| Level: | Intermediate |
| Total: | 10 hr 10 min |
| Active: | 4 min |
| Yield: | 6 servings |
Ingredients
- 1 (1-pound) bag 16 Bean Soup Mix
- 2 tablespoons good olive oil, plus extra for serving
- 6 ounces pancetta, 1/4-inch-diced
- 1 large onion, chopped
- 1 tablespoon minced garlic (3 cloves)
- 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
- 1 (28-ounce) can crushed tomatoes
- 1 cup dry red wine
- 4 to 6 cups good chicken stock, preferably homemade
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 1 cup miniature pasta, such as ditalini or tubettini
- 1/2 cup freshly grated Italian Parmesan cheese, plus extra for serving
- 1 tablespoon good red wine vinegar
- Julienned fresh basil leaves, for serving
Instructions
- The day before you plan to make the soup, place the bean mix in a large bowl, add cold water to cover by 2 inches, and refrigerate overnight. The next day, drain the beans, rinse under cold running water, and drain again. Place the beans in a large pot with 8 cups of cold water. Bring to a boil, lower the heat, and simmer for 1 hour. Stir occasionally and skim off any foam that rises to the top. The beans should be very tender and the skin will peel away when you blow on a bean.
- Meanwhile, heat the oil in a medium (10-inch) stockpot or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the pancetta and onion and saute over medium to medium-high heat for 12 to 18 minutes, until browned. Add the garlic and red pepper flakes and saute for one minute. Add the tomatoes, wine, 4 cups of the chicken stock, 1 tablespoon salt, and 1 teaspoon black pepper and turn off the heat.
- Drain the beans and add two-thirds of them to the soup. Pass the remaining beans through a food mill, discarding the skins. Stir the bean puree and the pasta into the soup, bring to a boil, lower the heat, and simmer for 20 to 30 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the pasta is tender. Add up to 2 more cups chicken stock if the soup is too thick. Stir in the Parmesan and the vinegar. Ladle the soup into large shallow bowls and add a swirl of olive oil, a sprinkle of Parmesan, and some basil. Serve hot with extra Parmesan on the side.
Nutrition Facts
| Serving Size | 1 of 6 servings |
| Calories | 714 |
| Total Fat | 26 g |
| Saturated Fat | 8 g |
| Carbohydrates | 82 g |
| Dietary Fiber | 6 g |
| Sugar | 12 g |
| Protein | 30 g |
| Cholesterol | 89 mg |
| Sodium | 3285 mg |
Reviews
Just finished eating the first bowl . OMG.
I never leave reviews but am so glad I made the soup exactly as the recipe called for and it is the best soup I’ve ever made. I don’t understand the reviews that had beans that were hard or cooked the pasta separately.
Why make it more work and Ina explained why you cook it in the soup.
Ina I’m making another pot in three days for company since this will be gone during the Super Bowl!!!
I never leave reviews but am so glad I made the soup exactly as the recipe called for and it is the best soup I’ve ever made. I don’t understand the reviews that had beans that were hard or cooked the pasta separately.
Why make it more work and Ina explained why you cook it in the soup.
Ina I’m making another pot in three days for company since this will be gone during the Super Bowl!!!
After all the trouble of finding the beans this did not ” blow my socks off”. It was mediocre and lacking in flavor. Such a high sodium count. There has to be better recipes than this.
this recipe was good & I’ll probably make again, but it wasn’t “AMAZING,” as one of the reviewers on the other entry for this soup said.
I used extra pancetta. and I cooked my ditalini separately.
I used extra pancetta. and I cooked my ditalini separately.
Delicious! My husband loved it too. I did cook the pasta separately. I knew there would be leftovers and I didn’t want the pasta to get mushy.
Incredible recipe! My husband rated it a 10 ++
The 16 bean mix was not good. Maybe I got an old bag? It took 3 hours to get them soft and the black beans turned everything gray and the rest were ragged. I did managed to get some puree out of them but I threw out the rest and used canned white northern and butterbeans. Great flavor!
I love all things Ina – and I try to follow her recipes straight away. So when it came time to add the pasta, I assumed the ratio of liquid would work with the amount of pasta requested. I knew I should have prepared them separately (and for 2-3 minutes less cook time than the package states) before adding to the pot. Turns out I was right, I ended up having to add additional stock so the soup had enough liquid to be called a soup rather than a stew. Next time I know for sure to do this.
So flavorful and delicious!
This recipe is so hearty and delicious. It has easy prep. With some crusty bread and a salad, you could serve this for a dinner party. I don’t have a food mill, but my immersion blender worked fine. Thank you, Ina!
In the video, as Ina is pouring in the crushed tomatoes, she says she likes using San Marzano, but what she used is NOT from San Marzano. That brand of tomatoes is from California. Plus, I can’t find San Marzano crushed tomatoes anywhere. I can find any other kind of tomato from San Marzano, but not crushed. I am going to use what she did use & hope it comes out ok, as San Marzano are really the best. I’m giving it a 5 star rating only because I’ve never lost out on any Ina recipe. But I’m making it tomorrow