My lima beans and ham recipe on the stove top is easy and delicious! Frozen lima beans allow you to enjoy the sweet taste of fresh beans at any time of the year, and the addition of ham hock and leftover ham add both flavor and protein, helping to turn a pot of beans into a full meal. If you want to learn how to make this classic southern comfort food on the stove top, keep reading!

What Are Lima Beans?

History

Originally from South America, lima beans got their name during the Spanish colonial period when boxes of beans exported to other parts of Latin America and Europe were labeled with the words “Lima, Peru,” the modern-day capital city of Peru. In addition to being an important food source in the Incan empire, they were grown in other parts of pre-Columbian Latin America, too.

In the United States, Lima beans are a common food in the United States. Harvested in mid/late summer to early fall, fresh lima beans are usually only available at farmer’s markets or specialty grocery stores. Since they’re normally sold dried, buying frozen lima beans is usually the best way to experience the taste of fresh beans.

What’s The Difference Between Fordhook and Baby Lima Beans?

Fordhook and baby lima beans are the two most common types of lima beans. According to to the NPR article “Falling In Love With Limas,” Fordhook lima beans are large, pale green, and starchy.In contrast, “baby” lima beans are a separate variety that are smaller in size. Compared to the Fordhook variety, they’re less starchy and have a more delicate taste. Although both baby and Fordhook lima beans are available fresh and frozen, only baby lima beans seem to be available canned.

What’s The Difference Between Lima Beans And Butter Beans?

There is much debate and confusion over the difference between lima and butter beans. Although my research clarified things a bit, the difference still isn’t totally clear to me.

My Definition

According to Wikipedia, the term “butter beans” is used for the large, flat, white variety, especially in North and South Carolina. These beans are almost always sold dried or canned.

On the other hand, lima beans are green and usually a bit smaller. These are sold fresh, frozen, or canned. Within the category of lima beans there are many varieties that differ in size, shape, color, and taste.

In short, it seems that “lima beans” are green and usually sold fresh or frozen while “butter beans” are white and usually dried. However, as I will explain later, not everyone agrees.

Debate

Although I am fairly confident in my explanation of the difference between Lima and Butter Beans, it’s important to point out that not all sources agree. For example, the New Orleans-based Camellia Brand beans website states “the two are actually one in the same. There’s no difference between lima beans and butter beans” and that their package of lima beans has “butter beans” in parentheses to avoid confusion.

An article on SouthernLiving.com reaffirms that the two terms refer to the same thing as well. In fact, their article quotes an Auburn University professor who says that people in the southern US use the term “butter” for fresh beans and “lima” for dried, the term “butter bean” a reference to their creamy texture when cooked, or perhaps an effort to convince people to eat a bean they disliked.

As you can see, not everyone agrees on the right term to use. From my research, it seems like the confusion likely comes from regional differences in vocabulary.

My Recipe

One day I was in the grocery store and a bag of frozen lima beans caught my eye. I didn’t remember ever seeing frozen beans before–just dried or sometimes fresh–so I was intrigued. I gave the frozen lima beans a try and I really liked them, so let me teach you how to make them.

Frozen Baby Lima Beans and Ham Ingredients

Frozen Baby Lima Beans – I used a total of 24 oz of frozen lima beans. At first I thought that 1 pound would be enough (I usually make 1 pound of dried beans), but I guess that the water in fresh / frozen beans means you need a bit more.

Ham Hock – My ham hock was 2/3 pound, but using a hock between 1/2 pound and 1 pound should be fine. In addition to adding a bit of meat, ham hocks add an amazing smoky flavor that’s characteristic of southern-style bean recipes.

Extra Ham – Since ham hocks don’t have a ton of meat, I added an extra 2/3 pound of leftover Christmas ham. I started with 1/2 pound, but then added a bit more.

Chicken Stock – Earlier in the day, I made salt-free homemade chicken stock by simmering a skinless chicken leg quarter with vegetables for 2 hours. I ate the meat for lunch–LOL–and then saved the chicken stock for the beans.

Onion – I always like to add chopped onion to my southern-style beans and greens.

Garlic – You can’t have garlic without onion.

Onion Soup Mix – The idea of using onion soup mix in this recipe came from Ms. Chris of the YouTube channel Chriscook4u2. I use it in a lot of dishes, such as my Mississippi pot roast with potatoes and vegetables recipe.

Sugar – Some food bloggers say they sugar is a secret ingredient in boiled lima beans. I was doubtful, but I’m glad I gave it a try because it’s a great addition. I added 2 teaspoons, but you could add up to a full Tablespoons if you want.

Garlic Powder – 1/4 teaspoon

Black Pepper – 1/8 teaspoon

Lima Beans and Ham Hocks — Ham hocks add a lot of salty, smoky flavor and protein-packed meat to frozen baby lima beans.

