Bean Soup with Tarragon

How to prepare bean soup with tarragon

1. Cover the beans with water and leave to soak overnight.
2. Put the pork hock and beans in a pot and cover with 10 cups of water. Bring to a boil and simmer on low heat, with the lid half on, for 1 hour and 15 minutes. During this time, skim the soup several times (remove both the white and brown foam).
3. Clean the vegetables. Finely chop the onion and dice the carrot, celery, and parsnip.
4. Saute the vegetables in 2 tablespoons of oil until softened. Turn off the heat and add the pepper and paprika (if you want, you can also add a little hot paprika; I used a good pinch). Mix well. Pour the entire contents of the pan over the cooking beans.
5. Also add to the soup 3 sprigs of tarragon, 2 sprigs of thyme, and 2-3 bay leaves.
6. Continue cooking on medium heat (just simmering gently) for somewhere between 30 minutes to 1 hour, this time without the lid.
8. During this time, check the beans (take a few beans in a spoon and blow over them; if the skins peel off, it is a good sign; then taste the beans and they should feel just slightly undercooked in the center). At that point add the tomatoes crushed with a fork (including the juice they were canned in). Add salt to taste (I used 3 level teaspoons).
9. Let the soup cook until the beans are completely done (but do not let them get too soft or they will fall apart in the soup).
10. Remove the herbs and the pork hock from the pot.
11. Add vinegar to taste (I used 4 tablespoons) and let it simmer for 2 more minutes. Turn off the heat and add the chopped parsley and the rest of the chopped tarragon.
12. Remove the meat from the bone and cut into spoon-sized cubes. Put the meat back in the pot.

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