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This crockpot split pea soup is loaded with vegetables, fiber, and protein. It is very healthy, creamy, and full of flavor! It’s way better than the canned stuff.
Featured with this recipe
- Crockpot Split Pea Soup Ingredients
- Method to Making Crockpot Split Pea Soup
- Steps to Making Instant Pot Split Pea Soup
- Tips for Making Crockpot Split Pea Soup
- Frequently Asked Questions
- Storing Crockpot Split Pea Soup Leftovers
- More Crockpot Soup Recipes
- How to Make Crockpot Split Pea Soup
- Crockpot Split Pea Soup Recipe
Crockpot split pea soup is rich, warm, nourishing, and incredibly flavorful. It is the perfect soup to warm you up from the inside out on a chilly day. What I love most about making split pea soup in a crockpot is that you can just dump all the ingredients in and forget about it.
This slow cooker split pea soup has all your vegetables, meat, and beans to make a well-balanced meal! Make this crockpot split pea soup after a special occasion like Easter, Christmas, or Thanksgiving. When you have already made a ham. Leftover ham is the perfect way to use that meaty ham bone. The rich flavor from the ham bone will take this soup to the next level. It is a healthy and delicious dinner.
Crockpot Split Pea Soup Ingredients
This split pea soup is simple to make and is loaded with fresh ingredients!
- Hambone – Use a leftover ham bone if possible. Simply add the ham bone to the crockpot with the other ingredients and let it simmer away. It will add a depth of flavor. Remove before serving.
- Peas – Dried green split peas will cook in the crockpot. Find these in your local grocery store near the dried beans aisle. They are small sized and have a pretty bright green coloring.
- Chicken broth – This adds flavor but also gives the soup a warm liquid. You can also use chicken stock.
- Vegetables – Slice carrots, potatoes, celery, onions into slices and chunks. Try to make each type of veggie uniform to the others. This will help the cooking process to be more evenly distributed.
- Ham – Diced ham is cooked in the crockpot. The chunks of ham add texture and protein.
- Garlic – You always need a little garlic! It goes a long way and gives a savory flavor.
- Bay leaf – We love to add bay leaves for an extra boost of richness and flavor. Discard bay leaf before serving.
Method to Making Crockpot Split Pea Soup
The crockpot is always a great way to cook soups! It gives the soup balance as well as cooking it all together and allowing the ingredients to blend together. Cook on high or low for this soup depending on the timeframe you have available.
- Add – If using a ham bone, add it to a large crockpot first. This will take up most of the room in the crockpot.
- Slow cook – Add remaining ingredients and cook on low for about 7 to 8 hours or on high for about 5 hours.
- More meat – When the soup is done cooking, remove the ham bone cut off any good, meaty pieces, and add them straight back to the soup.
Steps to Making Instant Pot Split Pea Soup
If you need to speed up the process of making this soup, throw all the ingredients in a large Instant Pot and cook on high pressure for 25 minutes. Make sure to add the liquids first so you don’t get a burn notice. Do a quick release, give it a quick stir, and you are ready to eat!
Tips for Making Crockpot Split Pea Soup
- Veggies – It is okay to substitute! I love all the different veggies in this soup. But you can add or subtract any veggies you like.
- Large batch – This soup makes a huge batch, so if space is an issue in your Crockpot, I suggest cutting the recipe in half.
- Vegan – To make a vegan version of this recipe, omit the ham and swap out the chicken broth for vegetable broth or water.
- Salty flavor – Don’t over-salt! Especially if you are using a ham bone, a lot of that salty flavor will come out in the soup. Wait to salt until the very end and always salt to taste.
- Bacon – Try it with bacon instead of ham or add it alongside the ham!
- Blender – If you prefer a smoother texture, you can use a blender or food processor to smooth it out after cooking. Be careful to do this in small batches because it’s hot! An immersion blender also works great. Puree the mixture until it is at your desired consistency.
“I’ve always had a hard time getting my kids to eat anything “green”, but they tried this & actually went back for seconds! Very rich & flavorful!”
