Potato, Green Bean & Bacon Soup
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Flavorful creamy broth, with fresh green beans, potatoes and bacon, make this a great soup year round, but especially when you have those fresh garden green beans!
Potato, Green Bean & Bacon Soup — An Update! After posting this recipe in July of 2015, it went bonkers!! It’s been so well received, and pinned so many times!! I have had many readers write to me telling me just how much they love it, too.
“Yes! This was delicious! Thank you for sharing -its a keeper =)” – Kelly P.
Of course, when you can pick the beans right from your garden, this soup is extra special, but living in the midwest, that isn’t the case. These days, though, fresh green beans in the produce section a the grocery have been really good. So, we eat this soup year round. That makes my youngest son very happy!! Today when I updated this post, I also added a recipe video, so you could see how it’s done!
^LOVE IT? Pin it!^
Begin original post: Some of you may be thinking, “she is sharing a soup recipe, in July? In this heat?” We eat soup year round in our house. It’s one of our most favorite meals. The best part of this particular recipe is making it when the green beans are fresh from the garden, or your local farmer’s market.
This soup recipe is from my Mother-in-law, and was my husband’s favorite growing up. It was one, that I have never made in our 24 years of marriage. I guess the reason being, it took me until the last few years to really love fresh green beans. Weird, right? As a kid, I told my mom I didn’t like them because they were “fuzzy.” I am head over heels in love with them now, though, and am sorry I missed out on so many years of such a good thing!
Recipe Favorites with Fresh Green Beans:
- Roasted Salmon Sheet Pan Dinner with Potatoes & Green Beans
- Soy Balsamic Glazed Green Beans
- Green Beans with Tomato and Bacon
- Green Bean Salad with Quinoa
- Southern Style Green Beans with Tomatoes and Bacon
- Italian Chicken Sheet Pan Dinner with Green Beans
This recipe isn’t really a “recipe” when it gets told by my Mother-in-law, or my sister-in-law. “Throw this in, throw that in, sometimes I add this, sometimes I use that.” So, me making this for the first time, I measured while I cooked, and when he walked in the door, I waved him over to the stove, lifted the lid and said “I finally made your favorite soup!” He tasted it and said it was perfect!
#Winning
Ingredients in this Potato, Green Bean and Bacon Soup:
- green beans, onion and potatoes
- bacon
- heavy cream, milk
- salt & pepper
After you cook your bacon in your Dutch oven, remove it, and most of the grease, leaving some in the bottom of the pan. Add in onions and sauté them until translucent. While you are cooking your bacon and the onions, steam your green beans and your potatoes. Add bacon and green beans back into the pot.
Mash your potatoes, and add them back in. Add in cream and milk and Salt & Pepper to taste. Simmer until heated through.
You can lighten this soup up by using half & half or all milk, but I made it full on fat because I had heavy cream in the fridge to use. It was rich, creamy and so delicious!
Enjoy!! Until next time, 
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Potato, Green Bean & Bacon Soup
Ingredients
- 4 cups fresh green beans ends snipped and cut into small pieces
- 1 pound bacon cut into small pieces
- 1 medium onion chopped
- 4 medium sized potatoes peeled and 1/8'd
- 1 pint heavy cream
- 2 cups 2% milk
- Salt & Pepper to taste
Instructions
- Peel and cut potatoes into 1/8s. Boil either on your stove or in the microwave until tender. Drain water and slightly mash. Set aside.
- Steam green beans until slightly tender. Set aside.
- n your dutch oven, cook bacon pieces until slightly crispy, remove bacon with a slotted spoon, drain excess fat, but don't wipe the bottom clean.
- Add onion to dutch oven and sauté in drippings until soft.
- Add bacon back in, add green beans, mashed potatoes, and cover with milk and cream.
- Warm for a bit until heated through, taking care not to boil.
- Salt & Pepper to taste.
Notes
Nutrition
Haha it’s so funny how our tastes change over time right? For me it was mushrooms – couldn’t stand them as a kid, I thought they were ‘icky’ – now I can’t get enough! This soup sounds so delicious espeeeecially with the bacon and beans. Easy to see why it’s such a favourite!
I can’t say I have ever seen a green bean soup and since I love green beans this is a must try.
It certainly is! 🙂
My Lithuanian aunt made this and I never knew how yo make it. Wow! In my 69th year, you showed me how! Thank you for gring9ng back a much loved fish from my childhood!
Was looking for a recipe to use up Christmas leftovers. I put everything in the freezer but I knew I wanted to try this.
Had leftover mashed potatoes, green beans and stuffing. It turned out great!
I am so happy you liked it! 🙂
Definitely the best potato soup ever! I substituted one sweet potato and added golden beets: Deliciousness!
That sounds great!! Happy you like it!!
I love my veggies and do grow them myself nowadays. So I end up giving away to everyone in my street ,till my hubby told me about the green bean soup his late dad used to make them . He was a real German and loved his food ! Thank you for sharing the recipe I’m going to make it soon
I hope you both love it!!
Just made this soup today. It was absolutely delicious & perfect during a blizzard. I didn’t have heavy cream so I substituted sour cream & added a bit of nutmeg. What a rich, comforting soup!
That sounds like a fantastic twist!! I will try the sour cream next time for sure!
I live on a boat and cannot always get fresh green beans. Can I substitute canned green beans?
I feel like using canned would change it considerably. If you can’t find fresh, I think your best option would be to use frozen. Are you able to get those?
My friend gave me a leftover salad made of cooked red skin potatoes, green beans and undercooked bacon with a lemon vinaigrette dressing. All the parts were interesting to me but the cold combination not so much. I found your recipe so I deconstructed the salad, added some potatoes from my pantry that needed to be used, steamed some more fresh green beans that the same friend gave me, finished off the bacon and lunch is ready! Guess I can see why my friends call me the “leftover lady”! Thanks so much!
How ingenious of you!! That does sound like an interesting salad …lol!! I hope the soup was way more satisfying! 😉
This looks like the soup my mom made us growing up. I remember it being buttery. I’d it ok to add butter. Would it make a difference either way?
It sure wouldn’t hurt it!! 🙂
I tried this recipe and loved it. Thank you. However, I thought you may like to try what I did when I am trying to keep off potatoes, bread and rice. I substituted cauliflower mashed up for the potato. Really good too!
Subbing cauliflower is always a great idea! I’ll have to try that!
Added a little sour cream and it made the soup!! Delicious. Thank you for the recipe!
Sounds yummy!!
My mom always made green (and yellow) bean soup when they were plentiful, or from ones she had frozen. Carrots would also be in it. One of my all time favorite soups!
love it!
OH MY GOSH. I am 68 years old and totally forgot about my mother making this soup. I’m drooling thinking about it. Only difference was she kept the potatoes in chunks. And she would give her own bowl a dash of vinegar. Not sure why I forgot this recipe from the past. Can’t wait to make it.
I love when recipes conjure up good memories!! Enjoy!!🩷
What kind of onion yellow or white ??
I typically buy yellow. You can use whatever you like!
Made this soup, and my wife and I LOVED it! It went immediately to my “Best Of” recipe book!
It’s a family favorite for sure! I am so happy that you both enjoyed it!
Very tasty! My family loved it. I subbed for DF cream and milk and it was still great!
So happy to hear that!! This is a near and dear to my heart recipe, and I love that you made it dairy free!