Hearty 15 Bean Soup in the Instant Pot
on Dec 11, 2018, Updated Nov 09, 2024
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This easy Hearty 15 Bean Soup recipe is made in the Instant Pot made with ham, broth, veggies, and my favorite Hurst’s dried beans.
Ham and beans with a side of cornbread will forever be one of my favorite comfort foods. Those filling, salty, flavor-filled tender beans with sweet and crumbly cornbread is a match made in heaven. I love using Hurst’s 15 Bean Soup as my bean base because it has so much variety. The lentils cook down and help thicken things, and the big chubby lima beans, creamy cranberry beans, and sturdy kidney beans make a great combination. I love all of the colors and textures and how they all come together to make one great dish.
Here’s why I’m excited to be working with Hurst’s Beans today. Hurst’s is a 4th generation family-owned company that is based out of Indiana (my home state!), and they’ve been a brand that has been in my cupboard, my mom’s cupboard, and my grandma’s cupboard for years and years. I grew up loving the 15 Bean Soup Mix, and their products are ones I use and know well.
Table of Contents
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Ham and beans is an economical way to feed a crowd!
- It reheats well so you can cook once and eat it all week long.
- It uses a wide variety of beans so it’s full of all kinds of vitamins, minerals, and protein.
Ingredients
- Olive Oil or Butter
- Onion
- Celery
- Carrots
- Minced Garlic
- One Bag Hurst’s Hambeens 15 Bean Soup with Seasoning Packet
- Chicken or Vegetable Broth
- Ham Hocks, Shanks, or Leftover Ham Bone
- Salt and Pepper
See the recipe card below for full information on ingredients and quantities
How to Make 15 Bean Soup in the Instant Pot
Step #1. Select “browning/sauté” on the pressure cooker. Add the butter or oil, onion, celery, and carrot. Cook until the onion is softened. Add the garlic and cook for one minutes.
Step #3. Close the lid, turn vent to seal, and set to cook for 45 minutes. When finished, let pressure release naturally for 10 minutes, then turn vent to quick release.
Step #2. Add the washed beans, seasoning packet, and broth to the pot. Add the ham and stir to combine.
Step #4. Remove the ham from the pot. Shred meat and discard any extra meat and inedible parts. Stir the meat back into the pot. Season to taste and serve.
Recipe FAQs
Contains at least 15 of these varieties: Northern, Pinto, Large Lima, Black-eyed, Garbanzo, Baby Lima, Green Split, Kidney, Cranberry, Small White, Pink, Small Red, Yellow Split, Lentil, Navy, White Kidney, Black Bean, and Yellow Eye. I LOVE the variety as it adds so many flavors, textures, and colors to your dish. Plus, I feel like all of that variety has got to be full of all kinds of healthy vitamins and minerals. You know how I feel about “eating the rainbow!”
No! They cook just fine without soaking. You can if you’d like, though – simply soak them in water overnight or for 8 hours before using. If you soak your beans, reduce the broth in the recipe by 1 cup (from 8 cups to 7 cups).
One-hundred percent, yes! Beans are a fantastic source of lean (not to mention, vegetarian) protein. The ham in this recipe adds another element of protein — and delicious flavor! Protein helps build and maintain body tissue, plus give us energy for activities. So this is a filling and fueling meal for all.
To thicken the soup a bit, you can blend it for a few seconds with an immersion blender, or you can scoop out 2 cups to blend in a traditional blender and then return it to the pot. Blended beans are an easy soup thickener.
Expert Tips
- This is the fastest way to make this recipe. If you have the time, feel free to let the Instant Pot do a full “natural pressure release” at the end of the cooking time.
- I tried this recipe with and without the included seasoning packet, and I really liked using the seasoning packets. It adds a great smoky flavor. It’s gluten-free, too. If you are sensitive to salt though, try adding only half and adjusting additional salt to your liking.
