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Csülkös Bableves (Creamy Ham and Bean Soup)
Updated April 19, 2024
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- Total Time
- 2 hours 35 minutes, plus overnight soaking
- Prep Time
- 10 minutes, plus overnight soaking
- Cook Time
- 2 hours 25 minutes
- Rating
- Notes
- Read community notes
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Ingredients
- 4tablespoons olive oil (or canola oil)
- 2strips bacon, chopped (optional)
- 1yellow onion, finely chopped
- 1large celery stalk, finely chopped
- 4medium carrots, peeled and thinly sliced
- 5garlic cloves, finely chopped
- 1pound dried pinto beans or cranberry beans, soaked overnight and drained (see Tip)
- 1large smoked ham hock (about 1 pound), at room temperature
- 2dried bay leaves
- ¼ cup all-purpose flour
- Salt and black pepper
- 2teaspoons sweet Hungarian paprika, plus more for garnish
- 1teaspoon smoked paprika, plus more for garnish
- ½ cup sour cream, plus more for serving
- Roughly chopped fresh parsley, for serving
Preparation
- Step 1
Heat 2 tablespoons of the olive oil in a 6-quart stock pot or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the bacon, if using, and cook to render the fat and create a smoky flavor, about 2 minutes. Add the onion, celery and carrot. Cook, stirring occasionally, until soft and golden, 8 to 10 minutes, adding the garlic halfway through.
- Step 2
Add the drained beans, ham hock, bay leaves, 12 cups water and 1 teaspoon salt; bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium; cook, partially covered, until beans are very tender, about 2 hours, skimming away any foam off the top with a shallow ladle.
- Step 3
Transfer the ham hock to a cutting board and cool slightly; discard bones and excess skin. Chop or shred the meat and return to the soup. (Ham hock will yield very little pork; it’s mostly there to flavor the soup.)
- Step 4
Heat the remaining 2 tablespoons oil in a 2-quart saucepan over medium. Whisk in flour to create a paste; cook, stirring, to toast the flour and brown slightly, 2 minutes. Whisk in sweet and smoked paprikas and remaining 1 teaspoon salt. Whisk in sour cream and 2 tablespoons water to make a loose paste. Ladle a small amount of bean cooking liquid (⅓ to ½ cup) into the sour cream mixture, whisking until smooth.
- Step 5
Push the beans and pork to the side and whisk the sour-cream mixture into the soup until no lumps remain.
- Step 6
Bring the soup back to a boil and stir until the sour cream mixture is dissolved and the soup slightly thickened, about 5 minutes. Taste and add more salt if you’d like. This is best enjoyed when the beans hold their shape, so don’t stir too much. Ladle the soup into serving bowls; sprinkle with sweet or smoked paprika, parsley and a dollop of sour cream if desired. Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days, or in the freezer for up to 3 weeks.
- If you’re short on time, rinse the beans and set the dry beans in a large bowl. Add enough boiling water to cover (from a pot or kettle) and season the water generously with salt. Set aside to soak for 30 minutes, adding more (cold or warm tap) water to keep the beans covered at all times. (Drain before using.)
- If you can’t find a smoked ham hock where you live, use 1 ½ pounds pork shank (osso bucco), at room temperature, instead, seasoning well before use. This will yield a bit more meat.
Private Notes
Cooking Notes
Wow, it's so exciting to see a Hungarian recipe featured in the New York Times! Thank you Sarah Copeland for sharing this recipe – it takes me right back to Hungary to my own grandmother's kitchen! I can’t wait to try making it at home! Köszönöm
The recipe was extremely delicious, and whole family loved it, the ingredients were very tasty. Thank you for showing us different cultural foods and cultural differences. Thank you Sarah!
Hi there. There's no wine in Hungarian bean soups. The bulk of the flavor comes from smoked meat (ham or ham hock, or other smoked pork like bacon), and lovely aromatics. Hopefully earthy and satisfying on a cold or wet spring day!
A lovely, savory and soup. To simplify; I used canned Great Northern Beans with liquid (arguably better), rough chopped ham leftover from a bone-in roast (use a little of the ham fat too), and 4 slices hickory smoke bacon. My family scraped the pot and requested I make it again it again. And I shall.
This was a delicious soup! Made it exactly as written and used dried pintos. We had saved a ham bone from a prior meal and it was perfect. This makes plenty so we have extra to freeze. Definitely a recipe we will make again!
Halved the recipe as I always do, for two (there are leftovers). Used white [Great Northern] beans, because that's the right bean for a ham-hock, IMO. They cooked in about 1:40 min. This is what my mother used to call a "what hast thou in the house" meal. Very delicious.
So happy you enjoyed it! Yes, a very resourceful dish. I just made it again today using country pork-style ribs instead of ham hock (seasoning and searing first), as that's what I had in the fridge this week. Delicious! And northern beans or almost any preferred bean will work. Hungarians also often use giant or broad beans.
Just prepared the soup and I am curious as how you reccomend thinning.
If this is thicker than you'd like (the photo here is slightly thicker than my personal preference), feel free to thin with chicken stock or water, making sure to season sufficiently if you're choosing water. If you prepare it again, you could reduce the amount of flour in the roux to 2 tablespoons.
This is a lovely soup! If you are looking for a gluten free option, I prefer to skip the flour paste and purée some of the beans and broth to thicken the soup. Serve with the sour cream on the side, to be dolloped on top of individual bowls. So good!
Great point, this is a wonderful idea! I just made this again for lunch today for a gluten-free family and it didn't thicken by roux or add sour cream. I also love it when it's brothy and light (which is more traditional in certain parts of Hungary), especially as we approach summer.
If you’re using the “shortcut beans soaking” method, do you reduce the amount of water added to the soup mixture?
No, it's not needed! You quick-soak the beans, then drain them before adding to the soup, with the recommended amount of water.
So a nice hearty tasty dish but I expected more. Might be better with a different wine like Marsala or a bolder sauce.
Hi there. There's no wine in Hungarian bean soups. The bulk of the flavor comes from smoked meat (ham or ham hock, or other smoked pork like bacon), and lovely aromatics. Hopefully earthy and satisfying on a cold or wet spring day!
So a nice hearty tasty dish but I expected more. Might be better with a different wine like Marsala or a bolder sauce.
The recipe was extremely delicious, and whole family loved it, the ingredients were very tasty. Thank you for showing us different cultural foods and cultural differences. Thank you Sarah!
I'm so thrilled everyone enjoyed it!
Wow, it's so exciting to see a Hungarian recipe featured in the New York Times! Thank you Sarah Copeland for sharing this recipe – it takes me right back to Hungary to my own grandmother's kitchen! I can’t wait to try making it at home! Köszönöm
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