Ham Hock Bean Soup Cornbread (Printable)

Smoky ham hock and beans simmered slowly, served with tender golden cornbread for a cozy meal.

# What You'll Need:

→ Ham Hock and Bean Soup

01 - 1 large smoked ham hock, approximately 1 pound
02 - 1 pound dried white beans, soaked overnight and drained
03 - 8 cups low-sodium chicken or vegetable broth
04 - 1 large yellow onion, diced
05 - 2 carrots, peeled and diced
06 - 2 celery stalks, diced
07 - 3 garlic cloves, minced
08 - 2 bay leaves
09 - 1 teaspoon dried thyme
10 - 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
11 - 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
12 - Salt to taste
13 - 2 tablespoons olive oil
14 - 2 tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped

→ Cornbread

15 - 1 cup yellow cornmeal
16 - 1 cup all-purpose flour
17 - 1/4 cup granulated sugar
18 - 1 tablespoon baking powder
19 - 1/2 teaspoon salt
20 - 1 cup whole milk
21 - 2 large eggs
22 - 1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted and slightly cooled

# How-To Steps:

01 - In a large Dutch oven or soup pot, heat olive oil over medium heat. Add diced onion, carrots, and celery; sauté for 5 minutes until vegetables are softened. Add minced garlic and sauté for 1 additional minute.
02 - Add soaked beans, ham hock, bay leaves, thyme, black pepper, and smoked paprika to the pot. Pour in broth and bring to a boil.
03 - Reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer for 2 hours, stirring occasionally, until beans are tender and ham hock begins to fall apart.
04 - Remove ham hock from pot. Shred meat, discard skin and bone, and return meat to soup. Remove bay leaves. Taste and season with salt as needed. Simmer uncovered 10-15 minutes to thicken if desired. Stir in fresh parsley just before serving.
05 - Preheat oven to 400°F. Grease an 8-inch square baking dish. In a large bowl, whisk together cornmeal, flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. In a separate bowl, whisk milk, eggs, and melted butter together. Pour wet ingredients into dry mixture, stirring until just combined without overmixing.
06 - Pour batter into prepared baking dish. Bake 20-25 minutes, until golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool slightly before slicing.
07 - Ladle hot soup into bowls and serve with warm cornbread on the side.

# Expert Suggestions:

01 -
  • The ham hock does all the heavy lifting—your kitchen fills with incredible flavor while you barely lift a finger.
  • Beans become silky and buttery rather than mealy, because they've had time to soak up all that smoky depth.
  • Cornbread bakes while the soup simmers, so timing works out perfectly for a complete meal with minimal stress.
02 -
  • Don't skip soaking the beans overnight—it genuinely cuts cooking time and prevents the skins from splitting when the heat gets high.
  • The ham hock needs time to fall apart, so resist the urge to rush the simmer or crank the heat; low and slow is the only way this works.
  • Overmixing cornbread batter is the enemy, so stop stirring the moment you don't see dry flour anymore, even if there are tiny lumps.
03 -
  • If you forget to soak beans overnight, use the quick-soak method: bring them to a boil for 2 minutes, remove from heat, cover, and let sit for 1 hour before draining and cooking as normal.
  • Adding a dash of liquid smoke in the last 5 minutes of cooking deepens the flavor without making it taste artificial, especially if your ham hock isn't particularly smoky.
  • Make double the cornbread batter and freeze extra portions unbaked in foil—they'll bake from frozen in about 30 to 35 minutes if you ever want cornbread without planning ahead.
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