I came across a recipe for 15 bean soup several years ago while in Thailand, and that package of beans is not available there. I had to wait until coming back to the US in Jun 2019, and a few weeks later in grocery store, I bought a bag of 15 bean soup. I made the 15 Bean Soup (Slow Cooker) using the recipe from the bean manufacturer website. The soup is out standing.

Now, from that, I wanted to see what is in a bag of 15 bean soup so I can replicate this when I return to Thailand. It has been suggested that I take a few bags back with me, which I may do, but I did exam a bag to see what it is comprised of.

First thing I have done is check the ingredients list on the Hurst's bag of 15 bean soup. The ingredients states “Contains 15 of these varieties…” and there is 17 beans listed. Here is the 17 beans listed in order as on the bag, the availability for me in Thailand, the quantity in a bag, and the weight (567 gram / 20 oz / 1 lb 4 oz bag). (Any type that shows - for % and grams was not in the bag that I sorted.)

Notes for the types of beans:

• Lentils, were not specified, the bag I sorted was green lentils.
• Lentils and Split peas seem to have one function and that is flavor and thickening, since cooking for a prolonged time they simply turn to mush or dissolve into the broth.
• Yelloweye Bean, same family as Black-eyed Pea, and has a milder taste than black-eyed peas.
• Lima and Yelloweye beans, both not available in Thailand.

Once the beans were sorted and weighed, I divided the beans into 5 groups; Black, Thickener, Red, White, and Other. From that group, I computed the first mix using an excel spreadsheet to do the math.

Mixes are based on average proportions of the packaged Hurst's 15 Bean Soup mix.

11 Bean Mix 1 for 11 Bean Soup I (Slow Cooker):

As I make more combinations I will list those as well. In the planning is a bean mix for slow cooker chili, and another bean mix for hocks and beans.