Slow Cooker 15 Bean Soup with Kale Recipe
This hearty Slow Cooker 15 Bean Soup with Kale is a comforting and nutritious dish perfect for chilly days. Featuring a medley of soaked beans, smoky ham hocks, fresh vegetables, and earthy kale, this soup simmers slowly to develop deep flavors. It’s an easy, one-pot meal that combines protein, fiber, and greens in a flavorful broth seasoned with herbs and smoked paprika. The recipe includes a tip for safely cooking kidney beans and an optional step for mashing some beans to improve texture.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes (plus overnight soaking)
- Cook Time: 5 hours 30 minutes
- Total Time: 5 hours 45 minutes plus overnight soaking
- Yield: 6-8 servings 1x
- Category: Soup
- Method: Slow Cooking
- Cuisine: American
- Diet: Low Fat
Ingredients
Scale
Beans & Meats
- 1 (20oz) 15 Bean Soup mix, seasoning packet discarded
- 2–3 smoked ham hocks
Vegetables
- 2 ribs celery, sliced
- 2 carrots, sliced
- 1 yellow onion, diced
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- 3 cups chopped kale
Seasonings & Broth
- 1–2 bay leaves
- 1.5 teaspoons dried thyme
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1 teaspoon poultry seasoning
- Salt & pepper, to taste
- 6–7 cups vegetable or chicken broth
Optional
- Hot sauce, for serving
Instructions
- Prepare Beans: Sort through the dried beans carefully, removing any debris. Soak the beans overnight in water to soften and reduce cooking time.
- Assemble in Slow Cooker: Drain and rinse the soaked beans. Place them in a 5-quart or larger slow cooker. Add the smoked ham hocks, celery, carrots, onion, garlic, bay leaves, dried thyme, smoked paprika, poultry seasoning, salt, pepper, and broth. Stir everything to combine.
- Cook Soup: Cook the mixture on high for 5 to 6 hours, or until the beans are tender and fully cooked. This high setting ensures the kidney beans reach a safe boiling point to neutralize toxins.
- Add Kale and Meat: In the last 30 minutes of cooking, carefully remove the ham hocks. Pick off all the meat from the bones and discard the bones and bay leaves. Return the ham meat and chopped kale to the slow cooker and stir to mix.
- Mash Beans (Optional): For a thicker texture, use a fork to mash some of the beans directly in the soup. This creates a lovely creamy consistency without losing chunkiness.
- Serve: Ladle the soup into bowls and garnish with your favorite hot sauce if desired. Enjoy warm.
Notes
- Kidney beans contain toxins that must be destroyed by boiling for at least 10 minutes. This recipe cooks on “high” in the slow cooker to ensure safety.
- If concerned about kidney bean safety, soak beans overnight, then boil them on the stovetop for at least 10 minutes before adding to the slow cooker.
- The seasoning packet included in the bean mix is discarded to control salt and flavor.
- You can substitute vegetable broth for chicken broth to make the recipe vegetarian if omitting ham hocks.
Keywords: 15 bean soup, slow cooker soup, kale soup, ham hock soup, hearty bean soup, healthy soup, comfort food
