Name: Easy Split Pea Soup
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 1 h 30 min
Total time: 2 h
Ingredients: 1 pound dried split peas; 2 tablespoons olive oil; 2 tablespoons butter; 1 small onion, diced; 1 celery stalk, diced; 1 cup diced carrots (2-3 carrots); 1 tablespoon minced garlic (2-4 garlic cloves); 1 teaspoon dried thyme; 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano; 8 ounces ham, diced (*see note below for using a meaty ham bone); 6 cups of chicken broth (use vegetable broth if you’re making a vegetarian soup); 1 bay leaf; Salt and ground black pepper

Description

This Easy Split Pea Soup recipe is hearty, delicious, and budget-friendly. With just a handful of ingredients, you can have a steamy, homemade pot of soup on the table for dinner. Serve it with a salad or your favorite crusty bread to make it a full meal.

Ingredients

Units Scale

1 pound dried split peas
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons butter
1 small onion, diced
1 celery stalk, diced
1 cup diced carrots (2-3 carrots)
1 tablespoon minced garlic (2–4 garlic cloves)
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
8 ounces ham, diced (*see note below for using a meaty ham bone)
6 cups of chicken broth (use vegetable broth if you’re making a vegetarian soup)
1 bay leaf
Salt and ground black pepper

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Instructions

Pour the split peas into a shallow bowl or onto a plate. Pick through and remove any stones or other debris, then rinse the peas in a strainer under cold water.
Heat the oil and butter over medium heat in a large soup pot or Dutch oven. Add diced onions, celery, and carrots and saute for 5-7 minutes until beginning to soften. Add the minced garlic, dried thyme, dried oregano, and diced ham and cook, while stirring, for 1 more minute.
Stir in the chicken broth, the split peas, and the bay leaf. Bring soup mixture to a boil, then reduce to a simmer and cover the pot. Simmer for 1 1/2 hours, or until the peas are soft and the soup thickens. (*See the note below about soup thickness).
Before serving, remove the bay leaf and season to taste with salt and ground black pepper.

Notes

You can use a meaty ham bone instead of diced ham in your split pea soup. To do this, simply add the ham bone to the broth and vegetables and simmer until the soup is done. Remove the ham bone (carefully because it will be hot), and remove the meat from the bone. Add the ham back into the soup and discard the bone.
When the peas are soft and your soup is done, it may initially look to be a bit thin or too brothy. But don’t be fooled! Those split peas will thicken up quite a lot as it cools. If you reduce the liquid too much, the soup will end up with the thickness of wet concrete. So let your soup cool for 10 minutes or so. Then stir it and see how the thickness seems at this point. If it is too thick, add a little bit of water. If it still seems too thin, you can put it back on the heat and reduce the liquid down for a few minutes.

Prep Time: 30 minutes
Cook Time: 90 minutes