Instant Pot Split Pea Soup with Ham
Instant Pot Split Pea Soup with Ham is a classic version of this hearty soup on fast forward. All the flavors of classic split pea soup with a fraction of the cooking time, thanks to the Instant Pot.
Servings: 8
Calories: 467kcal
Ingredients
- 1 pound green split peas rinsed and sorted
- 5 - 6 cups chicken stock
- 1 large onion diced
- 3 large carrots peeled and diced
- 3 ribs celery diced
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 1 1/2 teaspoons dried thyme
- 2 bay leaves
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon pepper
- 1 small smoked ham hock
- 1 cup diced ham - browned for garnish
Instructions
- Turn the Instant Pot on to the sauté function. Add olive oil, onion, carrots and celery. Cook, stirring frequently for a few minutes, until the onion begins to turn translucent.
- Add garlic, thyme, bay leaves, salt and pepper. Stir again and cook for an additional minute.
- Place ham hock in the pot, add chicken stock and split peas.
- Give it another stir, then place lid on and lock into position. Set steam lever to "sealing" position on top of the lid.
- Cancel "saute" function and select "manual". Set to 20 minutes (using the +/- buttons).
- When the timer goes off, let the pot naturally release for 10 - 12 minutes, then you can move the lever to venting to carefully release some of the steam.
- Open the lid, remove the ham hock and the bay leaves. Discard them.
- Stir soup and serve as is or with browned diced ham on top.
Notes
CHEF'S NOTES:
I like my soup thick and a little pureed, so I use an immersion blender to break it up a bit. Just a few quick zaps gives it the perfect texture. If you like your soup on the thicker side, use 5 cups of stock. If you like it less thick, use 6. It will thicken as it sits, so I do not recommend less than 5 cups of liquid. Otherwise, you'll end up with something that isn't very soup-like. I used 6 cups of stock and gave the soup a few zaps with the immersion blender. You can see in the photo that there is still some texture to the soup, there are small pieces of vegetables and it is nice and thick. To make this soup vegan or if you are looking for a very health-conscious recipe, omit the ham hock and diced ham garnish. A teaspoon of liquid smoke may be added in it's place to mimic the flavor of the ham hock. Replace chicken stock with vegetable stock.
I like my soup thick and a little pureed, so I use an immersion blender to break it up a bit. Just a few quick zaps gives it the perfect texture. If you like your soup on the thicker side, use 5 cups of stock. If you like it less thick, use 6. It will thicken as it sits, so I do not recommend less than 5 cups of liquid. Otherwise, you'll end up with something that isn't very soup-like. I used 6 cups of stock and gave the soup a few zaps with the immersion blender. You can see in the photo that there is still some texture to the soup, there are small pieces of vegetables and it is nice and thick. To make this soup vegan or if you are looking for a very health-conscious recipe, omit the ham hock and diced ham garnish. A teaspoon of liquid smoke may be added in it's place to mimic the flavor of the ham hock. Replace chicken stock with vegetable stock.
Nutrition
Serving: 1g | Calories: 467kcal | Carbohydrates: 48g | Protein: 32g | Fat: 15g | Saturated Fat: 4g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 11g | Cholesterol: 39mg | Sodium: 1640mg | Fiber: 6g | Sugar: 18g