Scrambled Eggs, Cheese, and Avocado Tortilla Bowl Recipe
September 16, 2025
Pea and Ham Soup Recipe
It is a fabulous “throw all of it within the sluggish cooker” Pea and Ham soup. There’s no must cook dinner the onion individually – it “sautés” itself within the fats from the ham hock that rises to the floor. Thick, hearty soup broth infused with unbelievable flavour from the ham bone!
A worthy ending on your leftover Christmas ham bone, or use retailer purchased. Make this in your sluggish cooker or on the range!
I’ve at all times mentioned that Lentil Soup is the least horny trying soup on the earth.
However in hindsight, I feel Pea and Ham Soup ought to take that title.
I imply, give it some thought. A glowing white Corn Chowder is fairly. A Thai Tom Yum Soup is vibrant and vibrant. Creamy Carrot Soup is a cheerful vivid orange color. And a fiery crimson Laksa appears as daring because it tastes.
However Pea Soup? It’s brown greater than inexperienced. Kahki at greatest.
So no, it’s not glamorous.
However this ugly duckling is critically scrumptious. One chunk, and also you gained’t have the ability to cease!!
Right here’s what you want for pea and ham soup. I’ve used a retailer purchased ham hock right here as a result of I used up all of the ham bones I managed to attain from pals and even mere acquaintances. Yep, on the subject of rounding up ham bones, I’m shameless!!
Be sure you use a ham bone with loads of meat as a result of extra meat means extra flavour imparted into the soup – and extra shredded ham!
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Inexperienced break up peas – these are simply dried peas which might be halved (break up!) which implies they cook dinner sooner and there’s no must soak in a single day (comparable to with most kinds of beans for issues like Southern Baked Beans). They style fairly impartial, barely earthy, and it absorbs the flavour of no matter they’re cooked in – on this case, ham! When cooked for a very long time like we do right here (to ensure that the ham meat to be extremely tender), they turn out to be creamy and thicken the soup;
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WATER, no broth – the ham bone releases a lot flavour that each one we want is water for the soup broth. How good is that??!!
I like how economical pea soup is when made utilizing leftover ham bone as a result of the broth simply wants water – no inventory!
For those who’re questioning what a ham hock is, it’s a ham bone. And it’s actually the bone inside a leg of ham, left after carving off all of the ham (ie the chilly cuts bought at delis). So it’s already cooked – effectively, smoked.
For those who purchase one, you’ll discover it appears lots neater than a scrappy leftover leftover ham bone from a do-it-yourself Glazed Ham. The shop purchased ones are reduce neatly then from the appears of it, they’re re-smoked to seal the floor of the pink meat half.
The place to purchase ham hocks
Retailer purchased ham hock is typically bought over-the-counter and delis, in any other case it’s vac packed and bought with ham and comparable gadgets within the fridge part.
Make certain it’s meaty!
Whereas retailer purchased are deliberately good and meaty (to flavour the soup and for loads of shredded ham), leftover ham bones have been identified to be picked clear by Ham Monsters. So in case your ham bone isn’t meaty sufficient, simply add a hunk of ham into the soup as effectively – simply to make sure you get sufficient flavour into the broth.
Do the identical in case your retailer purchased ham hock weighs lower than 1 kg / 2lb. 🙂
Different: give the broth a flavour enhance with a splash of inventory/bouillon powder.
No must sauté onion individually beforehand. On this recipe, the onion will rise to the floor and “sauté” within the ham fats. I’ve tried it sautéing onion first, then utilizing my methodology and there’s no distinction in flavour.
The peas will probably be so tender they turn out to be creamy. So blitzing is non-obligatory. What I love to do is partially puree the soup utilizing a handheld blender stick. This fashion you get the most effective of each worlds – a clean, creamy soup broth with tender bits of pea and veg bits!
Be sure you sluggish cook dinner Pea and Ham Soup within the sluggish cooker for a minimum of 8 hours, however 10 hours is even higher (on low). The ham meat ought to actually fall off the bone and be shredded with a contact.
