Easy Split Pea Soup Recipe
Warm, comforting, and easy to prepare split pea soup recipe. This is one of the best easy split pea soup recipes out there!
Remember when we talked about slop? This is green slop. Ben affectionately refers to certain food as slop…I think it’s the Marine in him. Looks aside, this easy split pea soup recipe is a hearty soup that will satisfy you and won’t break the bank. It’s thrifty (and delicious) slop!
What makes this soup something special is a really flavorful bay leaf. One might wonder why in the world you put a little green leaf into a gigantic pot of soup, only to take it out again before eating the soup. One might wonder if you are a crazy person. But then…give them a taste of this easy split pea soup and they will understand the subtle yet essential flavor that this simple bay leaf imparts. It is key.
Add carrots, celery, onion, and ham and you have a quick and easy nutritious meal. Serve it with warm crusty homemade bread.
If you’re a vegetarian, this soup would be delicious without the ham. If you aren’t a vegetarian and happen to have a ham bone lying around (or in your freezer), throw that in and this soup with be taken to a whole new level. If you prefer a smoother soup, use a blender or a hand-held immersion blender to give it a quick purée (before you add the ham).
Looking for more great soup recipes? Try this red lentil soup or slow cooker creamy chicken and wild rice soup.
Used in this recipe:
This soup would be fantastic with this homemade ciabatta from Brown Eyed Baker!
Split Pea Soup
Warm, comforting, and easy to prepare split pea soup. This is one of the best easy split pea soup recipes out there!
Ingredients
- 1 teaspoon olive oil
- one medium yellow onion, diced (about 1 cup diced onion)
- 2-3 medium carrots, diced (about 2 heaping cups)
- 2 stalks of celery, diced (about 1 cup)
- salt and pepper to taste
- 2 cups dried split peas, sorted and rinsed
- 6 cups water
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 tablespoon fresh thyme, chopped, or 1 teaspoon dry thyme
- 8 ounces diced ham, and/or ham bone
- 2-3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
Instructions
- In a large pot, heat oil over medium-high heat. Add onion, carrots, celery, salt and pepper. Go easy on the salt, remembering that you will be adding ham later. Cook until onions are translucent and vegetables begin to soften, about 10 minutes.
- Add in rinsed peas, water, bay leaf, and thyme. Stir to combine and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer, partially covered for 50-60 minutes, stirring occasionally, until peas and vegetables are soft.
- Add ham and parsley, stir to combine, heat until warmed through. Remove bay leaf prior to serving. Taste and season with salt and pepper as needed.
Notes
- Go ahead and use those stalks of celery in the middle of the bunch, and include the leaves. They’ll add extra flavor.
- If using a ham bone, add that when you add the peas and water, so it can simmer in all that good ham flavor. If you’re using ham cubes or leftover ham, wait until the end to add it. It becomes tough and flavorless if you simmer it with the soup the whole time.
- Not a meat eater? This soup is perfect for vegetarians or vegans. Just leave the ham out and replace the water with vegetable broth.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 6 Serving Size: 1 of 6Amount Per Serving: Calories: 186Total Fat: 4gSaturated Fat: 1gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 2gCholesterol: 38mgSodium: 674mgCarbohydrates: 19gFiber: 7gSugar: 4gProtein: 19g
RachelCooks.com sometimes provides nutritional information, but these figures should be considered estimates, as they are not calculated by a registered dietitian. Please consult a medical professional for any specific nutrition, diet, or allergy advice.
Husband’s take: He’s not a lover of the green slop…
Changes I would make: None! If I’m feeling crazy, I add a touch of cumin. Because it is one of my favorites. Also, leave the ham out if you want to make this vegetarian. It will still be more than satisfying.
Difficulty: Easy!
**photos updated September, 2019
20 Comments on “Easy Split Pea Soup Recipe”
I think you’re hot and I like your split pea recipe
Well, thank you! :)
I made this soup , it was deliciousand. It was delicious prior to freezing but became much too thick after reheating the frozen soup. What do you suggest to get it back to a soup like consistency. Pea soup is thick. But this was like mashed peas.
I’d just add water or vegetable broth to it to thin it down a little! :)
I was almost not going to make this as you were referring to it as slop ?
It’s a joke in my family. We call a lot of things slop. :-P
We make split pea in our house all through the winter. It’s healthy comfort food. And my daughter loves it so much that she’ll withstand the jeers and jabs from her class mates when I pack it in her thermos for school lunch. :) I will try your recipe–mine is a keeper, but yours is interesting and it may just “spice” it up a little! (BTW–I love Savory Spice’s Vietnamese Cinnamon–it’s the sweetest cinnamon flavor I’ve ever tasted!)
I made slop (a.k.a. split pea soup) a couple of months ago and LOVED it too…the fiance however, did not. Oh well, more for me! Yours looks better than mine though…mine looked sloppier :)
It cracks me up that you call this slop, looks great!
I love split pea!
I love split pea soup so much! My husband isn’t a fan either. Men suck.
I would buy butterscotch extract! I’ve never seen it anywhere!
Nothing beats a flavorful bay leaf! My husband calls this “glop” cooking and he loves it. Looks delicious.
I love split pea soup!! I actually made some not long ago, but couldn’t take a decent picture, so it never got posted. :)
Split pea is definitely one of my favorite soups…we call it Grinch Soup at our house. :) I’ll come help you eat the leftovers. Great post sweets.
So glad to see this recipe, I bought too many bags of dried split peas when making an Easter centerpiece I saw on Pinterest, so now I need to use up the peas!!!
Split pea soup is my absolute favorite soup ever. Yours looks soooo good and comforting. :)
Aww don’t call it that; this is one of my favorite soups; it can’t help it it’s not pretty!
I love making soups with a ham bone but I seldom buy ham so one day, absolutely kidding I told a friend, ‘Wouldn’t it be great if Honey Baked Ham sold just the ham bone with some meat on it?’ Then I thought of the sandwiches they sell and wondered what happened to the ham bones from those? I called and best find ever? They do sell the ham bones with a ton of meat on them…so I can make my favorite soups anytime. Especially this lovely one. :)
That is the best piece of info I will receive all day. It is only 8:30 AM but how could it GET any better than that?!? Thanks for sharing, Barb! Are they reasonable?
Beautiful photos Rachel! I make spit pea soup once a month! It is a delicious comfort food, and yours looks terrific!
This soup looks amazing! Split Pea is one of my favorites but usually only make it after we have a left over ham dinner.