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Bowl of creamy crock pot ham and beans with chunks of ham and diced carrot, a spoon lifting some from the bowl

Crock Pot Ham and Beans

Dried Great Northern beans cooked from dry in a 6-quart slow cooker with diced leftover ham (or a meaty ham bone), onion, carrot, celery and garlic. LOW 8 to 10 hours or HIGH 5 to 6, salted at the end and mashed a little for a creamy pot.
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Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 8 hours
Total Time 8 hours 15 minutes
Course Main Course
Cuisine American
Servings 6 servings
Calories 351 kcal

Ingredients
  

  • 1 pound dried Great Northern beans rinsed and sorted; navy beans work the same way
  • 2 cups cooked ham diced; or use 1 meaty ham bone with its scraps, or 2 smoked ham hocks, and shred the meat off at the end
  • 1 large onion diced
  • 1 large carrot peeled and diced
  • 2 celery ribs diced
  • 1 clove garlic minced
  • 8 cups water or unsalted chicken broth; use 6 cups if the beans were soaked, or for a thicker pot
  • 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
  • 1 teaspoon salt added at the end, to taste

Instructions
 

  • Pour the dried beans into a colander. Pick out any broken beans, pebbles or debris, then rinse under cold water. No soaking needed.
  • Put the onion, carrot, celery, garlic and ham (or the ham bone or hocks) in a 6-quart slow cooker. Pour the beans on top. Add the water and the pepper. Do not add the salt yet.
  • Cover and cook on LOW 8 to 10 hours or on HIGH 5 to 6 hours, until the beans are tender. Keep the lid on; only lift it to check. If the beans are still firm at the end, put the lid back and give them 30 more minutes, then check again.
  • If you used a ham bone or hocks, lift them out onto a board. Pull off any meat, chop or shred it, and stir it back into the pot. Discard the bone and skin.
  • Stir in salt to taste, about 1 teaspoon. For a creamier pot, stir hard and press some of the beans against the side of the crock to mash them. Serve hot.

Notes

No soaking: the beans go in dry. If you soaked them anyway, use 6 cups of liquid and expect the short end of the time. Thaw a frozen ham or ham bone in the fridge before it goes in. Leftovers: shallow covered containers, refrigerate within 2 hours, up to 4 days in the fridge or 3 months frozen; reheat to 165F on the stove or in the microwave, not in the slow cooker.

Nutrition

Serving: 1servingCalories: 351kcalCarbohydrates: 53.1gProtein: 24.8gFat: 5gSodium: 799mgFiber: 16.9gSugar: 4g
Keyword crock pot ham and beans, great northern beans, ham and beans, leftover ham recipe, slow cooker ham and beans