This Garlic White Bean Soup with Kale is so quick and easy to make! With basic pantry ingredients, it’s frugal and also super healthy! Serve with a warm slice of our No Knead Artisan Bread and a fresh Kale Caesar Salad.
Any time the seasons start to change, we crave soup! Actually, I could eat slow cooker soups every day forever.
Thank goodness for garlic white bean soup with kale, because this is literally a comfort food soup for all seasons! You can enjoy it with homemade crusty bread like no knead artisan bread in the cooler months, and/or with a fresh salad in the warmer months.
But wait, meet kale. Your garlic white bean soup’s BFF. Yes, we’re putting kale in this soup, and kale is green like salad, so that’s double the nutrition if you’re having this soup with a salad!
And let me tell you – I’ve eaten this great recipe no less than SEVEN times in the past two months and every single time I am shocked at three things:
How good it tastes, how divine it smells, and how easy it is to make!
Ps…My whole family also loved this soup!
Garlic White Bean Soup with Kale
Not only does this soup make your home smell absolutely amazing, it’s also:
- Healthy. With the protein and fiber in beans, and the nourishing chicken stock, garlic, kale & herbs, this soup is a super healthy, family-friendly recipe!
- Simple. It’s made from simple, nothing fancy, you-totally-have-these-in-your pantry-ingredients: navy beans, bay leaves, chicken stock and garlic.
- Frugal. Not only is this quick & easy soup healthy to eat, it’s also great for our pocketbooks.
- Gluten-free. Excellent for gluten-free folks! If you choose to buy store-bought broth, rather than homemade chicken broth, just be sure to check that it’s free of gluten ingredients.
Seriously – who knew such simple pantry ingredients were capable of such magic?!
Ingredients for Garlic White Bean Soup with Kale
- dry navy beans
- water
- chicken stock
- garlic cloves
- bay leaf
- kale
- olive oil
- butter
- dried oregano
- tomato paste
Note: Some other white bean soup recipes might call for onions, carrots and celery or lemon juice, white wine, and red pepper flakes. I haven’t used them in this recipe, but you can always add more vegetables and give it some spicy kick!
How do you make white bean soup from scratch?
- In a medium stockpot, combine dry beans with 4 cups of water. Bring just to a boil, then turn off the stove and cover. Soak beans overnight.
- Drain and rinse the beans 3 times. Place the beans back into the same stock pot and add stock, garlic, bay leaf. Cook the beans.
- During the last 30 minutes of cooking, combine olive oil, butter, minced garlic, oregano and tomato paste in a small pot.
- Add the flavored butter/garlic and the kale to the beans and stir well. Let the soup continue to cook so the kale can wilt and serve. Salt and pepper to taste.
That’s it!
Is Garlic White Bean Soup with Kale expensive to make?
Not at all. As I mentioned above, these ingredients are super frugal and budget-friendly. Here’s why:
- A pound of Bob’s Red Mill navy beans is just a couple dollars (or even less if you buy in bulk).
- Chicken broth is free when you make it homemade.
- Garlic, bay leaves and kale are very affordable! Especially if you grow your own kale in your garden! In the end, you’re getting a magical bowl that keeps bellies AND your wallet full.
On top of that, navy beans have such a mild taste that even picky eaters can’t turn up their nose.
Can I make garlic white bean soup in the slow cooker?
Yes! I wrote this recipe for the stove top, but you can adapt it for a slow cooker. Follow step 1 as written and pick up with step 3, dumping everything but the kale in the slow cooker and cooking on low for 4-6 hours.
Can I use frozen cooked white beans?
Yes! You can freeze the beans ahead of time! When you make this recipe, you can double up on the beans in the soaking step and freeze half for later. The soup I’m eating as I type this? From the frozen beans. WAY YUM.
Does garlic white bean soup with kale freeze well?
I haven’t done this myself, as I keep eating all the leftovers before I have a chance to, but I’m willing to bet this soup as a whole would freeze well, too.
Can I make white bean soup with cannellini beans?
I have only made this recipe with navy beans, but if you have other white beans on hand like cannellini beans or great northern beans, go ahead and sub them in.
