Bean and Bacon Soup

The garden is going in. I am planting alone this year — not alone, Kai and Luna are here, but for the first time without the planning conversations with Danny, without the Sunday call where I would describe what I was planting and he would have an opinion about it. I planted the Cherokee Purples on Saturday. I said "there you go" to each seedling, the way I always say it, which Kai taught me he learned it from Danny before I ever said it in front of anyone. The words are in the family. They go around.

Caleb came to help with the garden Saturday. He is ten months sober from the genuine count — the count from the last real use, before the inpatient, before the outpatient, before the counselor and the sweat lodge and the stomp dance and everything that added up. He has been going to the stomp dances regularly now. He told me while we were turning soil that the dances have given him something he does not have words for in English. He said there was a word in Cherokee that his sponsor had used — the man from Tahlequah who has been sober twelve years — that described it, but Caleb did not know the word well enough yet to use it correctly. He said he was working on his Cherokee. He said he was going to Lily's office next month to see what he could learn.

I said: "Danny would have been glad." He was quiet for a while. He said: "Yeah." He turned more soil and did not say anything else about it and I did not ask him to. Some things you say once and then you let the soil have it. The soil takes everything eventually.

After Caleb left and the seedlings were in the ground, I went inside and made a pot of bean and bacon soup — the kind that asks almost nothing of you except time, which felt exactly right. Beans have always felt like the most honest thing you can grow or cook: they come from the soil, they go back to it, they feed whoever is at the table. I wanted something that would still be warm by the time Kai and Luna were hungry, something that did not need me to think too hard, because I had already spent the thinking I had. This is the recipe I reach for when the day has been full in that particular way.

Prep Time: 15 minutes | Cook Time: 1 hour 30 minutes | Total Time: 1 hour 45 minutes | Servings: 6

Ingredients

1 lb dried navy beans (or Great Northern beans), rinsed and sorted
6 strips thick-cut bacon, chopped
1 medium yellow onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
3 medium carrots, peeled and sliced
2 stalks celery, sliced
1 can (14.5 oz) diced tomatoes, undrained
6 cups chicken broth (or vegetable broth)
2 cups water
1 tsp dried thyme
1/2 tsp smoked paprika
1/2 tsp black pepper
Salt to taste
2 tbsp fresh flat-leaf parsley, chopped (for serving)

Instructions

Soak the beans. Place the dried beans in a large bowl, cover with cold water by at least 2 inches, and soak overnight or for a minimum of 8 hours. Drain and rinse before using. For a quick soak, bring beans and water to a boil for 2 minutes, remove from heat, and let sit covered for 1 hour, then drain.
Cook the bacon. In a large heavy-bottomed pot or Dutch oven over medium heat, cook the chopped bacon until the fat renders and the bacon begins to crisp, about 6–8 minutes. Remove the bacon with a slotted spoon and set aside, leaving the drippings in the pot.
Soften the vegetables. Add the diced onion, carrots, and celery to the bacon drippings. Cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until the onion is translucent and the vegetables have softened slightly, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute more until fragrant.
Build the soup. Add the drained beans, diced tomatoes (with their liquid), chicken broth, water, thyme, smoked paprika, and black pepper. Stir to combine. Return the cooked bacon to the pot.
Simmer low and slow. Bring the soup to a boil over medium-high heat, then reduce the heat to low. Cover and simmer for 1 hour to 1 hour 15 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the beans are fully tender and the broth has thickened slightly. Add more water or broth if the soup thickens more than you like.
Adjust and finish. Taste and adjust salt as needed. For a creamier texture, use the back of a spoon or a potato masher to crush some of the beans against the side of the pot, then stir to incorporate. This is optional but gives the broth a heartier body.
Serve. Ladle into bowls and top with fresh parsley. Good with a thick slice of bread or cornbread alongside.

Nutrition (per serving)

Bean and Bacon Soup — What We Plant Together, What We Keep