- You are free to use the pork/ham product of your choice – using a leftover ham bone works great. I just toss my ham bone in a zipper-topped freezer bag after dinner and keep it there until I’m ready to make soup.
How to Make the Recipe on the Stove or in the Slow Cooker
- To make this recipe on the stove top, sauté the veggies as directed and then add everything else to the pot. Bring the mixture to a boil and then reduce the heat to a simmer and cover. Cook covered, stirring often until the beans are tender, about 4 hours.
- To make 15 bean soup in the slow cooker, sauté the veggies as directed and then add everything to your slow cooker. Cook on low for 7-8 hours or until the beans are tender.
How to Freeze 15 Bean Soup
Totally! This soup freezes very well. Just fill up a sealable bag or an airtight container, and keep it in the freezer for 2 to 3 months. You can also keep it in the fridge for up to a week.
More Soup Recipes to Consider
Soups, Stews & Chowders
White Chicken Chili
Soups, Stews & Chowders
Slow Cooker Veggie Beef Soup
15-Minute Recipes
Cornbread Waffles with Chili – 15 Minute Dinner Idea
Soups, Stews & Chowders
Texas Chili Recipe
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Hearty 15 Bean Soup in the Instant Pot
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil or butter
- 1 large onion, diced
- 3 ribs celery, diced
- 3-4 carrots, diced
- 2-3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 bag Hurst’s Hambeens 15 Bean Soup, 20 ounces, rinsed and sorted
- 1 Seasoning packet that comes with the 15 Bean Soup
- 8 cups broth, chicken or vegetable is best
- 2 pounds ham hocks, shanks, or leftover ham bone
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Select browning/saute to preheat the pressure cooker. Add the olive oil or butter and onion, celery, and carrots. Saute until the onion is tender, about 3 minutes.
- Add the garlic and saute until fragrant, about 1 minute.
- Add washed and sorted 15 bean mix to the pot, add the seasoning packet, and the broth. Stir to combine.
- Add the ham hocks, shanks, or ham bone to the pot.
- Lock the lid in place, make sure the vent is set to seal, and select high pressure and 45 minute cook time.
- When the cooking time ends, let the soup rest at pressure (natural pressure release) for 10 minutes and then use the quick pressure release. When the valve drops, remove the lid carefully.
- Remove the ham pieces and bones and place them on a plate. Remove any extra meat and discard the non-edible pieces. Return the ham meat to the pot and stir to combine.
- Adjust salt and pepper to taste and serve hot.
Video
Notes
- UPDATE 12/1/19: cook time used to read 35 minutes, after a few comments about cooking time issues (having beans that are too firm) I have increased cooking time to 45 minutes with a 10 minute NPR (for 55 minutes of cooking).
- This is the fastest way to make this recipe. If you have the time, feel free to let the Instant Pot do a “natural pressure release” at the end of the cooking time.
- I tried this recipe with and without the included seasoning packet and I really liked using the seasoning packets. It adds a great smoky flavor. It’s gluten-free, too. If you are sensitive to salt though, try adding only half and adjusting additional salt to your liking.
- You are free to use the pork/ham product of your choice – using a leftover ham bone works great. I just toss my ham bone in a zipper-topped freezer bag after dinner and keep it there until I’m ready to make soup.
- If you’d like to thicken the soup just a bit, you can blend it for just a few seconds with your immersion blender or you can blend 2 cups of the soup in a traditional blender and then return it to the pot. Blended beans are a great natural thickener.
Nutrition
Disclosure: This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of Hurst’s Beans. Thank you for supporting the brands that help make Bless this Mess possible.
Hursts bean soup isn’t available in my geography. What spices should I add, and in what proportions should I add them to make this from a bag of Goya mixed dried beans?
Hmmmmm I’d try a 1/4 teaspoon thyme, garlic powder, and onion powder and then adjust the salt and spices ad you like after cooking.
