This delicious and healthy slow cooker split pea soup requires just 5 minutes of prep time and contains 21 grams of fiber and 28 grams of protein in just one bowl!
Growing up in Southern California, my parents would always take my brother and me to Pea Soup Andersen’s for their famous split pea soup whenever we were in the area. I loved going there because I was a big fan of eating at restaurants with my family and this particular restaurant had tasty bread and pea soup — so what’s not to love?
Thinking about it now, it had probably been a good 15 years since I either ate at Pea Soup Andersen’s with my family or even had pea soup.
Wowza, that’s kinda insane.
All of a sudden, a couple months back, I had a craving for split pea soup. I thought back on how much I enjoyed my dinners and lunches out with my family and had a pang for California and the past. I decided I wanted to try making this old favorite for myself.
Naturally, I turned to my trusty slow cooker.
And, as always, it certainly didn’t let me down. Just like it didn't for this slow cooker chicken tortilla soup and my Healthy Slow Cooker Beef Stew - Perfect Make Ahead Dinner Idea!.
Here’s to making new memories, reliving old, cherished memories, and being healthy all at the same time. And slow cookers. And, of course, slow cooker split pea soup.
HOW TO MAKE SPLIT PEA SOUP IN A SLOW COOKER
I had actually never purchased split peas before so this was all very new to me. I learned you can get a great deal on split peas in the bulk section, which is awesome because I will absolutely be making this recipe for years to come.
Wondering how to make split pea soup in a crockpot?
This split pea and ham soup slow cooker recipes seriously couldn’t be any easier. You literally add all the ingredients to the slow cooker and then walk away while it cooks up one of the most fabulous, heart-warming, and rich split pea soups you’ve ever had the fortune to eat.
And, remember, I grew up on the stuff.
How to thicken split pea soup
I never ran into this problem but if the slow cooker split pea soup doesn’t have your desired consistency because you accidentally added too much water, you can easily fix it by…
- adding pureed peas to the watery split pea soup and stirring until the soup reaches the desired thickness;
- mixing 1 tablespoon of whole-wheat flour with 3 tablespoons of water and adding the mixture to the split pea soup. Stir until the soup reaches the desired thickness.
Now that you know how to make split pea soup in a slow cooker, let’s discuss what to serve with split pea soup. You can opt for:
- ham – as I did;
- pita or another type of healthy bread (homemade croutons are also great);
- fresh herb such as parsley to garnish the soup.
WHAT IS SPLIT PEA SOUP?
Split Pea Soup is a satisfying and hearty soup, made with split peas and, usually, ham bone or ham. Holiday leftover ham is amazing in split pea soup BTW. A sweet, smoky, comforting bowl of deliciousness, in other words.
What are split peas?
Not sure what’s the difference between peas and split peas, well, split peas are dried, peeled, and split in half peas that are used in various dishes including curries and soups.
IS SPLIT PEA SOUP HEALTHY?
All in all, this is one extremely tasty, hearty, and filling soup. I love how healthy split pea soup is and how good for you as well – just one bowl of this soup will not only fill you up, but it will provide you with 21 grams of fiber and 28 grams of protein, among tons of other nutritional goodness. Not too bad, my friends.
One of the best things, I’ve found, about making your own split pea soup using a slow cooker is that you can control the salt content and the amount of meat. The split pea soups I’ve had in the past weren’t chock full of delicious, tender ham – but just dusted with it.
Fixed that problem and then some! I also didn’t need to add a single drop of salt, since I used the natural saltiness of the ham to season the soup which worked perfectly. Love it when I reduce the need for salt!
Split Pea Nutrition
Let’s take a look at the split peas nutrition to better understand the amazingness of split peas, shall we?
- are low in calories – only 231 calories per cup;
- are a great source of protein;
- are a great source of fiber;
- contain vitamins including:
- vitamin K;
- vitamin A;
- vitamin B;
- are rich in minerals such as:
- iron;
- magnesium;
- manganese;
- phosphorus;
- potassium;
- zinc.
HOW TO MAKE VEGETARIAN SPLIT PEA SOUP
This split pea soup recipe is made with ham but if you’re looking for how to make split pea soup without ham or pork, it’s very easy to do. You’ll just need to not add it in. You’ll still have all the flavor of the vegetables, and the protein from the split peas and other veggies.
To make vegetarian split pea soup, you can also replace the chicken broth with vegetable broth.
HOW LONG DOES SPLIT PEA SOUP LAST?
