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Instant Pot Split Pea Soup

Updated Nov 19, 2020Published Apr 24, 2018 By Julia 50 CommentsThis post may contain affiliate links.

Summary:
Pressure cookers are your friend when it comes to making anything soft and tender, like soups and stews. This split pea soup is thick and creamy, with texture akin to potato soup, and is a convenient dump-and-go recipe. The green peas, onions, and celery are easily broken down by pressure cooking, adding to the soup's viscosity. Vegetarians and vegans can enjoy this soup as-is; meat lovers can add ham or bacon.
split pea soup served in white bowl

Instant Pot Split Pea Soup

4.9 from 30 votes
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Prep: 10 mins
Cook: 15 mins
Natural Release: 15 mins
Yield: 10 servings

INGREDIENTS

  • 1 pound split green peas, rinsed (Note 1)
  • 7 cups water or broth (Note 2)
  • 1.5 cups diced onions (1/2 onion; Note 3)
  • 1 cup diced carrots (3 carrots)
  • 1 cup diced celery (3 stalks)
  • 3 cloves garlic, minced
  • 3 bay leaves
  • 1 teaspoon smoked paprika (Note 4)
  • 1 teaspoon table salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
  • optional meat or potatoes (Notes 5-6)

INSTRUCTIONS

  • Add Ingredients: Add all ingredients to pressure cooker pot (Note 7), and briefly stir together.
  • Pressure Cook: Secure and seal lid. Cook at high pressure for 15 minutes, followed by 15 minute natural release (Note 8). Then turn pressure knob to venting position to release any remaining pressure.
  • Cool & Serve: Uncover. Remove bay leaves and stir. Soup will be very hot, so let stand to cool. Serve (Note 9) and save any leftovers (Note 10).

NUTRITION

Makes 10 Servings
Amount Per Serving (1 cup):
Calories 170 (3% from fat)  
Total Fat 1g 1%
   Saturated Fat 0g 0%
Cholesterol 0mg 0%
Sodium 260mg 11%
Net Carb 17.5g  
Total Carb 30g 10%
   Dietary Fiber 12.5g 51%
   Sugars 5g  
Protein 11g  
Vitamin A 21% · Vitamin C 3% · Calcium 3% · Iron 10%

PHOTOS

split pea soup served in white bowl
ingredients for making split pea soup
split green peas in instant pot
adding vegetables to instant pot
adding water and seasonings to instant pot
close up view of split pea soup

NOTES & TIPS

(1) Split Green Peas. These are dried peas with the skin removed, then split in half. Split green and yellow peas are interchangeable in this recipe, with a slight difference in flavor. Before cooking, sort the peas by sifting them with your fingers and discarding any pea pod fragments or dirt.
(2) Water / Broth. In my tests, there was no noticeable flavor difference between using water or broth. I use water for convenience, but some readers prefer using vegetable broth or chicken broth. I’ve also experimented with various liquid levels ranging from 6 to 8 cups. With 6 cups, the resulting soup was too thick, almost like a split pea puree. With 8 cups, it was too thin and watery. I found that 7 cups of liquid is ideal. You can adjust this amount if you prefer your soups to be on the thicker or thinner side.
(3) Mirepoix Option. Save time on preparing the onions, carrots, and celery stalks by buying mirepoix, which is a pre-diced package of those vegetables. I sometimes use a 14 ounce tub of mirepoix from Trader Joe’s, which is the equivalent of half an onion, 3 carrots, and 3 celery stalks.
(4) Paprika. This contributes extra flavor and a slight heat to the soup. There are multiple varieties of paprika; I recommend smoked paprika or Spanish paprika, which are more strongly flavored than the mild basic supermarket paprika.
(5) Meat Option. Add leftover diced ham, ham bone, diced bacon, or pancetta. The meat can be added to the pressure cooker at the same time as the other ingredients, with no changes to the cooking time. Remove any bones before serving. I think this soup tastes best sans meat; for other opinions, check out the comments section. The provided nutrition estimate does not include meat.
(6) Potato Option. Add 2 chopped Yukon Gold potatoes plus 1 extra cup of liquid. Note that a fine chop results in a mushy potato texture and a coarser chop will stay intact. The cooking time remains the same. Personally, I don’t add potatoes because the soup is deliciously thick and creamy as-is, and I’m minimizing my carb intake. The provided nutrition estimate does not include potatoes.
(7) Pressure Cooker. I use a 6-quart Instant Pot. You can use a different size of electric pressure cooker as long as all ingredients fit within the maximum capacity line.
(8) Natural Release. Once the timer beeps to signal the end of pressure cooking, let the pot stand for 15 minutes to naturally release pressure. You don’t need to press any buttons.
(9) Serving. Serve the soup once it’s cool enough to eat. Note that the soup will thicken a bit as it cools. Serve it alongside a deviled ham salad, a simple romaine salad drizzled with sherry vinaigrette, or toasted bread (look for low carb breads at Costco and Aldi in the U.S.).
(10) Leftovers. Leftovers can be covered and stored in the refrigerator for up to 3 days, and reheated using the microwave. I don’t recommend freezing the soup because the consistency will be noticeably less smooth.