Why Use Frozen Lima Beans?

As stated earlier, fresh lima beans have a fairly short season and aren’t widely available. So, if you want to see what fresh beans taste like, the next best thing is frozen. And even though they’re frozen, you don’t need to thaw them before cooking, or even soak them–just add them to the pot and start cooking.

What Type of Lima Beans Should I Use for This Recipe?

Although I used frozen baby lima beans for this recipe, you can use Fordhook or any other type. I’ve noticed that many times frozen lima beans are simply labeled as “lima beans” or “green lima beans,” so the only way to really know what they are is to buy them and try them–LOL

Since Fordhook lima beans are larger and starchier, the cooking time might be a bit longer, but other than that, the recipe is the same. I’ve used Fordhook lima beans to make ham bone vegetable soup, and I thought they were delicious.

How to Make Lima Beans and Ham From Frozen

Learning how to my make lima beans and ham from frozen recipe is easy. You just have to follow a few steps:

Make the Chicken Stock

Technically, this step is optional, but I recommend it. I made some homemade chicken stock by simmering a skinless chicken leg quarter with garlic, onion, celery, carrot and bay leaf for 2 hours. Although you can definitely start with plain vegetable stock as a base, the hint of chicken in the background was a nice touch.

Make the Ham Hock Stock

Next, I put the homemade chicken stock and some extra water in a large pot with a ham hock. As stated earlier, my ham hock was about 2/3 pound, but any hock ranging from 1/2 to 1 pound would be fine.

I filled the pot with vegetable stock and water above half way up the ham hock, so it wasn’t completely submerged. Even though I ended up adding more water later, I wanted to make sure that I didn’t overfill the pot with liquid before adding the lima beans.

After bringing the pot to a boil, I continued boiling on medium heat for 2 hours to infuse the water with salty smokiness and to soften the ham hock. I also flipped the hock over a few times so it would cook evenly.

After about 1 hour, I added 1/2 pound of shredded ham from a leftover holiday ham shank. I normally add extra ham in the last half hour–and I ended up adding extra ham later–so you don’t have to add the extra ham at this point.

Don’t Need to Add Garlic and Onion Early

In addition to the extra ham, I also added chopped garlic and onion at the 1-hour mark so that the aromatics would have time to mellow out before adding the frozen lima beans. But looking back, you can just add the garlic and onion when you add the beans (that’s how I will write the official recipe directions).

Add the Frozen Lima Beans And Chopped Garlic and Onion

Once the ham hock stock is ready (and the chopped garlic and onions, if you didn’t already add them), add the frozen lima beans. At first I added 1 pound, but that didn’t look like it was going to be enough, so I added a total of 1 1/2 pounds of frozen lima beans.

As previously stated, there’s no need to thaw or soak frozen lima beans: simply open the bag and pour them into the pot. Make sure that you don’t add too much water before pouring in the beans so that the pot doesn’t overflow.

Once the pot comes to a boil, the frozen baby lima beans will look like they swelled a bit. Continue cooking on medium heat, stirring occasionally.

Add Extra Ham

After boiling the frozen baby lima beans for about 15 minutes, I added some extra ham for a total of 2/3 pound of extra ham. I usually wait until the last half hour of cooking, so like other steps of this recipe, the exact time when you do it is flexible.

Add Onion Soup Mix and Sugar

Besides the ham hock and extra ham, the main flavorings for the lima beans were onion soup mix and sugar. Onion soup mix is a secret ingredient among southern chefs, so I highly recommend using it: I think it worked great in my oven pot roast recipe.

I also added 2 teaspoons of sugar. It sounds odd, but when I was researching the recipe, I noticed that a lot of southern food bloggers were recommending adding a bit of sugar to fresh or frozen lima beans. I gave it a try, and I really liked it–honestly, I thought it was the key secret ingredient in this recipe.

I added the onion soup mix and sugar about 30 minutes into the cooking process, but feel free to add them earlier. Once again, the order of the steps in this recipe is a bit flexible.

Add some Spices

Although I don’t think any extra spices were absolutely necessary, I decided to add 1/8 teaspoon black pepper and 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder. Not a lot–just enough to add a bit more flavor.

Remove Ham Hock to Take off Meat

At about the 45-minute mark, take out the ham hock so it can cool down. When it’s cool enough to touch, remove the meat, chop it up, and add it back to the lima beans. You can add the bones and skin back to the pot if you want, but I discarded them.

Serve

The frozen lima beans cooked for a little over an hour on medium heat. Once they were soft enough for me, it was time to eat!

These beans might have been my favorite beans so far: they had a slightly sweet, fresh flavor that was very nice. I’ll be making this recipe again for sure.

Lima Beans with Ham and Rice — Lima beans and ham is absolutely fantastic over rice.

