipe Tip
Want a smooth texture? Working in batches, pour the soup into a food processor or, use an immersion blender. The result is creamy and delicious!
Yield
Like most bean recipes, this makes a big pot of zesty flavored Southwestern Navy Bean soup about 8 cups, so if you don’t need so much, you can half the recipe or freeze it for later.
Do Navy beans need soak overnight?
Generally speaking, dried navy (and pinto beans) need to soak overnight in 8 cups of water (or enough water to cover the beans.) But, there’s a quicker way to “soak” the beans called a “Quick-Soak.”
How to quick-soak navy beans
A quick soak is ideal when you forgot to soak dry navy beans or pinto beans overnight.
- Place the rinsed beans and 8 cups of unsalted water in a big pot and bring it to a boil (uncovered) for 5 minutes
- Turn off the heat and cover
- Allow to stand for 1 hour, covered
- Pour off the water, add the drained beans to the stock pot along with the chicken/vegetable broth and resume the recipe
Storage and Reheating
You can store Navy Bean soup in the refrigerator in an airtight container for up to 3-days or freeze up to 6-months. Reheat thawed soup on the stovetop; you may have to add a little water or broth, as it thickens upon freezing.
Serve this Southwestern Navy bean soup with a slice of homemade cornbread or some warm flour tortillas!
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- Southern Skillet Cornbread
- Restaurant-Quality Chicken Tortilla Soup
- Wisconsin Beer Cheese Soup
- Organic Broccoli and Cheddar Soup
- How to Fix Over Salted Soups and Stews
If you make this recipe, please scroll down and leave a comment and rating. I love to hear from you!
Southwestern Navy Bean Soup
Ingredients
- 1 lb. navy beans , dried (see recipe notes); or 6 cans of canned navy beans
- 2 tablespoons oil , olive, canola or vegetable
- 64 oz. chicken or vegetable broth , low-sodium
- 10 oz. can Stewed Tomatoes with Green Chiles (see recipe notes) ,Rotel brand preferred; include juice
- 1 cup onion, chopped
- 1 stalk celery, chopped
- 1 teaspoon minced garlic
- 3 bay leaves
- 1 tablespoon ground cumin
- 1 small ham hock
- ½ lb. smoked beef sausage (optional); slice to bite size
- parsley, scallions or cilantro chopped, for garnish
Instructions
Prep
- Rinse navy beans and soak either overnight or use the Quick Soak method (see notes); if using canned beans, rinse and drain; set aside1 lb. navy beans
- Chop onions and celery1 cup onion, chopped, 1 stalk celery, chopped
Make the Soup
- In a big soup pot on medium heat, add oil, onions and celery; cook until onions are softened, about 4 – 6 minutes; add minced garlic2 tablespoons oil, 1 cup onion, chopped, 1 stalk celery, chopped, 1 teaspoon minced garlic
- Add entire can of stewed tomatoes and liquid, beans, broth, bay leaves and ground cumin to the onion mixture; (add hamhock : optional); stir well64 oz. chicken or vegetable broth, 10 oz. can Stewed Tomatoes with Green Chiles (see recipe notes), 3 bay leaves, 1 tablespoon ground cumin, 1 small ham hock
- Allow to cook for 35-45 minutes covered; check occasionally for liquid level. If liquid level gets below the bean level, add water or broth to cover the beans by 3-4 inches; cover and continue to cook until beans are tender (Note: dried beans will take much longer to soften)
- To add smoked beef sausage, cut it into bite-sized pieces and saute in a separate pan; (You can add the sausage to the whole soup, or add it to individual servings)½ lb. smoked beef sausage
- Once beans are tender, remove bay leaves; remove ham hock (if added); at this point, if you want a creamier version, transfer ¼ – ½ of the soup to a food processor, pulse a few times, then return the pulsed mixture to the stockpot.
- Add salt and pepper to taste
- Garnish with parsley, cilantro or scallions and serveparsley, scallions or cilantro
Notes
- Place the beans and 8 cups of water in a large pot and bring it to a boil (uncovered) for 5 minutes
- Turn off the heat and cover
- Allow to stand for 1 hour, covered
- Pour off the water, add in chicken/vegetable broth and resume the recipe
- Place beans and remaining ingredients into slow cooker and add plenty of water or broth (8-10 cups). The beans will absorb the liquid, so if you leave the slow cooker unattended you’ll want to ensure there’s plenty of water or broth.
- Cook on low for 8-10 hours or on high for 5-6 hours.
OMGoodness. I just noticed I left a comment almost a year ago. I screwed the recipe up last time by adding ingredients to it. This time it was perfect… Because I actually followed the directions. 😂
I followed the directions exactly. I used canned beans instead of dried. The soup turned out really good. My boyfriend even liked it! … & he doesn’t like it when I try new recipes. I’ll definitely make this again.
Thanks for all your tips and recipes! I’m really enjoying them.
Thank you for this recipe!! It it So easy to put together with minimal ingredients, and taste Wonderful!!
Definitely a keeper!
Hi, what size can of the stewed tomatoes with chili as there is the regular 14 1/2 can or the 28 oz I don’t see any mention of that one item, please and thank you.
Good Catch, Jana! My bad. I used one 10 oz. can of Rotel tomatoes in the Southwestern Navy Bean soup; however, if you only have a 14 ounce can, you can use the whole can. If you want it thinner, add a full 28 ounce can of rotel.
used a normal can of dice tomatoes, the small can of jalapeno diced, and a small can of tomato sauce with jalapeno
Sounds delicious! Thank you for sharing!
Do dried navy beans really cook in half an hour? The package says 1.5 hours. Do I need to plan to cook the soup that long until they are tender? Just checking. Looks like a great recipe…
Dried navy beans will take longer than canned. Cook the soup until the beans are tender. That time can vary depending upon if they’re canned, or if they’re dried. The cook time will also depend upon whether or not you soaked the beans. Soaked beans cook faster.
Thanks! It took me two hours to cook the soup with dried beans that had been soaked. Tastes great.
That sounds about right. Dried beans take much longer to soften than canned. Thank you for sharing!
I LOVE the way you have written out the measurements in the recipe direction section. THANK YOU for simplifying my life by doing this. 🙌🏻Can’t wait to try this recipe! 🤤
You’re welcome! Nobody wants to scroll up and down when they’re making a recipe, right?
You worded that, so perfectly, Anastasia! I couldn’t have said it better myself.
I’m not a fan of soups, but I tried it anyway. Love love loved this dish. I threw in some tomato paste. Wish I hadn’t. It would’ve been better without it. I’ll definitely be making this again…as directed.
I was looking for a simple bean soup and this is it!! Great flavor!!
I only had 4 cans of navy beans so I tossed in 2 cans of pinto beans.
This will be by go to recipe from now on for bean soup!!
I’m glad it worked out for you! Sometimes, we have to use what we’ve got, right? Thank you very much for sharing your story!
Made this tonight and it’s amazing!! Added the smoked sausage even better! So much flavor it’s mouth watering!
Thank you! I’m glad you enjoyed this Zesty Navy Bean soup:)