-Rebecca
Frequently Asked Questions
For this recipe, no. They simmer long enough to become perfectly soft and creamy. I do like to give them a good rinse before adding them to the pot though. Just to rinse off any random debris.
I like to always make my split pea soup on the thicker side and add more broth at the end to thicken it if necessary. It is easier to thin out the soup rather than thicken it. However, if you need to thicken your soup after it has cooked, you can stir in some instant mashed potato flakes (or leftover mashed potatoes).
YES! This is the best split pea soup is full of vegetables, protein, and fiber. This soup is chock full of nutrients like potassium, folate, iron, and Vitamin K. It is also nice and creamy without adding any extra cream or milk. Crockpot split pea soup is also very filling because it is packed with so many nutrient-rich ingredients.
Storing Crockpot Split Pea Soup Leftovers
This split pea soup recipe makes a large batch and you are likely to have some delicious leftovers. Placing the leftovers into small portions is helpful or in large bags depending on who and when you will be serving the leftovers.
- Refrigerator – Store your leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days.
- Freezing – This also freezes nicely so if you make a full batch and can’t eat it all within a few days, freeze it in individual freezer-safe containers. It’ll stay nice and fresh for up to two months.
- Reheating – Reheat slowly on the stove or in the microwave.
Read Next: The Best Soup Recipes
More Crockpot Soup Recipes
How to Make Crockpot Split Pea Soup
Crockpot Split Pea Soup
Equipment
- Crockpot
Ingredients
- 1 ham bone (optional)
- 1 package dried split peas about 2 ½ cups or 1 pound
- 9 cups chicken broth if you like it thick, use 8 cups
- 4 carrots coarsely chopped
- 3 medium potatoes diced small
- 3 celery stalks chopped
- 1 onion finely chopped
- 2-3 cups diced ham
- 1 teaspoon minced garlic
- 1 teaspoon Kosher Salt
- ½ teaspoon pepper
- 1 bay leaf
Instructions
- If using a ham bone, add it to a LARGE Crockpot.
- Add remaining ingredients and cook on low for about 7 to 8 hours or on high for about 5 hours. Discard bay leaf before serving.
- Serve with sliced French bread.
I made this recipe this weekend, it was incredible! Thank you!
So glad that you liked it! Thanks for your nice comment!
Did you wash the peas first? I didn’t and now I’m scared I ruined it! I wasn’t supposed to sauté the onions and celerty first, right? Thanks!
I wouldn’t worry too much about not washing them– I have forgotten sometimes too! Usually I like to give them a little rinse, but that’s just me. It shouldn’t ruin your soup though!
Just made this today was super great! I did swap out the chicken broth fro vegetable broth and nixed the ham for a vegan option…turned out fantastic! Thanks so much!
We’re so glad you liked it! Thank you for the vegan tips!
I don’t eat red meat (including pork), so I cut up meat from a smoked turkey leg to replace the ham. It smells great already, but won’t be ready for several hours. My tummy is grumbling!
I recently made this and loved it! However, I recently made a new lifestyle change because of my health. I’m going to attempt my next batch using cauliflower florets instead of potatoes. Do you think it’ll be too drastic of a change?
I think cauliflower is generally a great substitution for potatoes!
i’m wondering how this recipe will turn out if I don’t use any meat. Any thoughts? We’re not vegetarian but we don’t eat pork and I don’t know of another meet that would work… Any advice would be great! Thank you!
Hi Amanda.. you could probably leave it out, the flavor just won’t be the same. You could try it with another kind of meat.. but it might taste odd :/ sorry not much help here!
I often replace pork in soups with beef smoked sausage.
That is a great substitution for this recipe. The beef smoked sausage will give the soup a delicious flavor. Thanks for the tip!
I don’t eat pork either, so I always replace ham with meat from a smoked turkey leg or thigh.
For a vegetarian version, try adding in some chopped sweet potato (small dice). I don’t know why but when I have used this method with other soups — such as lentil soup — something about the sweet potato adds just a hint of pork/meat flavor. The sweet potato taste isn’t there but bumps up the flavor of the dish overall.
