i need help from all my southern and northern friends?

After washing and picking through place beans, water, and salt with ham into crock pot. Place on low and cover before you go to bed and allow them to cook all night. I have done this many times and they turn out perfect. If I have to leave that morning I place the crock in the refrigerator and when home place the crock in and put on high to be warmed through for dinner.

Toss all in the crock pot, water, beans seasonings and ham. You can do it the night before or the morning of the dinner. Doesn't matter a bit. Turn on heat to high til they are boiling then turn crock down to low and ignore.

If I want any dried beans ready for lunch I put them on after supper, on high til they come to boil, then turn down to low and leave them to cook all night. I adjust the amount of liquid in them next morning - boiling water!! so they don't quit cooking. and leave them til noon.

Please note: I never soak beans before cooking them. Also I never cook them a little bit on the stove unless I want them to come to boil faster so I can go to bed or leave the house.

Ranch cook for more than 45 years.

You need to cook them a little on the stove and finish in the crock pot. Beans take too long to cook in the crock pot even after soaking them overnight. Good Luck!

Go ahead and soak them since you are using a crock pot. Just becuase things do take a very long time in a slow cooker, but that's why it tastes so good.

If you were making them on the stove I would go without soaking.