If you store it in an airtight container, split pea soup lasts for 3-4 days in the fridge.
Since this split pea soup recipe makes quite a lot of split pea soup, you’ll likely find yourself with plenty of leftovers. The good news is you can easily freeze leftover slow cooker pea soup for quick family meals or in pre-portioned, nutritious lunches. Here are some tips for how to freeze split pea soup:
Allow the soup to cool completely. Since slow cookers retain heat very well, you may want to transfer to a large bowl and place in the refrigerator to cool more quickly.
Freeze in either gallon– or quart-sized freezer bags or freezer safe containers for easy thawing and storage.
Leave enough space at the top of the bag to allow for expansion during freezing. Squeeze as much air as possible out of the top of the bag and seal securely.
Place the soup-filled freezer bags in the freezer, in a single, flat layer (using a rimmed baking sheet is helpful). Allow to freeze completely. Then, stack them on top of each other or standing side by side.
Thaw bags of frozen split pea soup in the refrigerator overnight.
3 MORE HEALTHY SLOW COOKER SOUP RECIPES
If this slow cooker split pea soup made you excited about slow cooker soups, I have 3 more healthy slow cooker recipes that are just as good as this split peas soup. Learn more about them and get your slow cooker ready for more deliciousness.
SLOW COOKER CHICKEN TORTILLA SOUP
This Slow Cooker Chicken Tortilla Soup is healthy, hearty, and flavorful. The soup is also comforting and perfect for weeknight Winter dinners.
The Slow Cooker Chicken Tortilla Soup is made with fresh ingredients only which makes it more flavorful than usual and it is topped with cheese for even more flavor and texture.
SLOW COOKER HOT AND SOUR SOUP
Another great slow cooker soup is this Slow Cooker Hot And Sour Soup that takes only 10 minutes to prep. The soup is healthy, clean, and totes delicious.
Only 206 calories per serving, 17 g of protein, and only 14 g of carbs in a bowl of yummy you can enjoy for lunch or a light dinner.
CROCK POT CHICKEN ENCHILADA SOUP
If you love enchilada, this Crock Pot Chicken Enchilada Soup is for sure a soup you’ll love. A lot.
Rich, savory, yummy but low-carb and healthy, the Crock Pot Chicken Enchilada Soup is a great way to enjoy enchiladas without feeling guilty or without compromising your healthy diet.
Slow Cooker Split Pea Soup
Equipment
- Slow Cooker
*This post may contain affiliate links for products I use often and highly recommend.
Ingredients
- 16 oz dried split peas (about 2 cups)
- 1 ½ lb ham bone
- 3 carrots, diced
- 1 yellow onion, diced
- 1 shallot, diced
- 2 stalks celery, diced
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1 bay leaf
- 6 cups low sodium chicken stock
Instructions
- In the bowl of a crock pot, combine the split peas, carrots, yellow onion, shallot, celery, garlic, thyme, pepper, bay leaf, and chicken stock. Mix well.
- Add the ham bone on top and nestle into the contents of the slow cooker.
- Cover and cook on Low for 5-6 hours, or until ham is tender and easily pulls off the bone.
- Remove the ham and shred into bite-size pieces using two forks, then return the ham meat to the slow cooker, and discard the bone.
- Remove the bay leaf and serve.
Video
Nutrition
This post contains affiliate links for products I use regularly and highly recommend.
debbie stuckey
hi Lacey, can you give me some ideas on how to eat Mung beans?
Ericka
This was delicious ! I have never made or eaten this soup before. Love that it all goes in with hardly any work. Great flavor!
Matt
Dried peas must be soaked overnight first, or boiled an hour in advanced in order to be soft.
Chris
I think I know what's going on with those that have reported crunchy peas... Most split pea crock pot recipes recommend cooking for 4 to 5 hours on high, or 7 to 8 hours on low. I think folks will have better results with those numbers / settings.
Ericka
I agree . I put the peas in dry and allowed the crock pot to cook for 6 hours they were perfectly done. My husband the culinary arts grad also recommend when you take the ham out to use a bur (s/p?)mixer to make everything smooth and then put the ham back in. I like the texture. Also I stirred it 3 - 4 times while cooking.
debbie stuckey
do you put broth in with the peas or just cook them dry?