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Filed Under: Per Serving: More Than 10g Net Carbs, Soups Tagged With: 31-60min, carrot, celery, gluten free, green peas, instant pot, more10ingredients, onion, paleo, vegan, vegetarian, whole30

About Julia

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Julia is a recipe developer and the founder of Savory Tooth. Since 2015, she has been sharing simple recipes for tasty dishes, mostly low carb and gluten free. Learn more.

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Deb McKay

I make many soups and split pea is my favorite soup, but I never made it because I feared putting all that effort into a recipe and then be disappointed. I saw your recipe this week & decided to give it a try because it sounded so easy. It is easy and awesome! Love the smoked paprika – gives the perfect flavor. I used chicken broth and added two diced Yukon gold potatoes, with an extra cup of liquid. I am so happy with the soup and will be a regular part of my rotation. THANK YOU!!!

Vote Up13Vote Down  Reply
4 years ago
Tracy Kelly

Made this tonight and it’s fantastic. Added 2 large potatoes cubed and 1 cup extra liquid and was perfect. Smaller pieces of potato mushed but the bigger cubes stayed whole. Perfect dinner with some sourdough bread for dunking. Thanks for this great recipe!!!

Vote Up8Vote Down  Reply
2 years ago
June

Great recipe AND I was not forced to scroll through a bunch of life stories just to get the recipe! Thank You!

Vote Up5Vote Down  Reply
6 months ago
Joy

I have made this many times and it’s wonderful. Flavorful, easy and satisfying!

Vote Up4Vote Down  Reply
2 years ago
Mark F Banjak

This was the very first thing I made in my Instant pot. It is a great first thing to make. I’ve had pressure cookers in the past, but I never had any luck. Thank you.

Vote Up4Vote Down  Reply
2 years ago
Harry

OK! So been making this on request at least once a month for the past 5 – 6 months. My family loves it! I’ve finally finished tweaking it to suit my families tastes. My final version of your soup is: +1 tsp Cumin, +5 tsp Liquid Smoke, +1 extra bay leaf, +1 pound of potatoes, +1 extra cup of water. Then once it’s served into bowls add a little Chipotle Tobasco sauce to taste for some heat and a small bit of either Greek Yogurt or Sour Cream on top. Absolute perfection in a bowl! You don’t even miss the fact that there is absolutely no meat at all. Leftovers when there is any rarely last long.

Vote Up3Vote Down  Reply
3 years ago
Barb

I just made two pots of this. One vegan and one with ham. I love my vegan pot. I used some ham juice from a ham that I baked yesterday for some of the water in the second pot, then added some leftover diced ham after the pressure was released. My husband said that it was the best I’ve ever made. Thanks!!

Vote Up3Vote Down  Reply
3 years ago
Sunsette

I made this with the ham bone & added the juice from the cooked ham. Everyone agreed it was fabulous. Instead of celery I used an apple, diced, and replaced the bay leaf with rosemary. I’ve made rosemary split pea many times the old fashioned way. Usually is a whole day event as everything simmers, and then you purée your split peas to get the right consistency. Making it this time it was ready to eat in 1 1/2 hours, with no extra work. Easy, fast and delicious. I will never go back to the old way.

Vote Up2Vote Down  Reply
1 year ago
MARY

There was a little too much liquid and I only used 6 cups because that filled mine to the full mark in my smaller Instant Mini duo. Besides that it had good flavor. I used broth. I also sauteed the carrots and onions while I chopped the garlic to give it a head’s start so maybe that is why–they were too cooked to absorb liquid? Still though, seemed like a lot. Maybe I will add rice to the leftovers to help it.

Vote Up1Vote Down  Reply
3 years ago
Ruth

I made this tonight with the 7 cups and it is way too runny. Would use 6 or less cups of water next time. Otherwise worked well.

Vote Up0Vote Down  Reply
2 years ago
Trisha

If I wanted to put in diced potatoes, do I need to adjust the time for longer?

Vote Up1Vote Down  Reply
3 years ago
Julia

I think the 15-min pressure cooking time would be way too long for diced potatoes, which would turn to mush by the end (unless that’s what you’re looking for). You’d be better off adding the diced potatoes after pressure cooking, using the saute mode until they’re tender.

