This Instant Pot Split Pea Soup, made with a leftover ham bone (or any other ham), is a game-changer. The pressure cooker cuts the cooking time in half and imparts the flavor of the ham into every scrumptious bite. It’s so simple, but SO delicious. And it’s ridiculously easy to make!
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What are split peas?
Dried split peas are part of a food group known as pulses, which include beans, chickpeas, peas, and lentils. I love cooking pulses in my pressure cooker because it takes such a short amount of time, meaning you can start it on a weeknight and have it ready in less than an hour for dinner. My last pressure cooker pulse creation was this Instant Pot Chili, made with dried kidney beans and ground beef.
I love cooking with split peas because they have many of the same health benefits as other pulses, but take a shorter time to cook and don’t require pre-soaking. And they are just so tasty!
And my favorite part about pulses: you get a lot of nutritional bang for your buck. They are one of the cheapest and healthiest foods out there- a whole 1lb. bag of split peas cost me only $0.89 when I made this recipe.
How to make split pea soup with a ham bone
If you’re planning on having ham this holiday season, do NOT throw out the bone! And don’t let the person hosting throw it out either. I fully plan on being “that person” who asks to take the turkey carcass home after Thanksgiving at my in-laws so I can make homemade turkey stock. I don’t care, I am who I am :-)
Adding a ham bone to split pea soup elevates it to a whole new level. There is a ton of flavor in the bone itself, as well as marrow and gelatin, which infuses into the soup as it cooks (which both thickens it and gives it many of the same health benefits as bone broth). And there’s also still likely a lot of meat left on the bone, which will easily come off after letting it simmer in the soup for so long.
Confession: I actually bought a whole ham JUST so I would have the bone to make this soup. Such is the life of a food blogger.
What to do if you don’t have a ham bone
You don’t have to be like me and buy a whole ham just for the bone! If you don’t have a ham bone – since it’s not very often in life that we come across them, is it? – you can definitely just use thick-cut diced ham, or a ham hock.
You can use a smoked turkey leg if you want a pork-free version.
And you can even make this soup vegetarian or vegan by omitting the ham and making a few other changes (see notes in recipe below).
What kind of pressure cooker to use
I made my Instant Pot split pea soup in (you guessed it!) an Instant Pot. It’s a very popular and high-quality pressure cooker, and I’ve been LOVING it.
You can even replace it for your slow cooker (it has a slow cooker setting as well). Pressure cookers not only cut the cooking time of things like pulses and tough cuts of meat wayyyyy down, but I find it also tends to cook things with better flavor than a slow cooker. It also has a sauté function, so you can cook up the mirepoix (that’s the fancy word for the celery, carrots, and onions) right in the pot.
Keep an eye out for black Friday sales- I got my six quart Instant Pot for only around $60 last year (what a deal!).
Don’t have a pressure cooker or instant pot? Just look at the recipe notes below for how to make this on your stovetop or in your slow cooker.
Other Easy Instant Pot Recipes
- Instant Pot Chicken, Broccoli, and Quinoa with Cheese
- Instant Pot Pot Roast
- Instant Pot Turkey Breast with Lemon and Thyme
- Instant Pot Pulled Pork
- Instant Pot Fish Stew
Here’s a link to all of my pressure cooker/instant pot recipes! For a plant-based version, try this vegetarian split pea soup with potatoes, lemon, and dill.
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Instant Pot Split Pea Soup with Ham
Equipment
- Instant Pot 6 qt. minimum size, see recipe notes for more info.
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons butter
- 1 onion diced
- 2 ribs celery diced
- 2 carrots diced
- 1 ham bone a smoked ham hock or 6 oz. diced deli ham can also be used
- 1 lb. dry split peas sorted through and rinsed
- 6 cups low sodium chicken stock/broth or veggie stock, water, or a mixture
- 2 bay leaves
- kosher salt and black pepper (see notes)
- chopped fresh parsley for garnish, optional
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Instructions
- Turn pressure cooker to the "sauté" setting. Melt butter (3 tablespoons) and sauté onion, celery, and carrots for about 5 minutes, until softened.
- Add the split peas, chicken stock (6 cups), ham bone (or hock or 6 oz. diced cooked ham), and the 2 bay leaves. Turn off the "sauté" function.
- Cover pressure cooker, make sure valve is on "sealing," and set to manual, high pressure for 15 minutes.
- Allow the pressure to naturally release for 10-15 minutes. Then, quick release the pressure valve.
- If you used a ham bone or hock: remove the it from the soup and remove the ham meat that’s still attached to it. Add the ham meat back into the soup.
- Taste and season with salt and pepper if necessary (see notes). Serve immediately, or store in your refrigerator for up to 1 week or freezer in an airtight container for up to 6 months.
