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If you have a leftover ham bone from the holidays, don’t toss it! Use it to make this incredible Ham Bone Soup Recipe, which will change how you use leftover ham forever. Ready in just an hour using simple ingredients, this is a creamy potato, and ham soup everyone at the table will love!
Jump to:
- Ingredients in Ham Bone Soup
- Ham Stock Ingredients
- How to Make Ham Bone Stock
- Ham Bone Soup Recipe Steps
- Isabel’s Tips
- Variations on Ham Soup with Bone
- Storing and Freezing Soup Made with Ham Bone
- Reheating Leftover Ham Bone Soup
- Ham Bone Soup Recipe FAQ
- Ham Recipes
- Ham Leftovers
- Pin it for later!
- Recipe
- Reviews
It’s no secret how much my family loves ham recipes for the holidays. I look forward to making a ham at least twice a year, and even more than that, I look forward to the leftovers!
My favorite part of the leftovers is the ham bone, and this soup is the reason why! Ham bone soup is incredibly flavorful, and because the bone is so meaty, you won’t even have to add any extra ham. (I always do, though!)
Full of ham, potatoes, and a creamy soup base, this is the best ham soup recipe you will ever try. I promise! The next time you have ham leftovers, you have to try making this recipe. In fact, I bet you’ll want to make another ham right away just to enjoy the soup again!
Ingredients in Ham Bone Soup
- Ham bone broth
- Extra virgin olive oil
- Yellow onion, diced
- Garlic, minced (or garlic paste)
- Carrots, peeled and chopped
- Celery, chopped
- Bay leaves
- Leftover ham, diced and chopped
- Russet potatoes, peeled and diced
- Heavy cream or milk
- Salt, to taste
- Pepper, to taste
- Parsley, for garnish
Ham Stock Ingredients
- Ham bone
- Celery
- Carrots
- Onion
- Garlic
- Bay leaves
- Water
How to Make Ham Bone Stock
- In a large pot add the leftover ham bone, roughly chopped carrots, celery, bay leaves, garlic, onion, and water. Cover with a lid, then simmer on low heat for 4-6 hours.
- Remove the lid and stir the broth well, then discard the bay leaves. Pour the broth through a very fine strainer or cheesecloth, then use it to make ham bone soup (below)!
You can check out step-by-step instructions on how to make ham stock.
Ham Bone Soup Recipe Steps
- Heat olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Once hot, add onion, carrots, and celery. Cook until softened, 3-5 minutes or so.
- Add minced garlic and cook another minute.
- Pour ham stock into the pot and add bay leaves. over the pot with a lid and simmer on low for 30 minutes.
- When 30 minutes is up, add diced ham and potatoes. Cook another 15-20 minutes or until the potatoes are fork-tender. Slowly add in heavy cream and mix well.
- Allow the soup to simmer for an additional 5 minutes to thicken. Finally, season the soup with salt and pepper to taste. Serve, and enjoy!
You will also love my 15 beans soup!
Isabel’s Tips
- You can use cornstarch or Wondra flour to thicken the soup. I prefer cornstarch as it keeps the soup gluten-free.
- Although I choose to add extra ham to my soup, you may find you don’t need to because the bone is so meaty!
- Heavy cream and milk both work well in this recipe. Heavy cream will give you a richer, creamier soup, but you might prefer the subtlety of milk instead. Both are delicious.
Variations on Ham Soup with Bone
- Try adding beans to this soup. Navy beans and great northern beans are great. I even added green beans, and this soup was fantastic.
- I love adding peas and corn for a fun twist on this soup.
- You can have fun with almost any veggies in this soup. One of my favorite vegetables to add is sweet potato.
- If you want a thickened soup, you can use an immersion blender; it will thicken the soup.
Storing and Freezing Soup Made with Ham Bone
- You can store leftover ham soup in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 3-5 days.
- If you want to freeze ham soup, do not add the milk mixture when first preparing it. Freeze the soup without any added dairy. Freeze in an airtight freezer-safe container with at least a half-inch of space at the top for up to 3 months. When ready to heat, first thaw in the refrigerator, then bring to a simmer on the stove and continue the recipe from step 7.
Reheating Leftover Ham Bone Soup
- Microwave: You can microwave leftover ham soup in a microwave-safe bowl covered with a paper towel. Heat for 50 seconds, stir, and continue heating in intervals as necessary until heated through.
- Stove: You can also heat leftover ham soup on the stove. Add it to a saucepot and heat over medium-low heat until heated through.
Ham Bone Soup Recipe FAQ
A ham bone can be kept in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. Alternatively, you can also freeze it for 1-2 months.
Although you may be able to use a ham bone again for soup, if not all of the meat comes off of the bone, most of the flavor you can get from the bone will be used up the first time you use it to make soup. If you want to try to reuse the bone, refrigerate it and use it again within a couple of days.
Ham Recipes
Ham Leftovers
See more of my Easy Soup Recipes, too!
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Recipe
Ham Bone Soup
Equipment
Ingredients
Soup Ingredients
- 8 cups ham stock see ingredients and steps below
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- ½ cup yellow onion diced
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 3 large carrots peeled and chopped
- 3 stalks celery chopped
- 2 bay leaves
- 2 cups ham diced
- 3 large russet potatoes peeled and diced
- 1 cup heavy cream or milk
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 teaspoon fresh parsley for garnish
Ham Stock Ingredients
- 1 ham bone
- 2 stalks celery halved
- 2 large carrots roughly chopped
- ½ large yellow onion roughly chopped
- 2 cloves garlic roughly chopped
- 2 bay leaves
- 12 cups water
Instructions
Ham Stock Instructions
- In a large pot add the ham bones, roughly chopped carrots, celery, bay leaves, garlic, onion, and water.1 ham bone, 2 stalks celery, 2 large carrots, ½ large yellow onion, 2 cloves garlic, 2 bay leaves, 12 cups water
- Cover with a lid, them simmer on low heat for 4-6 hours.
- Remove the lid and stir the broth well, then remove the bay leaves.
- Pour the broth through very fine strainer or cheese cloth, then use.
Ham Soup Instructions
- Heat olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Once hot, add onion, carrots, and celery. Cook until softened, 3-5 minutes or so.1 tablespoon olive oil, ½ cup yellow onion, 3 large carrots, 3 stalks celery
- Add minced garlic and cook another minute.2 cloves garlic
- Pour ham stock into the pot and add bay leaves.2 bay leaves, 8 cups ham stock
- Cover the pot with a lid and simmer on low for 30 minutes.
- When 30 minutes is up, add diced ham and potatoes. Cook another 15-20 minutes or until the potatoes are fork-tender.2 cups ham, 3 large russet potatoes
- Slowly pour in heavy cream and mix well.1 cup heavy cream
- Allow the soup to simmer an additional 5 minutes to thicken.
- Finally, season soup with salt and pepper to taste. Serve, and enjoy!1 teaspoon fresh parsley
Video
Notes
- You can use cornstarch or wondra flour to thicken the soup. I prefer cornstarch as it keeps the soup gluten-free.
- Although I choose to add extra ham to my soup, you may find you don’t need to because the bone is so meaty!
- Heavy cream and milk both work well in this recipe. Heavy cream will give you a richer, creamier soup, but you might prefer the subtlety of milk instead. Both are delicious.
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