Simply shreddable ham is an indicator that it’s been cooked lengthy sufficient to launch a ton of flavour into the broth!
They’re! They’re excessive in fibre and protein, may help scale back ldl cholesterol and are low in fats. However break up peas are a better carbohydrate vegetable so watch your consumption should you’re on a low carb weight loss plan.
A hunk of heat crusty bread (ideally slathered in butter) is actually made for dunking into this thick soup.
In reality, neglect spoons. Think about consuming the entire thing utilizing bread as your feeding software of alternative?? 🙌🏻 For do-it-yourself, do that fast no yeast Irish Soda Bread or yeast free Sandwich bread. For those who’ve received the time, make this crusty Artisan Bread – fairly certain it’s now formally the world’s best yeast bread! (It’s no knead, very foolproof).
OR – if you wish to go all out, improve to Garlic Bread or CHEESY Garlic Bread!
Issues to dunk into soup
For those who’d like so as to add a facet salad, strive it with a Cucumber Salad for pretty contrasting crisp freshness, or for one thing totally different (and completely fabulous), a French Carrot Salad with Honey Dijon Dressing! – Johnsat x
PS Some recipes costume up Pea and Ham soup by including spinach or frozen peas on the finish to make the soup color greener. I select to have fun the unattractiveness and deal with flavour, flavour, flavour!
Ingredients
- 500g / 1lb dried split peas (Note 1)
- 1.2-1.5kg / 2.4-3lb ham hock (aka ham bone), bacon hock or MEATY leftover ham bone (Note 2)
- 1/4 tsp salt (start with less, adjust later)
- 3/4 tsp black pepper
- 2 garlic cloves , minced
- 2 bay leaves , dried or fresh
- 1 onion , finely chopped
- 1 carrot , peeled and finely chopped
- 2 celery sticks , finely chopped
- 8 cups (2 litres/qts) water
- Parsley , finely chopped
- Crusty bread for dunking!
Instructions
- Place peas in slow cooker, push ham in. Scatter all ingredients around the ham bone, then pour over water.
- Slow cook 8 to 10 hours on LOW or 6 hours on HIGH. (Or 2.5 hours on low on stove, 1 h – 1 hr 20 min pressure cooker/Instant Pot on HIGH)
- Remove ham bone, shred ham meat. Discard bone and fatty skin.
- Remove bay leaves. Use a stick blender to blitz 2 or 3 times – thickens soup but doesn’t make it completely smooth (my preference, you can blend completely if you want).
- Return ham into slow cooker, stir. Taste and add more salt if needed (soup gets lots of salt from ham).
- Serve garnished with parsley. Serve with crusty bread for dunking – make a quick Irish Soda Bread, Garlic Bread or upgrade to Cheesy Garlic Bread!
Notes
1. Split peas are dried peas which split in half during drying process. Smaller size means no soaking required. Doesn’t taste like peas! It’s quite a neutral flavour, a bit earthy, very much dominated by the savoury flavour imparted by the ham.
Sold in packets should be clean ie picked through, and are fine to use without rinsing. But if I bought them at the markets out of sacks, then I would rinse.
2. Ham bone – bacon and ham hocks can be purchased, over some deli counters or vac packed. They are great because they’re intended for this purpose so they’re super meaty and full of smokey flavour.
If using LEFTOVER HAM BONE then make sure there’s a decent amount of ham on it still because that’s key to the flavour in this soup.
If you can’t find a hock at least 1kg/2lb OR if you leftover ham bone is really naked, then buy a chunk of ham, chop it into ~5cm/2″ pieces and throw that in with the bone (to impart flavour into soup and for shredding later).
If your soup is lacking in flavour due to the small size of your ham bone and you don’t have extra ham, add in a sprinkle of chicken stock powder (chicken bouillon) to give it a flavour boost (I do this when I open a ham bone given to me by friends only find it’s completely naked and devoid of meat!!).
3. Storage – freezes 100% perfectly! I would freeze for 3 months to err on the side of caution, but I’m sure even longer is fine. Fridge for 4 to 5 days.
4. Nutrition per serving. This is for a hearty sized bowl that will keep you full!
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