I only used half of the seasoning packet and gave it an extra ten minutes. It was totally excellent. The flavor from all these beans together was wonderful. I will definitely be making this again many times.
Thank you for noting the time. That’s so helpful.
Should I use the “Soup” or Chili/Beans” selection or “Pressure” for non-soaked beans??? What’s the difference in choosing SOUP OR BEANS/CHILI, please?
I don’t ever use the buttons, I just set the time manually. I’m pretty sure the buttons are just preset times which doesn’t really work for most recipes. If you are soaking the beans just reduce the liquid by 1 cup.
Made this recipe tonight, all I can say is Delicious! Quick and easy.
One of my favorites too! So glad you enjoyed it.
Would this work in a 6 quart pot? New to this… seems like a lot to put I to the container?
Yep, it’ll fit in a 6 quart just fine, just don’t fill it past the max fill line, you should have plenty of space though!
If I soak the beans, is the cooking time of 35 minutes still the same?
If you like them nice and soft yes, if you want a little more texture drop it down to 30 minutes!
Made this once and it turned out great. Will make it again soon. When I add the ham, can it be frozen? I often forget to unthaw stuff when rushing around in the morning!
Made this once and it turned out great. Will make it again soon. When I add the ham, can it be frozen? I often forget to unthaw stuff when rushing around in the morning!
“Unthaw” would mean to freeze, tight? Thaw means to remove from the freezer and let it come to room temperature. My LH used to say “unthzw” and I never understood what that meant.
I love Hursts Ham beans! Never used the Instant Pot and thank you for the recipe on how to. No soaking?
No soaking needed! If you do, just reduce the liquid by about a cup.
I love this recipe but wondered if I could add extra beans without taking a chance it will burn..
The bean to water ratio is where it should be so I feel like if you do add more beans you should scale the water (and seasoning) up with the amount of beans that you add.
What do you mean when you say to SORT the beans?
Just look through them to remove any rocks/debris that might have accidentally gotten in and remove any odd looking beans you might not want to eat.
I just made this recipe today in my Instant Pot. I set the pot for high pressure with a 35 minute cook time. I did a natural pressure release as I wasn’t in a hurry, and the beans are not cooked (not firm–crunchy). I set it for another 10 minutes at high pressure and that did the trick. The soup is tasty, but the time was not accurate for me.
Thank you for coming back to let the rest of us know your results. Do you know if the beans that you used were fresh? Sometimes if I’ve had beans in storage a while I too need to increase the cooking time. Wondering if that might have been the cause.
Good recipe but the instant pot time is not correct unless you prefer your beans crunchy…I did exactly what the recipe called for..35 min and QR..I had to go back and set to 20 more min. Please consider revising your instant pot timing. Looks like it will be good when beans are softer.
I’ve made this lots of times and I know the time is correct, your beans might be less fresh than mine or even your altitude can change things, so make it to your needs for sure but it’s worked for lots of people as written. I’m very through when it comes to testing recipes.
Same problem here. Followed recipe exactly, beans still quite crunchy. This is exactly why I rarely use or trust these “internet chef” recipes. Added an additional 20 minutes and left it to depressurize on its own and it was fine.
No air quotes on the “internet chef” needed, thanks, I produce better quality recipes than most TV chefs and I test them all at least 3 times. What size IP did you use? I’m cooking with an 8 quart and I think the fact that it takes 10 minutes longer to come to pressure and probably another 10 to come down from pressure compared to a 6 quart could be part of the problem and I do know that my beans were very fresh. And I’m cooking from a high altitude which things boil faster, if you add in enough things you’d have about 20 extra minutes of cooking. I’ll make notes in the recipes of these things so that more people can find success and I’ll be increasing the time a bit too since I bet most people are cooking under circumstances close to yours. How was the flavor? One star really crushes my ratings, you’re welcome to adjust it if you see fit, that’s a pretty awful rating for just having to let it cook longer.