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!
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
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 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, add all ingredients (omitting the butter) 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 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:
Dennis
Great recipe for a tasty, hardy, ‘pretty quick’ pea soup. I’ve made pea soup on the stove top for decades and this recipe was a pretty natural transition from enameled cast iron to the Instant Pot. I’d highly recommend to readers who have only made green split pea soup to try this recipe with yellow split peas too. The only mod/deviation I make from this excellent recipe is the use of dried thyme which I use with any soup that isn’t a clear broth. I’d also like to reinforce an item that was listed in the notes: IF YOU HAVE OLD PEAS cook them a bit longer (if the ‘use by date’ is less that 6-9 months in the future, you have old peas!). Older ingredients weren’t an issue on the stove top, but my first Instant Pot batch reinforced the wisdom of the author’s note.
Elizabeth Lindemann
So glad you liked it! And yes – those fresh peas are so important!
Andrea Walker
Quick, easy and delicious! I was concerned about under cooking my split peas and added 5 extra minutes, they were perfect!
Elizabeth Lindemann
So glad you liked it!
SusieQuilt
My husband loves split pea soup and this recipe is delicious. Added bonus it’s very quick and easy to make.
Elizabeth Lindemann
So glad you and your husband liked it!
Julie
This is definitely the best Split Pea soup recipe I’ve made, and sooo easy. I added a couple of extra carrots and used leftover ham from our Christmas honey ham. Delicious!
Elizabeth Lindemann
So glad you liked it!
Marsina
All I want to do is spend time with my family on this bitter cold day! This is the easiest recipe to throw together!! It’s perfect just the way it’s written! My family couldn’t stop marveling at how wonderful the entire house smelled while the soup was cooking. Not only is it a breeze to throw together, it’s wonderful tasting! Such a big hit, and easy with basic kitchen staples! Should have added the recipe to my rotation a long time ago!
Elizabeth Lindemann
So glad you liked it! The perfect recipe for a cozy family day.
Elaine
Excellent. Very easy !
Elizabeth Lindemann
So glad you liked it!
Theresa
Absolutely Delicious
Elizabeth Lindemann
So glad you liked it!
Judy O
My first time using an instapot and I can’t tell you how easy it was to follow your instructions and get a delicious soup as a result. I didn’t have a ham bone so used a ham slice but it was still good. I was also able to use the recipe serving number to fit the instapot mini.
Elizabeth Lindemann
So glad you liked it!
Maureen K
I was flabbergasted when my husband couldn’t get enough of it! After 46 years, I had no idea he would even taste it, much less love it! It was also very simple and quick to make.
Elizabeth Lindemann
So glad you and your husband liked it! Flabbergasted – best compliment ever :-)
Nadine
Easiest and tastiest split pea soup I’ve made. I used the insta pot recipe again today, but sometimes it’s nice to smell up the house on a cold winter day and then I use the crock pot recipe.
Thank you so much!
Elizabeth Lindemann
So glad you liked it!
Jen
I see why this recipe is rated so high. I made a half batch and it was the best split pea soup I’ve ever made. I did add a bit of extra broth and chopped bacon as well, because split pea soup often gets too thick and bacon is delicious. This recipe is a keeper. It will be my go to from now on. Thank you so much!
Elizabeth Lindemann
So glad you liked it!
Mary Kay Holland
I was dancing around the house tonight, I found the perfect, easiest, delicious pea soup recipe! I will never make it any way else! It was perfect, not runny and not too thick. Thank you so much!
Elizabeth Lindemann
So glad you liked it!
Marichell
Tried this recipe today. Hubby and I both enjoyed a couple of bowls. I only used water and still delish!
Plus added croutons on top using your recipe and that was also yummy.
I’ll need to add your website to my favorites and keep trying your recipes.
Elizabeth Lindemann
So glad you liked it!
beth
turned out great i did add garlic powder , salt and pepper . it was the first thing i made very easy and good
Elizabeth Lindemann
So glad you liked it!
Mark
Used bacon fat instead of butter to fry up the onions. Dairy free so my son could try it. Tasted great!
Elizabeth Lindemann
So glad you liked it!
Kerri
Hi,
I’m very new to instant pot. When you reference using a smoked pork hock. Is it one where it has all the meat and skin still on it? Or do you cut off the skin/layer of fat before cooking. When I make it stove top it takes hours. If someone can please clarify any prep to the hock that would be great. Thanks!
Elizabeth Lindemann
You should be able to just toss the whole hock in – skin, fat, and all! That will all add flavor to the soup. When the soup is done, take the hock out, and then you can remove any large pieces of skin and fat and separate out the good meat to chop up and stir back into the soup. Hope that helps!
Tammy F.
I got an Instapot for Christmas, and your Split Pea soup was the first recipe I’ve made. My family absolutely loved it, and I’m still flabbergasted on how it cooked so fast, & was so flavorful! Thanks so much for this great recipe! Can’t wait to make this many more times!
Elizabeth Lindemann
So glad you liked it!
Del Varner
One onion is a bit vague. Baseball sized? Softball sized? 2, 3, or 4 cups of diced onion?
Elizabeth Lindemann
Honestly it doesn’t matter. Mine are usually baseball – softball sized, which comes out to about 2-3 cups diced. But usually when a recipe is written with measurements like this – one carrot, one onion, etc. – where size may vary depending on how big the ingredient is, it won’t affect the outcome of the recipe to use any size. If the amount is important, the recipe writer will specify something like “one cup diced onion.” Long story short, use whatever onion(s) you have! Hope you like the recipe!
Susita
Amazing recipe!!! Making it for my mother tonight. I know she will love it!!
Elizabeth Lindemann
So glad you liked it, and hope your mother likes it as well!
Jan
Great recipe exactly as written.
Elizabeth Lindemann
So glad you liked it!
Mindy
Made it tonight and subbed 3 slices of chopped cooked bacon for the ham (cooked bacon in the pot then added veggies). It was delicious. It was the perfect ratio of peas and liquid to make a wonderful creamy soup. I didn’t have to purée like I usually do with split pea.
Elizabeth Lindemann
So glad you liked it!