Ham, potato, and beer cheese soup

[Mara]

Made this last night as we had a ton of leftover ham and had gotten tired of sandwiches. It was delicious, if I may say so.

 

3 cups cubed ham (I cut the rind off, but you don't have to)

3 cups cubed potatoes (used Yukon Golds and left the skin on)

6 cups stock (I made ham stock with the leftover ham bone, but most recipes I've seen use chicken)

2 medium onions, diced

6 ribs celery, diced

3 chipotle peppers, finely chopped (I bought a can and there were more than 3 peppers, but I didn't want to make it too hot, so I used 3 of the peppers plus all of the adobo sauce in the can)

Approximately 3 tbsp cumin (or to taste)

About 3 tsp black pepper, or to taste

3 cloves garlic, minced

 

2 12-ounce bottles of good lager (I used Yuengling)

 

*I did not add salt, as ham and ham stock already has quite a bit. Most recipes do call for adding salt, though

 

Heat stock, onions, peppers, and celery, add spices. Simmer until onion & celery are soft. Add beer and continue to simmer.

 

For the cheese part:

 

2/3 cup flour

2/3 cup butter

1 quart milk

12 ounces grated sharp cheddar

8 ounces grated swiss

about 2-3 tbsp dry mustard

2 tbsp dijon mustard

 

Melt butter and add flour, stirring until mixture is a light golden brown. Add milk and whisk until mixture thickens. Remove from heat and add cheese and mustard powder/dijon.

 

Stir stock mixture into cheese mixture. Add ham and potatoes. Mix thoroughly so everything is nicely incorporated and simmer until potatoes are cooked, about 15 minutes. You will need to stir fairly often as the potatoes really want to sink to the bottom and stick.

 

Obviously you can continue to add seasonings to taste. The recipes I cadged from all called for pepper sauce, but I thought the chipotles took care of the heat factor just fine. You can always individually season your own portion with more hot sauce if you want!

 

This does make a ton, but I was cooking for myself and my husband plus wanted to have a pot to take to my mom and grandmother and use up all of the ham I had left. I used a gigantic stock pot.

 

This was a hit with everyone and will definitely be a repeat.

[Babycat]

Sounds lovely, Mara! :)

[CygnusGal]

It does sound good. The mustard sounds like a nice flavour in this dish.

 

Beer is so versatile! Yummy, too. :)

Edited February 12, 2013 by CygnusGal

[Thunder Bay Rush]

Mara, I made your soup today... REALLY good! I used Molson Canadian beer (of course, eh).

 

I couldn't find chipotle peppers in our local store, so I just used some smokey style (not too hot) hot sauce and it worked fine. And, all the "cheeseheads" will be happy to know that the cheddar cheese I used came from good ol' Wisconsin, USA!

 

I cut the recipe in half and it still made pretty big pot full o' soup!

 

Thank you!

[Mara]

Mara, I made your soup today... REALLY good! I used Molson Canadian beer (of course, eh).

 

I couldn't find chipotle peppers in our local store, so I just used some smokey style (not too hot) hot sauce and it worked fine. And, all the "cheeseheads" will be happy to know that the cheddar cheese I used came from good ol' Wisconsin, USA!

 

I cut the recipe in half and it still made pretty big pot full o' soup!

 

Thank you!

 

I feel honored, sir! Glad you enjoyed it. :)