Instant Pot Navy Bean and Smoked Sausage Soup

From the roundup: 22 Instant Pot Soup Recipes for Easy Weeknight Dinners

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This Instant Pot navy bean and smoked sausage soup is the one I make when it is a Tuesday, I forgot to thaw anything, and I still want dinner to feel like I tried. Dried beans, smoked sausage, and a few vegetables go in the pot together, and about 45 minutes later the broth is thick and the beans are genuinely creamy, not chalky.

The active work is maybe 15 minutes: slice the sausage, chop an onion and some celery, rinse the beans. After that the Instant Pot does everything. I brown the sausage right in the pot first because that step builds the kind of flavor you would normally get from a three-hour stovetop simmer, and it only adds about five minutes.

The first time I made this I skipped the browning step because I was in a hurry, and the soup tasted flat. Do not skip it. Everything else is pretty forgiving.

Why you will love this

• No soaking: dried navy beans go in completely dry and come out tender under pressure.
• One pot from start to finish, including browning the sausage, so fewer dishes.
• The broth gets rich and slightly smoky without any specialty ingredients.
• Leftovers are even better the next day once the beans have had time to soak up more broth.
• It feeds a crowd on a budget: dried beans and smoked sausage are two of the cheapest things at the grocery store.

Tips for success

• Brown the sausage slices in a single layer and let them sit for a full minute before stirring. That fond on the bottom of the pot is what flavors the broth.
• Rinse and sort the dried navy beans before they go in. Dried beans occasionally have small stones or shriveled ones mixed in, and it only takes a second to catch them.
• The beans will thicken as the soup cools. If it looks too thick when you open the lid, stir in a half cup of broth and let it sit for two minutes before serving.
• Do not cut the pressure cook time short hoping the beans are done early. Undercooked navy beans have a grainy, almost gritty texture that does not improve with stirring. Let the full time run.

If the soup turns out too thick

• Stir in warm broth a quarter cup at a time until it loosens to the consistency you want.
• Mashing a small scoop of beans against the side of the pot and stirring them back in is a good way to thicken a batch that seems too thin.
• The soup will always be thicker after it sits in the fridge overnight. Plan for that when reheating leftovers.

Substitutions

Any fully cooked smoked sausage works here: kielbasa, andouille, or turkey smoked sausage if you want something lighter. Andouille will make the soup noticeably spicier, which my older kids like and my youngest absolutely does not, so I usually split the difference and use half andouille, half regular smoked sausage. Great Northern beans can replace navy beans with the same cook time. Ham stock in place of chicken broth gives the soup an old-fashioned ham-and-bean flavor if you have it on hand.

For more heat, add a pinch of red pepper flakes with the smoked paprika. To keep it vegetarian, use vegetable broth and swap in a plant-based smoked sausage, though the broth will be a little lighter in color and flavor.

Make-ahead and storage

You can chop the vegetables up to two days ahead and keep them in a sealed container in the fridge. The soup itself reheats well, so making a full batch the night before a busy day is a practical move. Store leftovers in the fridge for up to four days. The beans will keep absorbing liquid as they sit, so stir in a splash of broth when reheating to bring it back to the right consistency.

This soup freezes well for up to three months. Let it cool completely, then freeze in portions. Thaw overnight in the fridge and reheat on the stovetop over medium-low, adding broth as needed since the beans will have absorbed most of the liquid.

Brittany Stage

Instant Pot Navy Bean and Smoked Sausage Soup

Dried navy beans, sliced smoked sausage, and pantry vegetables pressure cook until creamy and comforting, no overnight soak required.

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Prep Time 15 minutes mins

Cook Time 45 minutes mins

Total Time 1 hour hr

Servings: 6 servings

Course: Soup

Cuisine: American

Calories: 310

Ingredients Equipment Method Notes

Ingredients

  

• 1 lb dried navy beans rinsed and picked over
• 14 oz smoked sausage kielbasa or andouille, sliced into 1/2-inch rounds
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 medium yellow onion diced
• 2 medium carrots peeled and diced
• 2 stalks celery diced
• 4 cloves garlic minced
• 1 tsp smoked paprika
• 1 tsp dried thyme
• 1 large bay leaf
• 6 cups low-sodium chicken broth or vegetable broth, plus more if needed
• 1 tsp kosher salt plus more to taste
• 1/2 tsp black pepper plus more to taste
• 2 tbsp fresh flat-leaf parsley chopped, for serving

Equipment

• Instant Pot or electric pressure cooker
• wooden spoon
• ladle
• cutting board
• chef knife

Method

 

1. Set the Instant Pot to Saute on Normal. Add the olive oil. When the oil is hot, add the sliced smoked sausage and cook for 3 to 4 minutes, stirring once or twice, until lightly browned. Transfer the sausage to a plate, leaving the drippings in the pot.
2. Add the onion, carrots, and celery to the pot. Cook for about 4 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the onion softens. Stir in the garlic, smoked paprika, and thyme and cook for 30 seconds until fragrant.
3. Pour in about 1/2 cup of the broth and scrape up any browned bits stuck to the bottom with a wooden spoon. This helps prevent a burn notice during pressure cooking.
4. Add the rinsed navy beans, remaining broth, bay leaf, salt, and pepper. Stir to combine. Return the browned sausage to the pot and nestle it into the liquid. Press Cancel to exit Saute.
5. Lock the lid and set the valve to Sealing. Pressure cook on High for 35 minutes. When the timer ends, let the pressure release naturally for 15 minutes, then carefully switch the valve to Venting to release any remaining steam.
6. Open the lid and discard the bay leaf. Taste the broth and adjust salt and pepper. If the soup is thicker than you like, stir in a splash of warm broth. Ladle into bowls and finish with chopped parsley. Serve with crusty bread.

Notes

No soaking is needed for navy beans in the Instant Pot, but rinse them well. Add an extra cup of broth if your beans run especially dry. Leftovers keep 3 to 4 days in the fridge and thicken as they sit, thin with broth when reheating.

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