I had some split pea soup from the hospital cafeteria the other day and while it was satisfying, something about it just didn’t taste genuine. So, I thought it was time to make some of my own. Plus, it was >$2 per serving and I knew that I could do better than that! Right I was.
Smoked ham hocks are usually used to infuse split pea soup with flavor, but I didn’t feel like dealing with one of those monstrosities. So, I went with bacon instead. Bacon still gives you that salty-smokey ham flavor, but is a little easier to deal with (and sometimes easier to find). Bacon and potato are pretty much made for each other, so I decided to throw some of those in there too. Between the bacon and chicken broth, this soup already has a lot of flavor going on, so you don’t have to mess with measuring out five or six different herbs and spices. It’s as simple and delicious as it gets. It’s soup for beginners!
Split Pea, Bacon & Potato Soup
Servings 8 1-1.5 cups eachIngredients
- 6 oz bacon ($1.68)
- 1 medium yellow onion ($0.47)
- 2 cloves garlic ($0.16)
- 1 lb split peas ($1.48)
- 8 cups chicken broth* ($1.04)
- 1 whole bay leaf ($0.15)
- freshly cracked pepper ($0.05)
- 1 1/2 lbs potatoes ($1.44)
- 1/2 tsp salt ($0.02)
Instructions
- Cut the bacon into one-inch strips and add to a large pot. Cook the bacon over medium heat until it is brown and crispy.
- While the bacon is browning, dice the onion and mince the garlic. Once the bacon has browned, add the onion and garlic to the pot and continue to cook and stir over medium heat. The moisture from the onions will dissolve the browned bits from the bottom of the pot and absorb the bacon flavor.
- Once the onions are soft and translucent (5 minutes), add the split peas, chicken broth, bay leaf, and a healthy dose of freshly cracked pepper (20-25 cranks of a pepper mill).
- Allow the soup to begin heating through while you peel and cube the potatoes. Cut the peeled potatoes into one-inch cubes then add them to the soup. Place a lid on the pot, turn the heat up to high, and bring it to a rolling boil. When it reaches a rolling boil, turn the heat down to low and let it simmer gently for 45 minutes.
- After 45 minutes of simmering, test the peas to make sure they are very soft. Turn the heat off and let the soup cool slightly. Remove the bay leaf and then use an immersion blender to lightly blend the soup until it is creamy with a few chunks. If you don’t have an immersion blender, carefully transfer a few cups at a time to a blender, drape a towel over the lid, and pulse the contents until smooth. Work in batches until half of the soup is blended smooth.
- Taste the soup and add additional salt as needed (I added about 1/2 teaspoon). Serve with crusty bread or garnishes like shredded cheddar cheese or sliced green onions.
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Notes
Nutrition
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How to Make Split Pea Soup with Bacon – Step by Step Photos
Start by slicing the bacon into one-inch strips. I used half of a 12 oz. package. The other half will be frozen for later use. Place the sliced bacon in a large pot and cook over medium heat until brown and crispy.
While the bacon is cooking, dice the onion and mince the garlic.
Now the bacon is nicely browned and crispy. The brown stuff stuck to the bottom of the pot will be dissolved off in the next step, so don’t worry about that. If you plan on blending your soup until it is completely smooth later (I left mine half chunky), you may want to remove the bacon at this step and add it back in the end. The bacon fat will still provide plenty of flavor as the rest of the soup cooks.
Add the onions and garlic to the pot. Continue to cook and stir. As the onions soften and release moisture, the browned bits stuck to the bottom of the pot will loosen and dissolve. Cook until the onions are soften and translucent.
Add the split peas. You can find these in near the dry beans in the grocery store.
Also add the chicken broth, bay leaf, and some freshly cracked pepper.
Allow the soup to begin heating while you peel and cube the potatoes. I used red skinned potatoes, but decided to peel them so that the soup would be a bit more smooth in the end. Cut them into one-inch cubes then add them to the soup. Place a lid on the pot, turn the heat up to high and let the pot come to a rolling boil. Once it reaches a rolling boil, turn the heat down to low and let it simmer gently for 45 minutes.
After 45 minutes check to make sure the peas are very soft. Remove the bay leaf and turn off the heat.
