@RobOz Well than you are a lucky son. My biological mother couldn't cook to save her life. She burned Hotdogs, COOKED IN WATER.
Her first good meal that she provided me was when I was in Jr high school, she was too tired to make me lunch so gave me $0.75 cents to buy school cafeteria food. Was the best hamburger in my life at the time.
The trick with a great soup is slow cooking it for many hours. It gets thicker, more tender, and more flavorful this way.
Adding bones aka ham hock, some hooch, and some smoked pieces of ham on top of regular ham for a more robust flavor set.
@RobOz there's nothing like a big bowl of Hamhocks and Beans! My mother used to whip up a mean batch BITD, but since her passing no one in the family has been able to replicate her Recipe. My brother's is close, and that'll do for me.