Susan
I also grew up going to Pea Soup Andersons. Had never made pea soup. Were we supposed to do something with the peas before putting in crockpot? The split peas are crunchy! I have a great crockpot and never have a problem. How can I save this big batch of soup? (There's a pea stuck in my throat!) And I followed the recipe exactly! Help!
Michael
I have always loved split pea soup but have never made it. I followed this recipe exactly and it was fantastic! I saw some comments about crunchy peas and I didn't experience that. Set the crock pot to high (that's a six hour setting on ours) and forgot about it. Really, this recipe is GREAT!!
B
Have you ever had any issues with your peas staying crunchy? I put all the ingredients into the crockpot and cooked on low for 14 hours - and the peas were still crunchy, not soft and mushy.
Dawn Perry
I am 61 years old and have never used dried lentils! What caught my eyes was Andersen's Pea Soup! I grew up going there with my parents for many holidays. Yum, yum. I thought they were no longer there. Is that wrong. Loved the place. I'm excited to try this as I have a ham bone left over from a church event. What were they talking about with the blender? What''s that all about? I'll be making ti this weekend. Anything else a novice needs to know?
Rosie
I’m making this now but added a potato. I hope it doesn’t change anything.
Gail
The Nutritional Facts you included for this soup list a single serving as "one bowl". Could you please translate that into Cups or Ounces? Thank you... looks yummy!
Sara
I LOVED your recipe. First time I made split pea soup. One note, 16 oz. is actually 2 cups not 4. It looks like a few other readers had an issue with this. The other thing I added to mine and I thought it made for a nice richness of flavor was a dash of powdered mustard and some marjoram, and I had saved the cooking juices when I made the ham originally so I used 2 cups of that and 4 cups of chicken broth. Thanks for the recipe, I will definitely be using it again.
Lacey Baier
Awesome, so glad you enjoyed it. Love the additions you chose!
Amanda
Yes with one hour left my split peas are still a bit hard too... hoping they soften as my husband is a bit skeptical with this soup, and i was hoping to pleasantly surprise him! So may try the immersion blender if need be. Wondering if I should turn it to high for the last little bit?
Lacey Baier
They should become tender - have faith! 🙂
Carrie
The recipe calls for 4 cups of split peas but your video says about 2cups of split peas. I made it with the 4 cups and added more chicken broth. Still waiting for it to finish. Hope it turns out...
Melanie
8 ounces to a cup would be 2 cups in 16 ounces, not the 4 in the recipe.
Lacey Baier
Thanks for catching that - I made the correction. 🙂
Lacey Baier
So sorry about that - it was a typo/mistake. The recipe should have said 2 cups, not 4.
Karen
Looks like a great recipe, looking forward to making it. Very, very annoying pop up ads while watching, not sure if I'll come back.
Lacey Baier
That's no good! I hope you enjoy the recipe nonetheless.
Kryslin Weston
I too stop at Split Pea Anderson's every chance I get when on the ride up north and love the silky, tasty split pea - endless bowl option of course! That being said, this recipe brought me back to Anderson's dinner but completely reinvented.
My split pea based of Lacey's recipe came out thick which I didn't mind! I usually cook down my soup and add lots of pepper to get a rich, split pea-ham flavor. I was sad that the hambone I picked out from Whole Foods required a TON of work to get tiny little bits of ham. Be prepared, if you're looking to get your dish as lean as possible, to take away as much fat pre-cook and get ready for a messy post-cook strip down of all the additional fat. The fat-stripping struggle was well worth it.
Aside from the fat stripping from the ham, my only distress over the recipe came when I tried the soup during the last half hour of cooking - the split peas were hard and gritty! HAVE NO FEAR! Though this is not part of the recipe I would strongly recommend an immersion blender. Do not blend the soup to a baby food consistency. Simply 1-2 minutes starting and stopping, with the soup still in the cooker, will give the soup a smoother texture while keeping the integrity of the peas/carrots/etc. intact.
My partner and I cannot wait to eat another round of the soup tonight, as we're expecting rain!
As always, another great recipe and don't forget - freeze what you don't eat in the first few days for an easy meal in the following weeks.
Lacey Baier
Great feedback again! Yay for Andersens 🙂 Yes, I totally got the endless soups as well. That's too bad about the ham bone, though - that's never fun 🙁 Thank you so much for your input - that is very valuable information and I so very much appreciate it 🙂 Hooray for split pea soup!
Mary
Hi ! Can I use two 32 oz chicken broth containers with your recipe ?
Susan
And for those of us that don't have an immersion blender? Pretty sad about this issue...