Slow Cooker Split Pea Soup

Crock-Pot soups are the perfect meal, no matter what time of year. Once the ingredients are prepped, the cook time is largely hands off, and a slow-cooker on the counter top won’t heat up the house like the oven or stove. This Crock-Pot split pea soup is perhaps one of the easiest: All of the ingredients go straight into the slow-cooker without the need to pre-cook the veggies on the stove. Just chop, dump, cover, and you’re on your way to a comforting meal.

This slow-cooker split pea soup recipe calls for diced ham, but would make a happy home for a ham bone, too. If using a bone, be sure to leave all of the good meat on it—it will get wonderfully tender while slow cooking and can be pulled off the bone and added to the soup at the end. If you want to double-down on the smoky, savory flavor, sub ham stock for chicken stock.

Do you need to soak split peas before cooking them?

No. Unlike dried beans, split peas don't require soaking before cooking; they just need adequate liquid while cooking to become tender and split. Be sure that the vegetables and peas are completely covered with broth and stock by about ½-inch before starting the slow-cooker—though if you're using a ham bone and it sticks out a little, that’s ok! If you see that you need more liquid, add an additional ½ to 1 cup of water or chicken stock.