Instant Pot Split Pea Soup

Name: Instant Pot Split Pea Soup
Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: 26 min
Total time: 31 min
Ingredients: 2 tablespoons olive oil; 1 onion ((large, chopped in chunks)); 4 carrots ((4 - 6)); 2 stalks celery ((sliced)); 4 cups beef broth; 2 cups water; 2 cups split peas ((rinsed and picked over)); 1 ham bone ((optional)); 2 cups smoked pork shoulder ((or ham, chopped in bite sized pieces)); 1/8 cup sherry ((dry)); 1/8 cup white wine ((dry)); 3/4 teaspoon salt; 2 bay leaves

Last updated on October 8, 2020. Originally posted on October 1, 2018 By Elaine 40 Comments

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This instant pot split pea soup is creamy, thick and chock-full of flavor! This recipe also makes perfect use of your leftover ham, smoked shoulder or other meats.

Two crocks of the pea soup with the casserole dish in the background along with a salad and pitas

My sister gave all of her children Instant Pots, pressure cookers for Christmas one year. The following Easter, she hosted the family dinner. A week before the holiday, my nephew Bryan texted to ask if I would give him a ‘lesson’ in the instant pot when we were together. Of course I said yes, as my instant pot and I are on very good terms.

You could say I have smooched its shiny cheek more than once.

During a lull in the festivities, Bryan brought his IP in from the car and I started telling him how it worked and how to use it. I guess the rest of his siblings didn’t realize Bryan had asked me in advance for the demonstration. They thought I loved my IP so much that I would spontaneously start schooling people on all of its glorious attributes.

I was too busy talking to hear, but later Christopher told me that everyone looking on agreed I sounded like an infomercial. The only thing missing was free samples!

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Helpful tips

I chose to sauté the vegetables but you don’t have to. Want to save some calories on the oil? Omit it and also skip the sautéing, just throw all the ingredients together in the IP.
The instant pot always takes around 10 – 15 minutes to come to pressure, so if you are planning on timing your meal, factor that in.
Also, if you aren’t going to do a quick release of the pressure, you must factor in that time as well. The IP takes between another 15 – 25 minutes to release the pressure.
If I’m in a hurry, I usually wait 5 minutes, then don an oven mitt and release the pressure manually but tapping at the venting knob. Be careful, the steam can burn you.
You can make this alcohol free by substituting it with ¼ cup more broth or leave out altogether for a slightly thicker soup.
Use dry sherry or wine because dry spirits contain noticeably less sugar and you don’t want your soup to have more sugar than is already found in the peas, onions and carrots. It would be too sweet.
You can make this vegetarian by using vegetable broth and omitting the cooked smoked pork shoulder or ham.

How to make IP pea soup

Step one

Gather the ingredients – split peas, chunked carrots, chopped onion and celery.

Split peas, carrots, onions and celery on a black board

Step two

Grab your Instant Pot or pressure cooker and plug it in. Press the sauté button and after one minute, add oil.

Step three

Wait another minute for the oil to heat, then add onions and sauté for 2 minutes.

Step four

Add carrots and celery, sauté for 2 minutes.

Step five

Gather other ingredients – dry sherry, beef broth, and dry white wine

Dry sherry, beef broth and white wine on a black table

Step six

Add broth, water, split peas, sherry, wine, smoked pork shoulder, bay leaves and salt.

Seal the IP, make sure the vent knob is in the sealed position and press soup/broth button – make sure the mode is normal and set the timer to 20 minutes.

Step seven

After IP beeps, either do a quick release by donning an oven mitt and lightly tap the to the venting position, or you can just wait 15 – 25 minutes for the pressure to release on its own.

I pour the instant pot split pea soup into my lovely casserole dish and gather ’round some pita rounds and a salad.

A mustard colored casserole dish filled with pea soup. There are some pita bread in a bowl, a salad and a pepper mill in the background

I ladle the split pea soup into my serving crocks. I grind black pepper on my soup but not Christopher’s.

Close up of the two crocks of soup. You can also see the pita rounds in a bowl on a napkin in the background

I hope you enjoyed this instant pot split pea soup recipe! It’s thick, delicious and cooks so fast you barely have time to get out your dishes and set the table!

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And as always, may all your dishes be delish!

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