Ham Hocks and Beans

"Comfort food at its best. Many people will tell you to soak your beans first (however, I have been told that you should soak dry beans when using a pressure cooker. Please follow manufactorers instructions in this case). I never do. I just wash them and cook them as below. For a really hearty winter meal, serve these with a loaf of hot fresh bread or a pan of corn bread and a pan of old fashioned crisp fried potatoes. These may also be made in the pressure cooker and crockpot."
 
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photo by DianaEatingRichly photo by DianaEatingRichly
photo by DianaEatingRichly
photo by danidgirl photo by danidgirl
photo by Peter J photo by Peter J
photo by Tea Jenny photo by Tea Jenny
photo by DianaEatingRichly photo by DianaEatingRichly
Ready In:
4hrs 10mins
Ingredients:
8
Serves:
8
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ingredients

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directions

  • Wash beans and remove all gravel and such.
  • Place beans, ham hocks, onions and garlic in a large dutch oven filled with water.
  • Add spices.
  • Bring to boil.
  • Simmer on med-low heat for 4 to 5 hours, adding more water as needed.
  • Remove hamhocks when they are tender and falling apart; allow to cool so they can be handled.
  • Remove meat from ham hocks (discarding fat and bones) and return to the soup.

Questions & Replies

  1. Can I make this recipe be made with raw ham hocks?
     
  2. Can I cook beans with left over bone in smoke ham?
     
  3. Do you leave the Dutch oven lid on or off for cooking?
     
  4. How do I print this recipe?
     
  5. How large are the ham hocks you are using? In Australia the ham hocks are not very small and I don't have a pot large enough for all the ingredients stated in this recipe.
     
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Reviews

  1. This was fabulous...just what the doctor ordered on a cold day. I used one huge smoked ham hock and a package of boneless country style pork ribs along with the 15 bean mix. I loved the combinations of the meat. I served this with fresh sliced baguettes. Yum
     
  2. This was absolutely wonderful. I made this with pinto beans only. I followed the directions exactly with the exception of adding some extra chopped ham since I only had 3 ham hocks. The soup was the best I have ever made. Thanks for this one that will be used a lot this winter.
     
  3. So good! I've always had ham hocks and beans made by others, so tonight was the first time I've ever actually made it myself, and thanks to the ease of this recipe it was a huge success! I used pinto beans because that's what I had, but other than that I followed to the recipe to a tee. Side note, my house smelled AMAZING all day!
     
    • Review photo by danidgirl
  4. Make these beans w/shanks instead of hocks; more meaty. Also, use bacon and its grease for xclt flavor...
     
  5. This is an editited review. I did try the soup with 15 bean soup also. I found the soup even better that way. Karen you are right. Great for lunches and fast dinners. I loved the simple preperation and ingredients.
     
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Tweaks

  1. This was the first time I have made Ham Hocks and Beans, ever! This recipe was great but I added a few things to it to meet my family's taste buds. I added just a bit of liquid smoke (about 1/2 tsp) and Worcestershire Sauce (about 1 1/2 Tbsp) then salted and peppered to taste.
     
  2. I use everything the original poster does except I only use 1 tsp oregano. The only additions I use are: 1 can diced tomatoes (may use plain, Italian, jalapeno or Rotel depending on taste), 1 TB chicken bouillon, Cajun seasoning, if desired. The longer you cook it the better the flavors meld together. The next day is even better! You can add more water (and possibly chicken bouillon) to make a delicious thick soup to serve with cornbread. Or you can keep it as beans and serve it with cornbread (always cornbread) and, if desired, rice. Thank you for posting Karen!
     
  3. I added potatoes, carrots and celery in the last hour of cooking and made it more a soup. Also added more pepper. At high altitude it needs at least the 5 hours.
     
  4. Oh no! I am so bad. I used this recipe before and it was GOOD & EASY. Today I just used leftover turkey legs and wings in lieu of the hocks. They we’re already cooked, so I put them in an hour and a half later. WORKS
     
  5. If you like a little spice in your beans, try adding a can of Hot Rotel !
     

RECIPE SUBMITTED BY

<p>Click here to get to chat: http://koach.com/index.php?id=chatlogin&amp;client=web&amp;chan=%23Recipezaar The picture above is of me, but is not a very recent one. It was taken during a very sweet time of my life many years ago. The face is mostly the same, but atlas....everything has aged by about 20 years. I am a little heavier, my hair is not permed anymore and is straight with a slight wave to it, almost to my waist with a touch of grey at my temples. I like the picture because it reflects me and my love of the beautiful Colorado Rocky Mountains near Wellington Lake. I am grandma to Xavier Pryce (aka Zavy) who is 7, his&nbsp;little brother, Rylan James, who is 6 and Baby Wyatt who will be 3 in December.&nbsp; They and their momma are the light of my heart. I enjoy hosting a chat room called #Recipezaar on koach.com, named after the old site.&nbsp; Many people don't know this, but I was Recipezaar's first paid employee when Food.com was Recipezaar and Gay and Troy owned it.&nbsp; I am finding it difficult to spend as much time here as I used to.&nbsp; I am retired now and spend my days watch my grandsons while their momma works.&nbsp; Trying to spend time on the computer with 3 rowdy, hyper little boys in the house can be frustrating and sometimes even impossible unless their momma is home to keep an eye on things while grandma indulges herself on the computer.I wish I was as witty a writer as some of the others here on food.com, but I am afraid that all of my creativity and talent goes into my cooking, but I will give this my best shot anyway. I am a single mother to one 25 year old daughter (Alicia) and grandma to Xavier Pryce, Rylan James and Wyatt William. They all still live with me, so I am pretty much the boy's other parent.&nbsp; Cooking is never a chore for me. I collect cookbooks and am an avid reader of anything but have a particular love of horror novels. Stephen King and Dean Koontz are my favorite authors. Although I have degree in office management and graduated with a 3.8 GPA, I must be Food's worst spelling member so please excuse me if you notice it in my posts and if you notice it in my recipes, then my thanks in advance for editing the recipe to be spelled correctly if you have done so. My screen name is pretty simple and easy to remember, but sometimes people do ask me why it says Karen from Colorado instead of Karen from California. It used to be Karen IN Colorado until I moved here to Southern California to be near my sister, Morti, after our parent's deaths in 1996 and 97 and the loss of my job in Colorado in 2002. 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A friend gave me the recipe; she said you couldn't beat it. There must be something wrong with her, I couldn't even eat it!</p>
 
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