Slow Cooker Split Pea Soup

Funny story. When my mom was in college, her roommate told her that she was going to make a really yummy dinner and to invite her boyfriend over. So my mom did.

And then her roommate served them split pea soup! It was yummy, but it didn’t exactly seem like company fare to my mom. I mean, it’s green and gloppy. She was embarrassed.

And she told us that story every time she served us split pea soup. So now I tell it to my children every time I serve them this yummy slow cooker split pea soup.

Which is not as often as my kids would like. Every time I serve a ham, I follow it up with split pea soup. It’s our rhythm.

You know how when you serve a spiral-sliced ham, only the widest portion of the ham is spiral sliced? There are large portions of meat around the joint that don’t get sliced. And they don’t get served. Well, at least they won’t get wasted now that you have this easy split pea soup recipe!

After serving the ham, I toss the bone, along with the remnants of meat, into my crockpot, cover it with water, add 2 Tbsp. vinegar, and let it simmer overnight. You’re making stock!

I try to let it simmer a good 24 hours, so the stock is rich and flavorful. The vinegar helps to leach the nutritious minerals from the bones.

I’m pretty sure stock from the store is made with chemicals and flavorings, so I never use it. Good, old-fashioned, bone stocks — the way your Grandma made them — are nourishing and healing to your digestive tract and your body.

So let that bone simmer away!

About 4 hours before you need to eat your split pea soup, remove the bone. The meat will have fallen off it. Dice up the meat, plus any leftover ham (from your ham dinner) you might have in your fridge, and return the meat to the slow cooker.

Add more water, if needed. Your stock may have boiled down. You’ll want at least 4 quarts of liquid, total.

Chop the vegetables you plan to add and throw them in the slow cooker, too, along with the spices and one bag of split peas. When you come back to it in four hours it will be miraculously rich and flavorful and nourishing, and ready to serve, straight from the pot!

Your slow cooker does all the work for you.

What could be easier? Seriously!

Slow Cooker Split Pea Soup Recipe

Ingredients

• hambone and leftover ham
• 16 ounces dried green split peas, rinsed and drained
• 2 diced potatoes
• 6 chopped carrots
• 2 tablespoons minced garlic
• 1 diced onion
• 1 bay leaf
• 1/2 cup fresh parsley, minced, plus extra for garnish
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Instructions

1. Cover your hambone with water in your slow cooker. Add 2 Tbsp. vinegar. Simmer overnight.
2. Remove hambone and meat from the stock. Dice the meat (plus any leftover ham in your fridge) and return to pot.
3. Add (rinsed and drained) dried split peas, onion, potatoes, carrots, and garlic to the slow cooker. Stir in bay leaf and parsley. Cook on high for at least 4 hours, so the split peas kind of melt into each other. Taste and add salt and pepper as needed.
4. I like to give my soup a quick pulse with my immersion blender to make it a little creamier. I don’t pulse very long, though, because I want there to still be identifiable chunks of vegetables.

 

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