Split Pea Soup

If you’ve never had homemade split pea soup, then let me be the first to tell you: this creamy one-pot soup is a rich, satisfying, and cozy meal that is comforting all year long. While peas may seem like the star of the show, the true major player is the smoked ham hock. It adds a savory, meaty goodness to this soup that truly takes it over the top. Sold yet? Here are some more tips on how to make it the best it can be:

What People Are Saying:
“Made this soup tonight and it was ahh....mazing! A new family favorite. Thanks so much!” - CyndiLouWho

“Followed this recipe exactly! Absolutely delicious! We ate it with homemade beer bread!” - CyanAnchor

How To Make Split Pea Soup

INGREDIENTS

• Ham Hocks: You might not know that most grocery stores stock smoked ham hocks in the butcher department. They’re a great way to enrich soups and stocks with extra smoky flavor and body. With this recipe, you capture all the flavor from the bone and skin of the ham hock, then you shred the meat and add it back to your soup so there’s very little waste.
• Onion, Celery & Leeks: Three kinds of alliums bring on major depth to this soup. I recommend using a medium yellow onion.
• Carrots: Carrots provide a pop of sweetness in this soup to balance out all of our other flavors.
• Garlic: Finely chop 2 cloves of garlic for this soup. If you’re really a garlic fan, you can up it, but 2 is the perfect amount for me.
• Bay Leaves & Thyme: Bay leaves and thyme add in so much savory flavor here, just don’t forget to remove them after they have simmered in the soup. For the thyme, you can use fresh sprigs or dried thyme.
• Peas: Split peas are also easy to find with other dried and canned beans at the grocery store. Just be sure to grab split, not whole, peas. Split peas will cook faster and don’t need to be pre-soaked before they’re simmered into soup. After about an hour, your peas will be super-tender and easily pureed.
• Chicken Broth: Use low-sodium chicken broth to control the salt amounts here. You can also use vegetable broth in a pinch.
• Lemon: Some fresh lemon juice squeezed into the soup adds a final fresh and bright note to finish off the soup.
  

STEP-BY-STEP INSTRUCTIONS

Heat some extra-virgin olive oil in a Dutch oven (or large pot) over medium heat. Add the ham hocks and cook, stirring occasionally, until they’re golden brown and crisp. This should only take around 2 minutes per side, then transfer to a plate.

Then, in the same pot over medium heat, combine the onions, carrots, celery, and leeks. Season well with salt and pepper, then cook—while stirring occasionally—until they’re softened. Once softened, add the garlic, bay leaves, and thyme, then cook while stirring until fragrant. Then, add the peas, broth, and ham hock—bring the mixture to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium-low, and bring it to a simmer. Mostly cover the pot and cook, while stirring occasionally, until the peas are tender. If the soup starts to become too thick, then add more water or broth, a bit at a time.

After the peas are tender, remove the bay leaves and thyme sprigs. Put the ham hock on a cutting board, then use two forks to shred the meat. While that is set aside, we’re going to puree around one-quarter of the soup. You can do this with an immersion blender or a standard blender, but if you use a standard blender, be careful not to burn yourself! Then, return the pureed soup to the pot along with freshly squeezed lemon juice and shredded ham hock. Then season with salt and pepper. Give it a taste, and adjust the seasonings as needed.

Divide the soup among the bowls, then top with thyme leaves and more pepper if you so desire.

The full list of ingredients and instructions can be found in the recipe below.

Recipe Tips

• How to puree. The pureeing step adds a wonderful creamy texture to your soup and enhances the flavors by melding them together even further. Of course, if you don’t have a blender or immersion blender, you can skip that step, and the soup will still be incredible.
  

Split Pea Soup Variations

If you’d like to make a vegetarian version of this split pea soup, simply omit the ham hock and use vegetable broth instead of chicken broth. If you still want to capture that smoky flavor, you can add a dash of smoked paprika.

Want to make this more hands-off? Check out our slow-cooker split pea soup or Instant Pot split pea soup.

Storage

This soup is a great make-ahead dinner. You can freeze individual portions for up to 6 months. If you find that the soup is thicker than you’d like after defrosting, simply add more broth or water to reach your desired texture. Then warm it on the stove and dig in!