Vote Up0Vote Down  Reply
3 years ago
Kellie

Do larger potatoes, cut them in half, then at the end take them out with tongs and cut them and toss them back in.

Vote Up2Vote Down  Reply
2 years ago
Lindsay

Loved this recipe. We’ve made it 3 times now, and each time a bit different depending on what I have in the house. We love it every time. This last time I mistakenly grabbed green lentils instead of green split peas. I only increased the water (based on a quick search of a lentil soup recipe). Thanks for a family winner!!!

Vote Up1Vote Down  Reply
3 years ago
Caroline

Just made this in my Pampered Chef quick cooker and it turned out amazing! Great recipe! I used the soup/stock setting and cooked for 15 minutes on high pressure. Fabulous use of our leftover Christmas ham bone!

Vote Up1Vote Down  Reply
4 years ago
Carol

I love the Quick Cooker. I adapt any IP recipes for it. This is next!

Vote Up0Vote Down  Reply
4 years ago
Tunde L

AMAZING!!! Followed the recipe 100%. I did put it all together, turned on the Instantpot and left to run errands. So by the time I got back it was done, had naturally released the steam and was warming for almost an hour. Not thick at all, flavor is beyond delicious. I would highly recommend using a ham bone to get the Smokey flavor. This will become a family favorite!!!

Vote Up1Vote Down  Reply
4 years ago
Marie W

I made this recipe adding ham at the beginning and it turned out great. Good flavor. I think I may add a diced potato next time but will definitely make this soup again!

Vote Up1Vote Down  Reply
4 years ago
Jane

Really loved this soup. I followed the recipe with the two potatos + 1 cup additional liquid – i used an immersion blender after to really blend in all the potato pieces. It was still a bit thin for my liking but the flavor was very good. The leftovers were nice and thick after being in the fridge overnight, which was much closer to how I like my pea soup. I’ll definitely make this one again, but probably decrease the liquid. Even my partner who eats meat loved this soup.

Vote Up0Vote Down  Reply
3 days ago
Marigold

Made the soup as stated but with what I had on hand, reg. Paprika, one carton of vegetable broth (4 cups), 2.5 cups of water, an add’l 1/2 tsp of salt, a cup of cubed ham and last night’s ham bone. Truly Scrumptious! Delicioso!. The flavor is outstanding!

Vote Up0Vote Down  Reply
1 month ago
Melissa

I have made this recipe a couple of times. Fabulous flavour! My one observation is that the peas don’t seem to be as soft as they could be. Could I soak them first? How long would you recommend?

Vote Up0Vote Down  Reply
3 months ago
Mary Lynne

We live at 8,000 ft. in the Rockies. Adjusted the cooking time accordingly. Soup came out beyond favulous!
Thank you. This will be our gold standard for this soup going forward.

Vote Up0Vote Down  Reply
3 months ago
Janet

I don’t like peas, but I LOVE this soup!

Vote Up0Vote Down  Reply
9 months ago
Sandi

Fantastic!

Vote Up0Vote Down  Reply
1 year ago
Sandi Keizer

Fantastic and so quick!

Vote Up0Vote Down  Reply
1 year ago
Enyaj

This is the best Split Pea Soup for the Instant Pot out there! Thank you! I added a little vegan ham flavored bullion and it’s even better (cut the added salt down or omit if you do this, home cooks!).

For those saying it’s too watery, I use 7 cups water but I also add one large diced potato and perhaps that makes it thicker, but I do like a thinner pea soup.

Vote Up0Vote Down  Reply
1 year ago
Laurey

I made this today and followed the recipe exactly as stated. I did not add any meat or potatoes. The best split pea soup I’ve ever made. Thank you so much for sharing.

Vote Up0Vote Down  Reply
2 years ago
GJV

Turned out great. First time using a new Instant Pot. Was very easy and followed you directions to the letter. Would like to know how 1.5 cups of onion is only half a onion. That was the only question I had. 7 cups of Vegetable broth made it taste perfect.

Vote Up0Vote Down  Reply
2 years ago
Julia

I guess my onions are on the larger side. It’s best to follow the volume measurement (cups) rather than the quantity, in this case. Thank you for the review, and I’m glad to hear that you enjoyed the soup!

Vote Up0Vote Down  Reply
2 years ago
Ron K

Good and easy. We didn’t have any bacon, so I used a little pancetta. I used only one cup of peas and 3.5 cups of water, which made 3 generous servings. We cooked it in the Instipot for 8 minutes which was MORE than enough, in fact about a minute too much for our taste.

Vote Up0Vote Down  Reply
2 years ago

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