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green dutch oven filled with white bean soup with carrots, ladle dug in.
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Really Good White Bean Soup

Prep Time20 minutes
Cook Time1 hour 25 minutes
Soaking Time8 hours
Total Time1 hour 45 minutes
Servings: 6
Calories: 380kcal
Author: Nisha Vora

Ingredients

For Soaking

  • 1 pound (454g) dried white beans, such as cannellini or great northern (see Note 1)
  • 1 ½ tablespoons Diamond Crystal kosher salt (see Note 2)
  • 2 teaspoons baking soda

For Cooking

  • 4 ½ tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
  • 1 large yellow onion, diced (~ 2 cups)
  • 3 medium carrots, diced (1 to 1 ½ cup)
  • 3 celery ribs, diced (~ 1 cup)
  • Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
  • ½ to 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes (1 tsp for spicy)
  • 6 to 7 cups (1.5 to 1.7 L) filtered water (see Note 3)
  • 1 large or 2 small rosemary sprigs (or 8 to 10 thyme sprigs)
  • 1 large or 2 small sage sprigs
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 2 teaspoons Better than Bouillon “no chicken” base (see Note 4)
  • 2 medium heads of garlic
  • 1 tablespoon white miso

For Serving

  • 1 handful of flat-leaf parsley chopped (optional)
  • Crusty bread to serve 4 to 8

Instructions

  • Soak the beans: Place dried beans in a large bowl and cover with cold water (~ 8 cups/2 L). Add the salt and baking soda. Cover and soak for 8 to 12 hours, or overnight. Drain and rinse well. See Note 5 for a quick soaking.
  • When ready to cook, arrange a rack in the middle of the oven and preheat to 350ºF (175ºC).
  • In a Dutch oven or large ovenproof soup pot, heat 1 ½ tablespoons olive oil over medium. Once hot, add the onions, carrots, and celery with a big pinch of salt. Cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 10 minutes. Add the red pepper flakes, if using, and stir frequently for 30 seconds.
  • Pour in 6 cups (1.5 L) water, the drained beans, ½ tsp kosher salt, and lots of pepper (if not using Better than Bouillon, use 1 tsp kosher salt). Partially cover and bring to a boil.
  • Meanwhile, make the Bouquet Garni: using kitchen twine, tie together the rosemary and sage sprigs plus bay leaves.
  • Once it comes to boil, add the Better than Bouillon and stir thoroughly to dissolve. Add the bouquet garni and submerge in the liquid.
    Boil uncovered for 10 minutes.
  • Meanwhile, peel the papery outer skins from the garlic but leave the heads intact. Slice off ~ ¼ inch (0.5 cm) from the top of each head to expose the cloves, as if roasting whole garlic.
  • Once the beans have boiled for 10 minutes, turn off the heat. Add in the garlic heads. Pour a glug of olive oil (~ 2 tablespoons) on top of the garlic and beans. Cover the pan.
  • Bake in the oven until the beans are tender, 60 to 75 minutes (for small beans, like navy beans, check around 45 minutes; see Note 6).
  • Pick out the bouquet garni (discard) and garlic heads (keep these). Scoop a ladle of hot broth into a glass. Add the miso to the hot broth; whisk well until miso is dissolved. Pour miso broth into the soup and stir well.
  • If the soup is too thick for your liking, add ½ to 1 cup (120 to 240 mL) of freshly boiled water.
  • Once cool enough to touch, squeeze garlic cloves out of their skins and into the soup, stirring well. Drizzle in 1 tablespoon of good-quality olive oil and season with salt and pepper to taste. Taste, adding more olive oil for richness.
  • Once cooled, store the soup in a storage container for up to 5 days in the fridge, or freeze for up to 6 months.

Video

Notes

  1. This soup is best with dried beans cooked in the oven, but if using canned beans or for Instant Pot instructions, check out the FAQ section.
  2. If using Morton’s kosher salt or sea salt, use 2 ¾ teaspoons. If using table salt, 2 ¼ teaspoons.
  3. If you prefer a thick consistency almost like a stew, use 6 cups (1.5 L) water. If you like a thinner texture, use 7 cups (1.7 L) water. I typically start with 6 cups or 6 ½ cups, then add boiled water at the end as needed. If using 7 cups, you may want to use 1 TBSP Better than Bouillon.
  4. The Better than Bouillon no-chicken base adds incredible savory flavor to this soup, lending it a grown-up chicken noodle soup flavor. If using 7 cups (1.7 L) water, you may want to add 2 ½ teaspoons or 1 tablespoon.
  5. To quick soak beans, follow the instructions here (it will take ~1 hour). 
  6. If your beans are not that fresh, they will take longer to soften and may never get truly creamy so I recommend using beans you’ve purchased not in the distant past.