More Healthy Soup Recipes
- Northern Beans and Ham
- Zuppa Toscana Soup
- Easy Minestrone Soup
- Instant Pot White Bean Soup with Sausage and Kale
- Homemade Tortilla Soup Recipe
Freezer Cooking: Dump Dinner Recipes
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Make a pot of garlic white bean soup with kale and your house will smell like Tuscany! Four basic pantry ingredients make this affordable yet super healthy!
- Prep Time: 8 hrs, 5 min
- Cook Time: 3 hrs
- Total Time: 0 hours
- Yield: 3–4 meal servings 1x
- Category: Soup & Salad
- Method: Stovetop
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
- 1 cup dry Bob’s Red Mill navy beans
- 4 cups of water
- 1 quart of chicken stock
- 2 cups water (to thin as necessary)
- 2 garlic cloves, smashed
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 cup kale, chopped
- 2 Tbsp butter
- 1 Tbsp olive oil
- 2 garlic cloves, minced (about 1 Tbsp)
- 1 tsp dried oregano
- 1 Tbsp tomato paste
Instructions
- In a medium stockpot, combine dry beans with 4 cups of water. Bring just to a boil, then turn off the stove and cover. Let the beans soak overnight or until you’re ready to cook dinner.
- For dinner, drain and rinse the beans 3 times. Place the beans back into the same stock pot and add chicken stock, smashed garlic cloves and bay leaf. Turn the heat on a low simmer and cook the beans until they’re al dente, about 1 1/2 – 2 hours. Add additional water 1 cup at a time if necessary.
- During the last 30 minutes of cooking, combine olive oil, butter, minced garlic, oregano and tomato paste in a small pot. Heat over the lowest heat possible so the garlic and tomato paste permeate the oil and butter for 15 minutes.
- Add the flavored butter/garlic and the kale to the beans and stir well. Let the soup continue to cook for about 15 minutes so the kale can wilt. Season generously with salt and pepper and serve.
I just made this recipe today, but a “quick version” since I needed a quick lunch and I had canned white kidney beans in the pantry. It was easy and delicious! My one year old and three year old enjoyed it, too.
Hi Princess,
We’re so glad you enjoyed it!
I wonder if anyone has tried adding protein? Chicken, or a turkey sausage?
I haven’t yet Michelle, but I bet either would be really good!
Could I do the last step a couple of hours before dinner and let the soup simmer? Is there a reason to wait until the end? It’s so much easier to cook dinner at 3 with two toddlers running around and just serve at 6!
Yes! I’ve done and it comes out just fine – just be sure to watch the liquid so it doesn’t evaporate completely on you. Another option is to cook at 3 and finish the soup, then re-warm later on. 🙂
It turned out great! I cooked at 3 then covered it on the stove and reheated for dinner! I am thinking about using the flavored butter/garlic as a substiture for sun dried tomatoes!
Ooh – I bet sun dried tomatoes would be a great addition! I think I have some in the fridge actually… I’ll give that a shot the next time I make this! Thanks for the idea Rebecca! 🙂
Hi Tiffany,
thank you for your reply and advice. After some research I have found out that some special shops do have navy beans, mostly organic version.Wow, that is news to me. 🙂
I do not know if they are any different from usual little ones we use, but I will try them to compare. I am looking forward to the soup and your other recipes and articles!
Have a nice winter time and lots of “hygge” with delicious warm soup 🙂
P.S.: Please overlook my poor English, obviously it is not my native language :D.
No worries on the English Magda, I never would have guessed it wasn’t native! And I’m glad you found the navy beans. Your experiment on testing will be fun, and hopefully will lead to knowing which ones are the most affordable that you can get away with using without affecting the flavor!
Hi there!
Thank you for the inspiration. Have you tried it with vegetable stock? My hubby doesn´t eat meat therefore chicken stock is out of option :(. I will try it anyway, sounds yummy and it has vegetable and good protein in one go :). A good winter meal.
Do you think the soup will work in vegetarian version?
And if you know, can you explaint what are “navy beans”? I live in Europe and I am not sure if it is something special – looks like plain little white beans to me…
Thank you in advance 🙂
Hi Magda! I haven’t tried vegetable stock, but I bet it would be great and yes, would work in a vegetarian option. Navy beans are plain little white beans, but they have a VERY mild flavor, unlike white kidney beans. If you can’t find navy beans in particular, any small white bean would do the trick!
I am making this right now. I cannot wait to eat it! The house does smell divine!
I hope you enjoy it Wendy!