Slow-Cooker Senate Bean Soup

By Sarah DiGregorio

Updated August 24, 2026

  • Rachel Vanni for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Simon Andrews.
Media 1 of 1
Total Time
6¼ hours
Prep Time
15 minutes
Cook Time
6 hours
Rating
5(1,763)
Comments
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This ultrasimple bean soup has been on the menu at the U.S. Senate Dining Room and served to senators and their staff for more than 100 years. Even as politics have changed, this soup has remained basically the same: navy beans simmered to creamy tenderness with ham hocks, butter and onion. Fittingly, there is no consensus on where exactly the soup came from: Some say it dates back to the early 20th century, when Senator Fred Dubois of Idaho passed a resolution making it a menu staple. This slow-cooker version has updated the classic slightly, with the addition of carrots and smoked paprika. If you’d like more vegetables (how modern!), stir in about 8 ounces of chopped kale before serving. As a nod to Idaho, this version contains a single russet potato, which gets mashed at the end of cooking and thickens the soup beautifully.

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Ingredients

Yield:4 servings

  • 1 pound dried navy beans or small white beans, rinsed

  • 5 garlic cloves, smashed and chopped

  • 3 medium carrots, peeled and sliced

  • 2 medium ham hocks (about 1 ½ pounds total)

  • 1 small red or yellow onion, finely chopped

  • 1 medium russet potato, peeled and quartered 

  • 1 tablespoon butter

  • 1 tablespoon kosher salt (such as Diamond Crystal)

  • 1 ½ teaspoons smoked paprika 

  • 1 teaspoon dried thyme

  • Black pepper

  • 1 tablespoon cider vinegar

Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (4 servings)

90 grams carbs; 146 milligrams cholesterol; 895 calories; 11 grams monounsaturated fat; 4 grams polyunsaturated fat; 9 grams saturated fat; 27 grams fat; 21 grams fiber; 1892 milligrams sodium; 77 grams protein; 9 grams sugar

Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

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Preparation

  1. Step 1

    In a 6- to 8-quart slow-cooker, combine beans, garlic, carrots, ham hocks, onion, potato, butter, salt, smoked paprika and thyme. Top with 8 cups of water and several generous grinds of black pepper. Cook until the beans are very tender and creamy, about 6 hours on high. (Beans need to reach a simmer to be fully cooked and safe to eat, so be sure your soup reaches a vigorous bubble. This shouldn’t be a problem on the slow-cooker’s high setting. Additionally, beans vary in cook time by age, so if your beans are older, you may need to cook a bit longer than 6 hours.)

  2. Step 2

    Pull out the ham hocks and put them on a cutting board to cool a bit. Using a fork, mash the potato pieces against the side of the slow-cooker. Stir well to break down some of the beans, too. Stir in the vinegar. Pull the meat off the bones, add it back into the soup and discard the bones. Taste and add more salt or pepper as needed.

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Ratings

5 out of 5
1,763 user ratings
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Comments

Texas ExPat

@David Looks like most of the sodium is coming from the 1 Tbsp of salt divided by 4 servings, which 4 servings may be a very generous bowl of soup. With the ham hocks alone, you should get enough salt to be flavorful. I’d make it without the added salt, and let people add salt to their servings.

KEck

I make this often with no meat, it highlights the great taste of the beans. Meat tends to overshadow the beans imho. I do use celery as well. And I saute the onions first. until browning, to add a little more depth of flavor. I alsolike to add some chopped carrots and celery in the last half hour or so to give it some color and a little of the texture you would get from the ham or turkey. Check out thermal cooking for another way to cook beans or soups in summer without adding heat to kitchen

Bailey

This soup is so good, it'll knock your hocks off

Jennifer

Are fresh ham hocks or smoked ham hocks supposed to be used? I made it as written with fresh and there was zero flavor.

Brian

Made this evening. Subbed the hocks with double smoked bacon cut into 1” chunks from a local butcher in GP which melted in your mouth. Also added 4-5 sprigs of fresh thyme. This is hands down one of my favorite recipes I’ve made from NYT.

CJ

One could also use good sausages, even uncured turkey or chicken sausages, to add protein and flavor. Ham hocks do not especially appeal to me.

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