Pea and Ham Soup
This is a fabulous "throw it all in the slow cooker" soup. There's no need to cook the onion separately – it "sautés" itself in the fat from the ham that rises to the surface. Thick, hearty soup broth infused with incredible flavour from the ham! Use leftover ham bone, or purchase a ham hock.
Servings: 6 yield(s)
Prep Time: 10 mins
Cook Time: 600 mins
Total Time: 610 mins
Ingredients
  • 500 g dried split peas
  • 1.5 kg ham hock (aka ham bone), bacon hock or MEATY leftover ham bone
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 3/4 tsp black pepper
  • 2 garlic cloves
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 1 onion
  • 1 carrot
  • 2 celery sticks
  • 8 cup water
    • Garnishes
  • Parsley
  • Crusty bread for dunking
Instructions
  1. Place peas in slow cooker, push ham in. Scatter all ingredients around the ham bone, then pour over water.
  2. 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)
  3. Remove ham bone, shred ham meat. Discard bone and fatty skin.
  4. 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).
  5. Return ham into slow cooker, stir. Taste and add more salt if needed (soup gets lots of salt from ham).
  6. Serve garnished with parsley. Serve with crusty bread for dunking – make a quick Irish Soda Bread, Garlic Bread or upgrade to Cheesy Garlic Bread!