Split Pea Soup In My Instant Pot - 20 minutes and it is done!

I made a ham for Christmas dinner and had lots of leftovers.  One of our favorite leftovers is split pea soup with LOTS of ham.  Since I eat protein first I thought about how I could bump up the protein in the soup so that it met my needs of my meals having at least 1 gram of protein - for every 10 calories…  I did it!  The soup is not only delicious but one cup of it (my portion size) is 187 calories and 21 grams of protein.  The protein comes mostly from the ham and the split peas with a big boost from the chicken bone broth I used in lieu of water or plain broth.  The flavors blended in 20 minutes in my Instant Pot and it tastes like it had been simmering on the stove for the entire day.

Here’s the recipe - Try it for yourself

Caution:  I used an 8 quart Instant Pot and had it filled almost to the maximum (2/3 full).  If you have a 6 quart pot you will need to reduce the amount of everything.

Ingredients:

• 1/2 tablespoon Olive Oil
• 2 Large Onions, Diced
• 6 Stalks of Celery, Diced
• 6 Carrots, Diced
• 6 Cloves of Garlic, Minced
• 25 ounces of Ham, Diced
• 44 ounces of Chicken Bone Broth
• 24 ounces of Dried Split Peas, Washed and Sorted
• 4 Bay Leaves
• 1/4 teaspoon Pepper
• 1 teaspoon Thyme
• Note:  You Can Throw In The Ham Bone If You Have One For Some Extra Flavor

Directions:

1. Turn the Instant Pot to sauté and add the olive oil
2. Add the onion, celery, bay leaves and thyme.  Cook, stirring occasionally until the onion becomes soft and turns translucent
3. Add the carrots, garlic, ham and pepper and cook for 1 minute. 
4. Press cancel to shut off the sauté function
5. Add the broth and ham bone (if you are using one)
6. Stir in the split peas
7. Place the lid on the pot and lock it in place, setting the steam release to the sealing position
8. Choose pressure cook, manual and set the time on 20 minutes, high pressure
9. When the cooking time has finished – let it set to allow the pressure to reduce naturally
10. When the pressure is fully reduced, and the pressure pin in the lid has dropped, carefully open the lid facing it away from you (to avoid getting a steam cloud in your face)
11. Remove the bay leaves and the ham bone, then stir
12. Adjust the salt and pepper as desired
13. Serve hot

Nutrition:  Makes 17 one cup servings, each with

• 187 calories and
• 21 grams of protein

TIP:  This also can be made on the stove, in a soup pot, following the first steps then bringing the mixture to a boil, reducing the heat, and simmering for 4-6 hours.