Split Pea Soup
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Cozy up with a bowl of homemade split pea soup, rich with smoky bacon and ham—this soup is a hearty meal unto itself.
Split pea soup is a classic American soup made from split peas and a pork-rich broth. While traditional recipes call for a smoked ham bone, locating one in modern-day supermarkets can be quite the treasure hunt. This recipe, modestly adapted from America’s Test Kitchen, has a genius workaround: simmering a few slices of thick-cut bacon and a ham steak in the broth to make the soup smoky and extra meaty.
This is one of my favorite soup recipes—it’s simple, brimming with flavor, and hearty enough to serve as a meal. I love garnishing it with crunchy croutons from a fresh baguette, but it’s equally delicious with crusty artisan bread or cornbread.
Table of Contents
“I made it exactly as written and it is the best split pea and ham soup that I have ever made in my life.”
What You’ll Need To Make Split Pea Soup
- Onion and Garlic: These aromatics form the flavor backbone of the soup.
- Chicken Broth: The liquid base of the soup, the broth contributes a savory depth, complementing the natural sweetness of the peas and vegetables. Using low-sodium is necessary to mitigate the saltiness of the pork.
- Water: Added to adjust the soup’s consistency without diluting its flavors.
- Ham Steak: Infuses the soup with a rich, smoky flavor and also adds a hearty, meaty component.
- Bacon: Flavors the broth with a deep, smoky richness.
- Green Split Peas: The star of the soup, green split peas break down during cooking, thickening the soup naturally and providing a creamy texture without the need for dairy.
- Thyme and Bay Leaves: These herbs add a layer of aromatic complexity to the soup
- Carrots and Celery: These vegetables add sweetness, color, and a hint of bitterness, creating a balanced flavor profile.
- Jump to the printable recipe for precise measurements
Step-by-Step Instructions
Begin by sorting through the split peas to remove any rocks or debris.
Rinse the split peas and let drain.
Meanwhile, heat the butter in a large Dutch oven or soup pot over medium heat. Add the onion and salt and cook, stirring frequently, until softened, 4 to 5 minutes.
Add the garlic and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Do not brown.
Add the broth, water, ham steak, bacon, peas, thyme sprigs, and bay leaves.
Increase the heat to high and bring to a boil, stirring frequently to keep the peas from sticking to the bottom of the pot. Reduce the heat to low, cover, and simmer until the peas are tender but not falling apart, about 45 minutes.
Remove the ham steak and place it on a plate; cover with foil and set aside.
Stir in the carrots and celery and continue to simmer, covered, until the vegetables are tender and the peas have almost completely broken down, about 30 minutes longer.
Meanwhile, shred the ham steak into small bite-size pieces with two forks. Cover with foil again.
Remove and discard the thyme sprigs, bay leaves, and bacon slices. Add the shredded ham to the soup.
Return to a simmer. Add a few grinds of pepper, then taste and adjust seasoning if necessary (depending on the saltiness of the ham and bacon you used, you may need an additional 1/4-1/2 teaspoon salt).
How To Make Croutons
Melt 2 tablespoons of unsalted butter in a medium skillet over medium heat. Add 2 cups of cubed good-quality French or Italian bread.
Cook, stirring frequently, until golden brown and toasted, 3 to 5 minutes, then let cool.
To serve, ladle the soup into bowls and top with the fresh croutons. The soup will thicken as it sits on the stove; thin it with water and adjust seasoning as necessary.
Frequently Asked Questions
Split peas are peas that have been hulled, dried, and split. They’re available in both green and yellow varieties. Green split peas are a bit sweeter and most commonly used in split pea soup recipes. The yellow variety are are milder in flavor and often used to make Indian dal recipes. Split peas are similar to lentils in that they are both part of the legume family and they don’t need to be soaked prior to cooking.
Split pea soup naturally thickens as the peas break down during cooking and also as it sits, especially if refrigerated. If it’s too thick for your liking, you can easily thin it by adding a bit of chicken or vegetable broth, or even water, until you reach your desired consistency. Remember to adjust the seasonings if needed after adding more liquid.
Yes, the soup can be made up to 3 days ahead of time and refrigerated.The flavors will actually improve as it sits.
Absolutely! Split pea soup freezes beautifully. Once cooled, transfer the soup to airtight containers, leaving about an inch of space at the top to allow for expansion. It can be stored in the freezer for up to 3 months. When ready to eat, defrost in the refrigerator overnight and reheat on the stove, stirring occasionally.