Notes
- A note about salt: if you use salty chicken broth, you may not need to add any salt at all since ham is also usually very salty.
- The peas may take longer to cook depending on their age – the older dried legumes are, the longer they take to cook. This can vary based on brand, how long they’ve sat on grocery store shelves, or how long they’ve been in your pantry.
- If you want to use a frozen ham bone, you shouldn’t need to adjust the cooking time, since ham bones are technically already cooked, you’re just reheating it! Keep in mind though, the colder your ingredients are, the longer it will take to come to pressure.
- For a vegetarian version, omit the ham, use more salt and pepper, and make sure to use vegetable stock or water instead of chicken. For a vegan version, use olive oil instead of butter.
- If you don’t eat pork, you can substitute the ham bone for a smoked turkey leg.
- To make this in your slow cooker, sauté the veggies in a skillet in the butter, then transfer them and add all other ingredients to slow cooker and cook on low for 8 hours or high for 4 hours, or until split peas are cooked to desired tenderness.
- To make this on your stovetop, sauté veggies as instructed in a large pot. After adding the remaining ingredients, bring to a boil, cover, and simmer for approximately one hour (or until split peas are cooked to desired tenderness).
- Ham usually comes cured/smoked, which means it’s cooked and ready to eat. However, sometimes stores sell “fresh ham,” which means it’s uncooked. Do NOT use fresh ham for this recipe- use already cooked, smoked, and/or cured ham.
- This soup will likely thicken once it cools and is refrigerated, especially if you use a ham bone to make it because of the gelatin. Thin out with water and adjust seasonings as necessary.
- I made this recipe in my 6 qt. Instant pot. It should work the same in an 8 qt., but you may need to cut the ingredients in half for a 3 qt. mini. You should also be able to double the batch in an 8 quart pressure cooker.
- The provided nutrition information does not include any added sodium from seasoning to taste, any optional ingredients, and it does not take brands into account. Feel free to calculate it yourself using this calculator or by adding the recipe to Yummly.
Nutrition
Nutrition Information Disclaimer
The provided nutrition information is my best estimate and reflects one serving of the recipe (total servings indicated at top of recipe card). It does not include any added sodium from seasoning to taste, any optional ingredients, and it does not take brands into account. I use an automatic API to calculate this information. Feel free to calculate it yourself using one of these tools:
Audrey G Zimmerman
I’ve only used an InstantPot for four months, and have already made so many different meals using it. I saw this split pea soup recipe and just had to try it! I’ve always made mine on the stovetop and it took almost 2 hours to prepare with a LOT of stirring involved. 🙄 This recipe was so quick and easy to prepare and turned out absolutely perfect! The only thing I added was one Tbsp. of apple cider vinegar once the cooking was completed. Delicious! 😋
Elizabeth Lindemann
So glad you liked it! Love the idea of adding apple cider vinegar after – I’m going to try this next time!
Ilene
I have made this recipe MANY times with leftover ham bone, always so amazing and fast! However, I bought ham hocks to try them, but realized too late that they were raw and not smoked. I am trying it anyway and hoping it will be cooked. I am using the Meat/Stew setting on my IP which is about 40 mins. I think the meat will be fine but the smoked flavor will be missing. Thoughts?
Elizabeth Lindemann
I’m so glad to hear you’ve liked this recipe again and again! The biggest thing here is you need to make sure they are fully cooked to a safe temperature. You can remove them and check the internal temperature with a meat thermometer (to be safe, it’s 145 degrees according to the USDA, but ideally for a pork hock you want it to be more like 190 degrees for falling apart texture, otherwise the meat will be tough. If they aren’t cooked yet, but the soup is done, you may want to remove them, continue to boil the soup for a few minutes to make sure any residual raw juices are fully cooked, and keep the soup warm while you cook the hocks in an alternative way (like roasting in the oven, or even emptying the instant pot and cooking them in there). And you’re right, the smoked flavor will be missing – you could add a couple slices of bacon if you have some, or even some smoked paprika, or liquid smoke (though I’m sure it will be plenty tasty without that taste!). Hope that helps!
MQ
The soup was delicious. We are making it again. We did increase the cook time since we had a very large ham hock. Our ham hock was a little over 3 lbs, so we pressure cooked for 45 minutes (15 minutes per lb). We also used an immersion blender to create a smoother consistency.
Elizabeth Lindemann
So glad you liked it! Thanks for sharing your tips!
DanW
Limited seasonings let the ham and pea flavors really shine. Wonderful recipe. It’s a keeper.
Elizabeth Lindemann
So glad you liked it!
Shari
So delicious and so easy to throw together. Omg 15 mins in the 2pressure cooker setting and 15 mins for the pressure to naturally escape. Then it’s ready to eat.
