Sausage and Bean Soup

A simple, hearty, and nourishing sausage and bean soup is perfect cool-weather comfort food! The one pot meal is loaded with bacon, smoked sausage, vegetables, beans, and herbs in a flavorful broth. Pair each bowl with cornbread muffins, buttermilk biscuits, or soft and fluffy crescent rolls for a satisfying, cozy supper.

Bean and Sausage Soup

On a chilly day, nothing beats a warm pot of smoky sausage and bean soup. It’s total comfort food! The aroma that wafts through your home as it cooks is like a warm hug from your grandmother. The easy dinner includes loads of fresh veggies, hearty beans, and kielbasa sausage and bacon for rich flavor. It’s truly the perfect supper to serve on a quiet Sunday evening, or to enjoy for quick leftovers throughout a busy week.

Why do you put vinegar in bean soup?

There isn’t any vinegar in this specific recipe, since the tomatoes contribute a good amount of acid, but you can certainly add some if you like. We often finish a bean soup or a pot of beans with vinegar or another acidic ingredient, such as freshly squeezed lemon juice, for a variety of reasons. The vinegar breaks down indigestible sugars to help digestion, and also brightens the flavor of the beans without the need for excess salt.

How to Thicken Bean and Bacon Soup

For a thicker soup, mash or puree some of the beans at the end of cooking. You can do this with a potato masher, or you can use an immersion blender. The pureed beans will add texture to the dish and thicken the soup. Just be careful not to puree all of the soup! Another easy way to thicken the soup is to simmer the pot with the lid off until it reduces.

Serving Suggestions

Here are a few simple options to eat with the bean soup:

• 3-Ingredient Buttermilk Biscuits, Sweet Potato Biscuits, Flaky Biscuits, Cheese Biscuits or Drop Biscuits
• Southern Cornbread, Cake Mix Cornbread, Pumpkin Cornbread, Skillet Cornbread, Sweet Cornbread, Jiffy Cornbread with Creamed Corn, Corn Sticks, Mexican Cornbread, Honey Cornbread or Cornbread Muffins
• Pumpkin Bread, Pumpkin Muffins, Cranberry Muffins, or Apple Muffins
• Crusty French Baguette, Soft Dinner Rolls, or Homemade Crescent Rolls
• No-Knead Bread
• 3-Ingredient Beer Bread
• Southern Collard Greens
• 3-Ingredient Sour Cream Muffins
• Green Salad with Red Wine Vinaigrette, Mixed Greens with Dijon Vinaigrette, Caesar Salad, Fall Salad with Maple Balsamic Dressing, House Salad with Candied Pecans
• Fried Corn
• Southern Fried Apples, Baked Apple Slices, or Applesauce
• Egg noodles
• Hush Puppies
• Coleslaw or Vinegar Coleslaw
• Hoe Cakes
• Baked Potato Wedges, Mashed Sweet Potatoes, Rosemary Roasted Potatoes, Skin-On Mashed Red Potatoes, Mashed Potatoes with Sour Cream and Chives, or 3-Ingredient Buttermilk Mashed Potatoes
• Roasted Broccoli
• Fried Cabbage with Apples and Onion or Braised Red Cabbage
• Sauteed Kale with Bacon or Sauteed Spinach with Garlic
• Amish Green Beans with Brown Butter or Southern-Style Green Beans

Recipe Variations

• Crock Pot Instructions: If you prefer the convenience of the slow cooker, you can also prepare this hearty soup in the Crock Pot! Simply sauté the bacon, sausage, and vegetables as instructed on the stovetop, then transfer them to a slow cooker. Add the remaining ingredients, cover, and cook on LOW for 4-6 hours or on HIGH for 2-3 hours.
• Instead of the kielbasa, use a different type of sausage. Other varieties of smoked sausage work equally well, or you can use fully-cooked Italian sausage.
• For extra veggies, add fresh spinach at the very end; or add kale or swiss chard when there’s about 10 minutes left so that it the greens have time to wilt in the hot soup.
• I use chicken broth, but vegetable broth will also work well.
• Spicy: add a dash of cayenne or garnish with crushed red pepper flakes.
• Add a splash of apple cider vinegar or fresh lemon juice at the end for a bright, acidic finishing touch.

Tips for the Best Sausage and Bean Soup Recipe

• Smoked sausage and bacon can be quite salty, so I recommend using low-sodium chicken broth and seasoning with herbs. You can always season with salt and pepper to taste at the end.
• Use even more fresh herbs. In addition to thyme, try parsley, rosemary, chives, basil, or oregano.
• Puree or mash some of the beans (and veggies) to thicken the soup. You can use a potato masher or an immersion blender.
• The soup just gets better as it sits in the fridge, so feel free to make a pot in advance and reheat the leftovers the next day. It will have great flavor and texture!