What To Serve With Lima Beans And Ham?

Lima beans and ham is a hearty, protein-packed dish that’s very filling and satisfying. To turn this pot of beans into a complete meal, serve it with:

Skillet Cornbread – Crumbling crusty cornbread into thick, creamy beans is about as southern as it gets.

White Rice – I actually preferred eating these beans over white rice, so I think it’s arguably the best side for serving with lima beans and ham.

Biscuits – Pouring these beans over buttery biscuits would be amazing.

Garlic Bread – I also think that thick garlic bread, such as Texas Toast, would be a great side dish.

How Long Does It Take To Cook Frozen Lima Beans On The Stove Top?

The frozen baby lima beans and ham took about an hour and 15 minutes to cook on medium heat (gasmark 3 out of 6) on the stove top from the time I added the beans to the pot to the time I served.

I cooked the lima beans until they were soft and the water was cloudy, but most of the beans were whole. If you want them to be creamier / thicker, I would cook for at least 1 1/2 hours.

Can I Make Lima Beans In a Crock Pot or Instant Pot?

Yes! I’ve never done it, but there are many crock pot and instant pot lima bean recipes on the Internet.

Do Frozen Lima Beans Need To Be Soaked?

No, frozen lima beans (whether baby or Fordhook) don’t need to be soaked. That’s what makes this recipe so easy: simply open the bag of frozen beans, pour them into the pot, and start cooking.

Should You Add Frozen Lima Beans To Hot Or Cold Water?

It doesn’t matter if you add the frozen beans to a boiling or room-temperature pot of water. I added mine to hot water, but honestly, it doesn’t matter.

Should I Adjust The Recipe If I Use Fordhook–Or Another Type–Of Lima Bean?

No. As stated above, you can use Fordhook or any other type of lima bean in this recipe. Fordhook lima beans are a bit starchier, so the cooking time may be a bit longer, but other than that, you don’t need to adjust the recipe.

Can I Use Dried Lima Beans?

Yes! In all honesty, I’ve never used dried lima beans (which, personally, I would probably call butter beans), but I’m sure you could use them. Although I would soak them first, that’s not required–in fact, the recipe would probably be the same except for a longer cooking time (probably about 2 hours).

Lima Beans and Ham Recipe Tips

Although this recipe is easy to make, there are a few things to keep in mind:

Be careful of the salt – Ham hocks and smoked ham are salty, so be careful about adding too much salt. In addition to not adding extra table salt, be careful to not use a salted vegetable stock–use sodium-free instead.

Flexible steps – As I commented above, some of the steps in this recipe are flexible. You can add the extra ham, onion soup mix, sugar, and spices sooner / later in the recipe than I did. Just make sure that they boil for at least 30 minutes so that the flavors can infuse.

Serving the Sides – Whether you’re serving your frozen lima beans and ham with rice, cornbread, or biscuits, be sure to get the side dish started a bit early so that you can eat the sides with the main dish.

Frozen Baby Lima Beans with Ham — A bowl of frozen baby lima beans and ham goes great with rice or golden cornbread.

A Chef’s Review

Overall, I was really pleased with how my frozen baby lima beans and ham recipe turned out. The beans were soft and flavorful, the teaspoon of sugar really adding something special to the beans. I loved the green color, too–very different from dried beans. Along with the ham, this dish was very filling.

Aside from the time it takes to make these beans (which is actually a bit shorter than most beans), I can’t really think of a negative. If you’ve never made beans before, or if you don’t normally like beans, I suggest giving this recipe a try: they don’t taste as much like “beans” as you’d expect.

Possible Changes

Although this recipe was great, there are some possible changes I’d make to the recipe:

More spices – Maybe more garlic powder and black pepper, along with a bit of onion powder.

Apple cider vinegar – I think a dash of something acidic would help to bring out the flavor even more.

Recipe Variations

With sausage – I’m sure that smoked Andouille sausage would be a good change of pace.

Extra vegetables – I think that replacing the extra 1/2 pound of lima beans with a 1-pound bag of frozen mixed vegetables would be nice.

Biscuits or Texas Toast as sides – I am curious how these would taste with biscuits or Texas Toast as a side.

Other Southern-Style Bean Recipes

If you liked this old-fashioned, southern-style lima bean recipe, then check out these other recipes on my site:

Pinto Beans and Ham – The smokiness of ham hock really makes this dish delicious.

Navy Beans and Ham – This versatile, mild-flavored bean pairs with ham very nicely.

More Frozen Bean Recipes

Using frozen beans makes traditional southern cooking easy. If you liked this recipe, you might also like:

Frozen Purple Hull Peas – Simmered on the stove with ham hock, this is a southern classic at its best.

Ham with Green Beans and Potatoes – This one-pot meal is super hearty and satisfying.