Ham Bone Split Pea Soup

Let’s face it, most families don’t often make a bone in, baked ham on their weekly rotation of meals, but on special holidays it’s often the star of the show.

Thanksgiving was a just a few days ago and ham was on the menu at my sister-in-laws house. Since she didn’t feel like doing anything with the ham bone she wrapped it up, rang my doorbell and gifted it to me!

Lucky me, there was still a lot of meat left on the bone so split pea with ham was surely going to happen! If you’ve never made split pea using a ham bone, you’re missing out. It gives it a ton of flavor and elevates the soup to another level, even pea haters love this soup!

Just a few ingredients to start the soup off, then it’s a nice slow simmer so all the flavors can meld together.

Grab a big pot with a lid and nestle the ham bone right into the center, then in a couple of hours you’ll be able to pick the meat off the bone.

As you stir the soup while it’s simmering the peas will break down and become nice and creamy!

Just the smell of of this soup simmering on the stove makes your home feel all comfy and cozy, it’s such a hearty and satisfying soup.

Keep in mind, you need something crunchy on top for garnish. So if you have any leftover bread, please make your own croutons. I had some leftover ciabatta bread that I cut up in cubes, drizzled it well with olive oil, then sprinkled it with salt and pepper then into a 400 degree oven til nice and golden.

Crunchy croutons on top of such a hearty, creamy, smokey, meaty delicious soup, I could go on and on!

There are many variations of this soup, some add potatoes ,but I don’t think you need them at all. Some add bacon instead of a ham bone, it may be good, but it’s just not the same. There are vegetarian versions but today we’re not going there. Try this once with a ham bone and you’ll be hooked!

Ham bones freeze well so if you don’t feel like making this right away, tuck it into your freezer for when you do.

And lastly this soup freezes well, so don’t be afraid to make a big batch!

5.0 from 1 reviews

Ham Bone Split Pea Soup

 

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Author: Marie

Ingredients

• 1 meaty ham bone, make sure to leave meat on that bone
• 1- 1lb. bag of green split peas, rinsed well
• 1 quart of chicken stock, low sodium
• 5 cups, water ( more to thin out soup if it thickens too much later)
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 4 carrots, peeled and chopped
• 4 celery stalks, chopped
• 6 thyme branches, stripped
• 2 large garlic cloves, minced
• 2 bay leaves
• olive oil
• good knob of butter
• salt and pepper to taste
• Homemade croutons for garnish

Instructions

1. In a large stock pot with lid, drizzle the bottom with olive oil and add the knob of butter.
2. Throw in the chopped onion, carrots, celery and garlic, saute til soft.
3. Add the split peas and stir well.
4. Sprinkle in the thyme leaves along with the 2 bay leaves and a grind of black pepper.
5. Hold off on the salt until the end for taste because some hams tend to be saltier than others.
6. Pour in the chicken broth then nestle the ham bone right in the center.
7. Add additional cups of water, stirring well, then bring it to a boil, reduce, and let it simmer with lid on almost covered completely.
8. Cooking times vary somewhere between an hour and a half to 2 hours, mine took almost 2 hours on very low. The peas will break down and get nice and creamy
9. Keep checking and stirring.
10. When you start to see the meat falling off the bone, remove the bone, let it cool a little then start picking the meat off and placing the shredded meat back into the pot.
11. Discard bone.
12. Taste for salt, pepper and thyme, adding more if needed. Always stirring to check for thickness.
13. If need be, add a little more water for a looser soup. It's up to you on how thick you want your soup.
14. Garnish with homemade croutons.
15. Use a hearty style bread, cut into cubes, drizzled with olive oil, black pepper and a touch of salt.
16. Place into a 400 degree oven until crispy and golden, it goes fast so keep checking.
17. Enjoy!

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