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Split Pea Soup
Cozy up with a bowl of homemade split pea soup, rich with smoky bacon and ham—this soup is a hearty meal unto itself.
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1 large yellow onion, finely chopped
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 4 cups low-sodium chicken broth
- 3 cups water
- 1 pound ham steak, skin removed, cut into quarters (see note)
- 3 slices (4 oz) thick-cut bacon, left whole (see note)
- 1 pound green split peas (about 2 cups), picked through and rinsed
- 3 sprigs fresh thyme, plus more for serving
- 2 bay leaves
- 2 medium carrots, cut into ½-inch pieces
- 1 medium celery rib, cut into ¼-inch pieces
- Freshly ground black pepper
- Fresh croutons, for serving (optional; see instructions below)
Instructions
- Heat the butter in a large Dutch oven or soup pot over medium heat. Add the onion and salt and cook, stirring frequently, until softened, 4 to 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Do not brown.
- Add the broth, water, ham steak, bacon, peas, thyme sprigs, and bay leaves. Increase the heat to high and bring to a boil, stirring frequently to keep the peas from sticking to the bottom of the pot. Reduce the heat to low, cover, and simmer until the peas are tender but not falling apart, about 45 minutes.
- Remove the ham steak and place it on a plate; cover with foil and set aside. Stir in the carrots and celery and continue to simmer, covered, until the vegetables are tender and the peas have almost completely broken down, about 30 minutes longer.
- Meanwhile, shred the ham steak into small bite-size pieces with two forks. Cover with foil again.
- Remove and discard the thyme sprigs, bay leaves, and bacon slices. Add the shredded ham to the soup and return to a simmer. Add a few grinds of pepper, then taste and adjust seasoning if necessary (depending on the saltiness of the ham and bacon you used, you may need an additional ¼ to ½ teaspoon salt). Ladle the soup into bowls and top with fresh croutons, if using. (The soup will thicken as it sits on the stove; thin it with water and adjust seasoning as necessary.)
- Note: A ham steak is a thick slice of cooked ham cut from a whole ham roast. They can be found packaged in the refrigerated meat section of the supermarket, near the bacon.
- Note: Regular sliced bacon can be used, but the thinner slices are a little harder to remove from the soup.
- To Make Fresh Croutons: Melt 2 tablespoons of unsalted butter in a medium skillet over medium heat. Add 2 cups of cubed good-quality French or Italian bread and cook, stirring frequently, until golden brown and toasted, 3 to 5 minutes.
- Make-Ahead/Freezer-Friendly Instructions: The soup can be made up to 3 days ahead of time and refrigerated, or frozen for up to 3 months. Defrost the soup in the refrigerator for 12 hours and then reheat it on the stovetop over medium heat until hot. The soup will thicken once cool, so thin with water and adjust seasoning as necessary.
Pair with
Nutrition Information
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- Per serving (8 servings)
- Calories: 431
- Fat: 15 g
- Saturated fat: 6 g
- Carbohydrates: 42 g
- Sugar: 6 g
- Fiber: 15 g
- Protein: 34 g
- Sodium: 1,686 mg
- Cholesterol: 57 mg
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
Gluten-Free Adaptable Note
To the best of my knowledge, all of the ingredients used in this recipe are gluten-free or widely available in gluten-free versions. There is hidden gluten in many foods; if you're following a gluten-free diet or cooking for someone with gluten allergies, always read the labels of your ingredients to verify that they are gluten-free.
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Excellent. The carrots are a great addition, adds some sweetness and nutritional value. The thyme and bay leaf complement the ham very well. Of course garlic and onion are good. I used leftovers from a spiral sliced ham from Easter; put the bone in and large chunks for the first 30 minutes, took out chunks of ham left bone in then took out at end of all cooking time.
I cubed the ham with a knife as it was easier than shredding (I’ll try that next time). I fried up the bacon strips next morning for breakfast (don’t waste them!). They lacked the saltiness of regular bacon (salt stayed in the soup) but was still good. I also used no sodium chicken broth and didn’t need to add any salt to the soup.
Split peas are very high in fiber and: folate, thiamin, iron and potassium. This makes for a very nutritious soup, besides being delicious and satisfying. Thank you!
I love this recipe! I’ve made it about 5 times now. I exclude the bacon because I don’t want more fat in my soup and today I’m using vegetable stock because I ran out of chicken. I’m sure it will taste fabulous! Thank you for this recipe.
This recipe is delicious! A definite keeper and goes together very simply. Thank you for this awesome soup recipe.