More Bean Soup Recipes to Try

Ham and Bean Soup {Quick and Easy!}

Appalachian Soup Beans {Pinto Bean Soup}

Easy Minestrone Soup {Better than Olive Garden!}

Easy Lentil Soup Recipe

The Best Bean Soup Recipe

Split Pea Soup with Ham

Tuscan White Bean Soup with Sausage and Kale

Easy Taco Soup {Stovetop or Crock Pot}

Sausage and Bean Soup

5 from 2 votes

Prep: 15 minutes minutes

Cook: 1 hour hour

Total: 1 hour hour 15 minutes minutes

Servings 6 – 8 people (about 11-12 cups total)

Calories 195 kcal

A simple, hearty, and nourishing sausage and bean soup is perfect cool-weather comfort food!

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Ingredients

  

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• 3 slices thick-cut bacon, diced (about 4 ounces)
• 1 large yellow onion, diced (about 1 ½ cups)
• 3 large carrots, peeled and diced (about 1 ¼ cups)
• 1 celery stalks, diced (about 1/3 cup)
• ½ green bell pepper, seeded and diced (about ½ cup)
• 2 cloves garlic, minced or pressed
• 2 bay leaves
• 13-16 ounces kielbasa sausage, sliced horizontally into ½-inch thick rounds
• 1 sprig fresh thyme (or about ¼ teaspoon dried thyme leaves)
• 1 (16 ounce) can navy beans, drained and rinsed
• 1 (16 ounce) can kidney beans, drained and rinsed
• 1 (28 ounce) can whole tomatoes, with juice
• 4 cups low-sodium chicken broth
• Kosher salt and ground black pepper, to taste
• Optional garnish: chopped fresh parsley or thyme; grated Parmesan cheese

Instructions

• In a large heavy pot, cook the bacon over medium heat until the fat is rendered and the bacon is crisp, about 7 minutes. Remove the bacon pieces from the pot and drain on paper towels. Reserve the bacon for garnish.
• Add the onions, carrots, celery, bell pepper, garlic, and bay leaves to the bacon fat. Turn the heat to medium-low and cook the vegetables, stirring frequently, for 10 minutes. Add the sausage to the pot and cook until the sausage is lightly browned, about 5 more minutes.
• Stir in the thyme, navy beans, and kidney beans. Add the tomatoes, crushing the tomatoes with your fingers as you add them to the pot. Add the chicken broth, and season with salt and pepper to taste.
• Bring the mixture to a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat to low, cover the pot, and simmer for 30 minutes. Discard the bay leaves and thyme sprig. Season with additional salt and pepper, if necessary.
• Ladle into bowls and top with the reserved bacon, grated cheese, and additional fresh herbs.

Notes

• Crock Pot Instructions: If you prefer the convenience of the slow cooker, you can also prepare this hearty soup in the Crock Pot! Simply sauté the bacon, sausage, and vegetables as instructed on the stovetop, then transfer them to a slow cooker. Add the remaining ingredients, cover, and cook on LOW for 4-6 hours or on HIGH for 2-3 hours.
• Instead of the kielbasa, use a different type of sausage. Other varieties of smoked sausage work equally well, or you can use fully-cooked Italian sausage.
• For extra veggies, add fresh spinach at the very end, or add kale or swiss chard when there’s about 10 minutes left so that it the greens have time to wilt in the hot soup.
• I use chicken broth, but vegetable broth will also work well.
• Spicy: add a dash of cayenne or garnish with crushed red pepper flakes.
• Add a splash of apple cider vinegar or fresh lemon juice at the end for a bright, acidic finishing touch.
• Smoked sausage and bacon can be quite salty, so I recommend using low-sodium chicken broth and seasoning with herbs. You can always season with salt and pepper to taste at the end.
• Use even more fresh herbs. In addition to thyme, try parsley, rosemary, chives, basil, or oregano.
• Puree or mash some of the beans (and veggies) to thicken the soup. You can use a potato masher or an immersion blender.
• The soup just gets better as it sits in the fridge, so feel free to make a pot in advance and reheat the leftovers the next day. It will have great flavor and texture!

Nutrition

Serving: 1cupCalories: 195kcalCarbohydrates: 21gProtein: 13gFat: 7gSaturated Fat: 3gPolyunsaturated Fat: 1gMonounsaturated Fat: 3gTrans Fat: 0.01gCholesterol: 23mgSodium: 820mgPotassium: 547mgFiber: 5gSugar: 5gVitamin A: 2698IUVitamin C: 22mgCalcium: 68mgIron: 5mg

Keyword: bean and sausage soup, bean soup, sausage and bean soup

Course: Dinner

Cuisine: American, Southern

Author: Blair Lonergan

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