Easy Instant Pot Split Pea Soup with Ham Recipe

Split pea soup is one of my favorite soups because it’s a classic soup that’s both comforting and filling. This hearty soup is made with simple ingredients and comes together easily in the Instant Pot. Instead of using a ham bone, I used cooked ham leftover from my crockpot ham, and the result was a tasty soup packed with rich, smoky flavor. Whether you’re looking for a cozy meal on a chilly night or a great way to use up leftovers, this recipe is sure to become a family favorite!

When our family all wants to be outside playing, you want a quick Instant Pot soup recipe for dinner that the family will love. Hearty and comforting, make it any time you have leftover ham. Made with dried green split peas and fresh vegetables, you can make the soup without the ham for a vegetarian split pea soup.

Fall is a beautiful time of the year when our family wants to play outside, and a big bowl of split pea soup is perfect for lunch and dinner. Instant Pot recipes enhance the flavors, making a delicious soup even more flavorful. Traditional split pea soup was a common recipe in colonial days, and these recipes have been passed down through generations to our kitchens today.

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What are Split Peas?:

Split peas are fresh peas that are dried and then split. They are hard like an un-soaked bean. Normally making a soup with split peas will take hours of soaking and then cooking on the stove. Making any of your soups with split peas in the Instant Pot makes for a fast and flavorful meal. Peas are high in protein and low in fat. Split peas are a good source of fiber.

Ham a Hearty Split Pea Soup: 

Traditionally split pea soup with a leftover ham bone is made in a large pot on the stove, cooking for hours to soften the peas and to get that rich ham flavor. You can use the flavoring package that comes with the split peas or you can leave this out for a milder flavor. Traditional split pea soup was made after the holidays when you have a lot of ham left over. Or you have a ham bone from a Sunday dinner.

For this tasty easy soup recipe, I used diced ham that was left over from my Brown Sugar Pineapple CrockPot Spiral Ham Recipe. I dice up all the leftover ham for a sweet and smoky flavor of ham. You can use a ham hock or a ham steak from the store already sliced and cooked.

However, you can make this soup without any meat at all to have just a vegetarian split pea soup. You can use vegetable stock and water for a delicious vegetarian version. 

Ingredients for an Instant Pot Split Pea Soup Recipe: 

• 1 package of green split peas with the ham flavor seasoning packet (optional packet)
• 4 Carrots, peeled and diced
• 3 stocks of Celery, washed and diced
• 1 medium white or yellow Onion Diced
• 2-3 Clove of Garlic, roughly chopped
• 1 teaspoon of Rice Wine Vinegar (optional)
• 7 to 8 oz of chopped leftover Ham
• 4 cups of Vegetable Broth
• 4 Cups of Water
• Salt and Pepper

How to Make Split Pea Soup with Ham:

1. First, take your bag of split peas and rinse them with cold water. Take a look and make sure there are not any small stones in the package.
2. While the peas are draining I would suggest chopping all of your vegetables before you do anything else.  Cut onion, carrots, and celery into uniform bite-size. I use my Vidalia Vegetable Chopper to make all the vegetables a uniform size and it goes more quickly. 
3. Add to a 6-quart Instant Pot the package of split peas with the package of flavor seasoning, the chopped onion, carrots, celery, garlic, the chopped ham, wine vinegar, 4 cups of vegetable broth, and 4 cups of water. 
4. Stir and set the lid on top and close the vent. 
5. Set the Instant Pot to High Pressure for 10 minutes with a 10-minute natural release. 
6. Serve with warm crusty bread

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