Elizabeth Lindemann
So glad you liked it!
Robin L Bliss
Made 1/2 the recipe for myself. Delicious!
Elizabeth Lindemann
So glad you liked it!
Mike
Reminds me of my mémère’s French Canadian soupe aux pois. I’ve made this several times and always comes out great.
Elizabeth Lindemann
So glad you liked it, and I’m happy to hear it brought back memories of a family recipe!
Terry
I used whole peas, which I soaked overnight and rinsed. Recipe is delicious.
I prefer whole peas, but boy are they hard to find. They used to be available in all the stores now you have to order them online. Curious
Elizabeth Lindemann
So glad you liked it, and glad to hear it worked well with soaked whole peas! Thanks for sharing this.
Beth
Great flavor and perfect texture!
Even my 5 and 7 year old grandkids gobbled it down (the five year old is picky!) I called it “Grinch Stew” which got them to try the first bite.
I added two potatoes, which made the soup thicker, so next time I’ll add 8 cups (two liters) of chicken stock.
It was my very first time using my Instant Pot and I was skeptical that it would cook so fast! But it was perfect! The peas broke down smooth and tasty!
This recipe will definitely be made often in our home and I’m a new fan following Bowls of Delicious!
Elizabeth Lindemann
Haha, Grinch stew!! What a wonderful idea for getting kids to try it. So glad you and your grandkids liked it!
Cindy Collins
Really enjoyed this soup!! First time in instant pot.
Elizabeth Lindemann
So glad you liked it!
Teresa
Delicious.
I used regular chicken broth, not low sodium, and two ham hocks. I didn’t need to add additional salt. Also, I used 6 cups of broth, and the consistency was perfect. Many thanks for a great recipe.
Elizabeth Lindemann
So glad you liked it, and thanks for sharing your modifications!
Dena
This is my go to recipe for split pea soup. My 19 year old daughter likes it so much I have to always double the recipe. And even then, I’m lucky to get more than one bowl for myself. I’m a stove top girl so it has to cook for a bit to soften the peas but man, it’s so good!
Elizabeth Lindemann
So glad you and your daughter liked it!
Carolyn Burkd
My family loves this pea soup. I’m making some today as I post this. Yummmmm
Elizabeth Lindemann
So glad you and your family like it!
Stacy Taylor
Delicious! Used left over honey baked ham bone. Cut off the outer skin/black part. Tossed it in. Removed bone and did a little buzz with hand mixer to grind up a little smoother. Then cut additional ham pieces to add back. Son asked for recipe!
Elizabeth Lindemann
So glad you and your son liked it!
Diane
Delicious recipe. The soup was the perfect consistency, perfectly seasoned, and so easy to make. The only thing I did was add a dollop of minced garlic when I was sautéing the vegetables. Best split pea soup I have had! Thank you for the recipe.Q
Elizabeth Lindemann
So glad you liked it!
Jen
Thank you for the recipe. I haven’t made this soup in over 10 years and I needed something quick and easy at my age (54). It was just that.. quick, easy and delicious!
THank you!
Elizabeth Lindemann
So glad you liked it!
Carmen
This soup is delicious! I have made it a few times even my kids love it. The only thing I did differently was add 2 teaspoons of dried thyme for extra flavour.
Elizabeth Lindemann
So glad you liked it! I love the flavor of thyme- that’s a great addition.
Kevin Craigen
I make this soup all the time!! It is so easy and soo… delicious!!! My kids love it!!
Elizabeth Lindemann
So glad you and your kids liked it!
Jamie
I’m so glad I doubled this recipe! I only used 5 cups of homemade chicken stock per pound of split peas. I love the consistency. My son liked it too and he is not a split pea kind of guy. 😁 Thank you for keeping it simple and delicious.
Elizabeth Lindemann
So glad you and your son liked it!
Priscilla
Wonderful recipe! I used a ham bone with lots of meat still on it. I put it in the instant pot directly from the chest freezer and added 2 minutes. Perfect, thank you.
Elizabeth Lindemann
So glad you liked it!
Debi
This was so delicious I wanted a third bowl! Such a perfect way to repurpose the leftover Christmas ham.
Elizabeth Lindemann
So glad you liked it!
terry carlisle
I prefer whole peas and have them on hand. I’d like to use them. Suggestions? Changes to cooking times?
Elizabeth Lindemann
For whole peas, I’d recommend soaking the whole peas beforehand in salted water, overnight, or using a quick soak method with hot water. That will give them a head start. Drain and rinse before adding to the recipe. I think if you do this, the timing should be about the same. Hope that helps – would love to know how it turns out and what you did for timing!