Jenn, I absolutely love this recipe, thank you so much for sharing! Because I am a bacon lover, I’ve made a couple of adjustments that some may want to consider. I like to cook the bacon in the butter, remove it after it’s somewhat crispy, pour off all but 2 Tbsp of the fat and then add the onions and follow your recipe as directed. After removing the ham and shredding it, use an immersion blender to thicken the soup about 3/4 of the way including the bacon, then add back in the ham. (Note: make sure to remove the bay leaves and thyme stems prior). If you like a creamier texture, this might help enhance the flavor. Cheers!
I used to think the only way to make pea soup was using the ham bone from a spiral ham. This recipe changed my thinking. It was delicious, and just as good, if not better than using the ham bone.
I use a ham hock! Easy to find – fairly meaty! Add ham steak if needed. Great recipe!!
I loved the recipe, but I wish I knew how big a serving is. I am logging calories and don’t really know the measurement of a serving!!
Hi Andrea, It’s been a long time since I’ve made this and unfortunately, I don’t recall exactly how large a serving is but I’d guesstimate it’s about 1.5 cups.
Just discovered Jenn’s page, made this soup tonight with some ham chunks from off the bone. Unfortunately, my son-in-law got the bone from the ham, but the soup was so delicious it didn’t matter, and so easy!
I dipped crusty Italian bread instead of the croutons though.
Will definitely be trying out more recipes from this site
I made this perfect recipe on a cold colorado night and it is a winner! Thank you Jenn!
I would like diced ham in the soup instead of shredded. Therefore can I just dice the already cooked ham before putting it in the soup to save a step?
Sure – enjoy!
Traditionally, people did not BUY ham bones to make this soup, they made it with the remains of a ham. Don’t people eat hams anymore? When you’ve eaten most of the ham, you use that bone with the leftover ham to make this soup.
This is so weird, to see someone saying, gee, you can no longer buy a ham bone…. I am going to be 70 years old tomorrow, and I’ve never seen anyone BUY a ham bone to make split pea and ham soup. Never. Not once.
I like lean ham and the bone in spiral hams are only available at Easter time – if then. I can’t eat an entire (ham with bone in) and it tends to be more fatty. This, I looked in my grocery to buy a ham bone!! Nada. Thus the ham hock.
Hi Jenn, I have a ton of leftover Christmas ham. Could I use that in place of the ham steak, or will that result in less flavor…?
Hi Sarah, It will still be delicious with leftover ham. Enjoy!
Thank you, Jenn – it turned out PERFECTLY. And the bacon trick is genius! I so appreciate everything you do to make me a better home chef! ❤
This recipe is nuts. I’m not saying it won’t work, but you don’t need what it calls for. Traditionally, this soup has always been made with leftover ham and leftover ham bones, if you have that. Do not worry that you do not have what this strange recipe calls for. If you go to the supermarket and buy a ham, what do you have when it’s almost all gone? A ham bone, and some ham? That’s what you traditionally use to make this soup. This is crazy, to suggest that people used to BUY ham bones. I will be 70 years old tomorrow, and I’ve never seen or known anyone, anywhere, at all, to buy a ham bone. They use what is leftover from a HAM!
I have made pea soup 4-5x over the years. Each and EVERY time my peas would not get completely soft . . no matter how long I cooked it. So I’m leery to try again, even though your recipe looks delish’ and everyone else seems to have good luck with it. Dare I try it? Will my peas finally come out soft?
Hi Dee, I have no reason to believe they won’t get soft enough. For the best results, use really fresh split peas (I usually reach to the back of the shelf in the grocery store as that’s where the newest stock is). Hope you have good luck with it!
This comment is really unnecessary and does not understand all circumstances nor all cuts of meat. I buy a half pig from a local farmer every year. I cooked a ham last week to make soup, and was disappointed to see the cut I grabbed from the freezer has no bone. There are three hams butchered to size for me – someone single. I can not eat all the ham in time, even WITH giving generous portions to two friends. This recipe is exactly what I need. If you have your own way of doing things – which is in fact usually much like mine – go for it. But don’t use the internet to pick on people who do things differently. It’s just so unnecessary in a world full of real problems that need to be addressed, and says more about you then it does the recipe and its author.
Ellen, your insistence that people should only be using a leftover ham bone rather than buying one is bizarre. Most people only make a ham for the holidays, but may still like to make this soup other times of the year. It is not weird to buy a ham bone or ham hock, so are the one who is off base. How very uptight to leave comments like this.
This was a great recipe! I’ve never been a fan of slit pea soup, but I’m a convert. Simple but hearty!