We loved this recipe! I left out the bay leaf (didn’t have any in the house) and omitted the kosher salt (to lower the sodium). It tasted great!! Thanks!
So glad you liked it! Thanks for the comment!
Best split pea soup ever! My kids loved an vs and it made plenty for leftovers! Thank you
So glad you liked it!
I’ve never made split pea soup before but think I’m going to try this recipe this week. My question is, it says to make sure your crock pot is big enough for recipe. I have a 5 qt, will that be big enough or should I just half it?
Thanks!
It makes quite a bit, I think a 5qt should probably be ok.. If you are worried about it you could definitely half it. Sorry that was like no help at all haha, I usually use my 6 qt and it fits pretty well.
This sounds really good. The size of the slow cooker should be added to the comment in the recipe…
I have a 5-quart, however, the ham bone did not fit in the pot … I ended up purchasing a larger pot from Amazon and it came in two days — held the bone in the fridge and it all worked out ok … I knew it would not fit in the small pot, but it’s nice to have that small one …
I love having 2 separate pots– sometimes the big one is too big for what I am doing. Sometimes you just need both sizes!
This is a wonderfully easy soup that taste great…used a meaty ham bone yummy!!!;
I’ve never made split pea soup before, but it is one of my favorite soups so I’m going to try it this week. Probably a silly question, but I don’t normally buy ham and I’m not sure what type of ham I should use? Do I purchase from the deli, meat counter or elsewhere in the store? Thank you!
You can get it from the deli. I just ask them to cut it thicker because I’m going to dice it for a recipe. A Virginia or Black Forest Ham would work great for this recipe. Thanks for asking!
Have the soup in the pot with leftover ham and ham bone from Thanksgiving dinner. The smell is awesome. Even our canine kids are sniffing the air with “smiles” on their faces. It’s going to be delicious, I know. Thank you for this EZ recipe. You’ve made our day (and probably tomorrow, too).
Thank you for your comment! I hope it turned out great!
Made this tonight according to the recipe…but it looked nothing like the picture you posted! Flavor was okay… but it took a spin the blender before it looked even remotely like your pick. Won’t be making this again! Next time it will come from a can! Thanks anyway!
Sorry it didn’t turn out well for you! I don’t know what could have happened :S
The last Two hours of cooking is critical and temp should be in the 150-160 range….
It was delicious
Only not green but brownish
In color
Perhaps you used lentils instead of split peas if it was brown instead of green?!
Looks delicious and easy! Does this recipe require blending? Or does it look like the picture after cooking in the crockpot?
If you cook it down, you shouldn’t need a blender. If you want it to be a more pureed consistency you are surely welcome to use and immersion blender to get that consistency!
Does the ham have to be fully cooked! I want to cook it on low for 7-8 hours and its country ham so I don’t want it to be too salty. What is your opinion?
Rachel, I have always made it with the ham fully cooked and it has always tasted fine. Thanks for asking!
Just made it in the crock pot with a ham bone and all its juices. Hoping it turns out great, have people over for dinner tonight.
Looks delicious! I love Split Pea Soup 🙂 It’s one of those things that you have to love to appreciate a photo of it…and this photo just makes me hungry (I’m also 6mths pregnant and ALWAYS hungry though, lol). I normally make Split Pea Soup on the stove, but with baby coming I’m going to be needing to use my crock pot more..so I’ll have to try this one soon!
Delicious soup! My family loved it. Thanks for the recipe.
Yup, I halved the recipe and it is a good thing I did, it just barely fit into my crockpot! It is a very easy and nice recipe. I am writing about it on my blog today. Thanks for the inspiration!
One thing I've noticed with other recipes (I've yet to try this one, but it looks great!) is that it can be good to leave off adding the ham until you're nearly ready to serve, because it can make the entire soup very salty otherwise!
I just made this for dinner and served it in some bread bowls, AMAZING pea soup recipe!!! I love it. Thanks for sharing all these great recipes.