One of my fondest memories growing up was the cold winter days when my mother would make ham and lima bean soup from the bone left over from Sunday dinner with the vegetables my grandfather would grow on my uncle Steve’s farm. Dinner time was sometimes stressful in my house as both my parents worked hard at running their own business and we would often eat out but this recipe was one of my mother’s best and I always loved when she took the time to simmer the bone and soak the large lima beans beforehand. It’s sometimes the little things that bring out the big flavors. These days I like to take a few extra steps and also simmer the ham bone in a slow cooker from early morning to right before finishing the soup in order to maximize the amount of collagen and minerals. You can also cut an onion in half and roast them with a little oil and a bit of Cayenne and Turmeric powder on it under the broiler to add a little more flavor to the soup while beans and bone cook all day.
When making this soup you want to be sure to use a bone from a pig that was raised right so I tend to stay away from using the “factory farm” hams you find in a major grocery chain and stick to small, local family farms like Gruber farms here in southwestern Pennsylvania or from an artisan shop like Parma Sausage in the Strip District of downtown Pittsburgh. Today I was using the bone leftover from a Parma ham that we had for our Easter Sunday dinner. While I usually prefer to use the large lima beans because I feel they are a bit “meatier” but today I used small organic lima beans that I purchased from my local co-op. Also, I used only organic vegetables as it is important to reduce your family’s exposure to pesticides as much as possible and be sure to use filtered water when making the bone broth.
Normally I just soak the beans overnight and then put them and the ham bone in the slow cooker in the morning with a bay leaf and a few smashed garlic cloves to cook throughout the day (8-10 hours) and then finish by chopping up and sautéing some fresh vegetables and garlic to add after I’ve removed the bone and other bits. Pull all the usable meat left on the bone and shred some of it but also keep some in nice chunks. I like to reserve a few slices of ham leftover from dinner and slice or cube it so as it gives a nice salty bite in comparison to the ham that was cooked all day which has more of a diminished flavor.
A few tricks I’ve learned along the way to boost those flavors and add a little umami and give the soup a nice, deep smokey flavor are adding a very small amount Dark Soy Sauce (my favorite is Pearl River Bridge Mushroom Superior Dark Soy Sauce) or a little bit of liquid smoke extract. Please be very careful with the two aforementioned ingredients as they are extremely powerful and, like salt, cannot be taken out if you add too much! I’ve also found adding a little hot sauce helps round out the flavors with a touch of heat and a little vinegar bite.
Slow Cooker Ham and Lima Bean Soup
1 Ham bone with some meat left on it
2 lb. Dried large Lima Beans (I recommend Camellia brand) and be sure to soak overnight but never longer than 8 hours as the beans will start fermenting
2 lg. Carrots sliced into rounds
2 Celery stalks (be sure to save the leaves to add when finishing up the soup for service)
1 lg Onion or 2 small diced
1 tsp fresh Thyme or 1/2 tsp dried
1/4 tsp dried Sage
1/2 tsp Cumin
1 Bay leaf
6-8 cups of filtered water or enough to cover the beans and bone in the slow cooker
Salt and fresh ground Pepper to taste
Optional ingredients:
1/4 to 1/2 tsp of Dark soy sauce
3-4 drops of liquid smoke extract
Your favorite hot sauce
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