Allow the soup to cool a bit because blending hot liquids is super dangerous. Work in small batches, filling your blender only half way. Always drape a towel over the blender so that if some of the hot/warm liquids escape, they won’t spray all over and burn you (because no soup, no matter how delicious, is worth burning your face off for).
Pulse the mixture until it is smooth, then add it back to the pot. Repeat this process until about half of the soup has been blended smooth.
Taste the soup one last time and add more salt as needed. Potatoes tend to absorb a lot of salt, so you’ll likely need a little bit more just to give it some punch. I added about 1/2 teaspoon. Now you have a silky smooth yet chunky Split Pea, Bacon & Potato Soup.
Is there a good way to make a *reverse* substitution?
I have close to 20 lbs of ham in my freezer I’m trying to use up now (unusually, sales have made it almost the cheapest meat around). Much as I love bacon, it would actually be counter-productive for me to use it exclusively instead of ham in this recipe.
Also, world carrots clash with the flavor palette? They’re often added to spilt pea soup, but this one’s a little different than average.
I think carrots would be great, as long as you didn’t go overboard with them. :)
Yes, you can definitely use ham instead. It will still add great flavor to the soup. I’d just cube it up and sauté it for a minute or two just like I did with the bacon.
Another winner! Tonight is my second time making this recipe, however this time I’m going to skip the blender…because I dont want to dirty another dish! ;) Thanks Beth for all the amazing recipes! I literally haven’t tried one I didn’t like!
I just made this soup for the first time. It was excellent and my father gave it a rave review. I decided against using my immersion blender and kept the soup chunky. Yum!
Hey Beth, Great website!
I just made this recipe for the second time because it was a real hit the first time! I made a few changes, which are a nice addition if anyone is looking to mix it up a bit (and add more veggies to the recipe). 1) I took the bacon out after frying it (didn’t like the idea of blending it) and added it back in after puréeing the soup a bit. 2) I added some chopped carrots and celery after sautéing the onion. 3) I also added frozen peas and corn to the partially puréed soup and let it all sit for a bit to meld the flavours. Oh and 4) threw in some thyme sprigs with the bay leaf! It’s super good with the refreshing pop of peas and corn in each bite.
**update – this is a lovely recipe – it makes a very thick soup, (I did have to water it down slightly when i reheated it yesterday), and i got 6 massive portions out of it (i’m trying not to eat bread so want to fill up on the soup) – I had one portion for lunch yesterday and I was stuffed for hours! I didn’t get hungry until about 7 and I ate at 1 – that’s not usually like me at all. I’m having the same for lunch today and cant wait
Love this.
I ended up using 1 sweet potato, with the rest standard potatoes. Instead of using pepper and salt (did not think it needed salt with the bacon – I went easy on the bacon, and actually cooked and drained it prior to starting the recipe to cut the fat), I used the Bay leaf, but also a little powdered ginger, and a little powdered mustard. I pureed about 2/3 of the total batch, including the part I will freeze, but will keep a little of the small potato chunks for tonight’s servings. Thanks for the great recipe.
Nom! Just making this, the house smells amazing, going to have it with so home made bread :-) cheers for the recipe Beth
I usually add sliced/diced carrots with the onions. I like the sweetness it adds.
Hi Beth,
Do you think this would still be good with beef broth? It’s what I currently have in my cabinet.
It might! Beef broth tends to have a slightly stronger flavor, so just keep that in mind. Also, it is darker in color, so your soup may turn a bit brown.
I haven’t had a good split pea soup since I was a child and my grandma made hers. I used turkey bacon tonight and my boys and I so enjoyed it. I will be making this again and again. Thank you. Not just for this recipe, but for so many others. You have gotten me out of my rut, and on budget thanks to changes in our lives!
Making this soup for the second time right now, and this is by far my most favorite split pea soup ever!
This recipe is so easy and quick can’t get enough of it! Thank you.
I liked this recipe.
I used red lentils instead of split peas because I had ran out of split peas, and added celery. I also did not put the soup in the food processor. It was delicious.
How many ml or g in a cup you use for broth?
One cup equals approximately 236 mL.
Love this recipe! So easy to make and it is delicious! Perfect for the cold evenings.The only thing I did differently was that I left out the potato.
So simple but so good! Got a kick out of the 100 or so comments about forgetting the potato step. Cracked me up!