How To Make The Best Ever, Slow Cooker, Classic Split Pea Soup

Every year after the holidays are over I use the leftover ham hock to make a big pot of Split Pea Soup. This classic soup is thick and creamy, uses only good for you ingredients, and it’s utterly delectable. Besides being delicious, it’s also one of the easiest soups you can make using simple ingredients and your slow cooker. You probably have some carrot sticks and celery hanging out in the fridge that are leftover from the holidays. This is the perfect recipe to use them up. Got some leftover French fries from your last restaurant meal? Keep reading to find out how to use them in this soup instead of tossing them out. Pick up a bag of dried split peas and toss them in your shopping cart on your next trip to the market, and you’ll have everything needed to cook up a big pot of this iconic soup.

Jump to Recipe

Many families will be serving up a ham over the holidays and this recipe is the perfect way to use that ham hock instead of pitching it into the trash. When that cold miserable dreary day hits, and you get a hankering for something hot and comforting to warm your belly, this soup will definitely hit the spot!

TIP: If you’re not going to use that ham hock right away, place it in a ziplock bag and freeze it for later use.

This is a thick, rich, creamy soup that doesn’t contain any cream. If you are a fan of creamy soups you will really enjoy this soup. Not only is it delicious but it’s packed with healthy veggies, so it’s good for you too!

There used to be a restaurant here in California, Anderson’s Split Pea, that was famous for their Split Pea Soup. We stopped in many times over the years when traveling to southern California. My husband agrees that this recipe is a thousand times better than their version! Not only is it tasty, but you are going to love how utterly easy it is to make!

When you purchase a ham for the holidays, be sure to purchase a ham with the bone. After dinner save that ham hock with all those yummy little bits of ham attached to it. We are going to use it to make this soup taste amazing. The ham hock imparts a smoky, salty flavor to the soup as it cooks, it adds a flavorful layer of goodness. That ham hock is flavor central!

You will need to use the biggest crockpot that you have.

Place ham hock, split peas, and pepper into the slow-cooker.

Add carrots, celery, potatoes, onion, garlic powder, oregano, bay leaves and chicken bouillon. Stir to combine all the ingredients.

Got some leftover cold French fries hanging out in your fridge? Can we be honest here for a minute? It’s almost impossible to reheat French fries so that they taste good. They either turn out hard enough to break your teeth, or they are an unappetizing soggy, mushy mess. Instead of tossing them the trash, toss those cold leftover fries into your soup along with those diced potatoes. The potatoes work as a thickener for the soup and help give it its thick rich creaminess. Not only are you giving those sad leftover fries a new life, but you are going to love how they help to thicken this soup.

MONEY SAVING TIP: Use leftover French fries to thicken soups instead of heavy cream.

Add enough chicken broth to cover all the ingredients. Depending on the size of the ham hock will determine how much chicken broth you will need. It’s ok to add a bit of water if you don’t have enough chicken broth.

Stir all the ingredients together with a wooden spoon to combine.

Cover and cook on high for 4-5 hours or on low for 8-9 hours.

If you are going to be home, start the crockpot on high for about 60-90 minutes to get it going. Once the liquid is simmering away, turn the heat to low and continue cooking until all the veggies are soft, about another 7-8 hours on low.

Use tongs to remove the ham hock and fish out the bay leaves and any large chunks of ham that have fallen off the bone. The meat will be hot, so carefully remove as much of the meat from the ham hock as you can and shred it with a fork into bite sized pieces. Set the shredded meat aside.

Using an immersion blender, puree the soup in the slow cooker until you have a nice smooth, creamy, thick soup. If you do not have an immersion blender, puree the soup in a blender but be careful pureeing the hot liquid!

You can leave a few chunks to give the soup some texture, but we like the texture nice and thick and velvety smooth.

Taste and season with additional salt and pepper if needed.

Once you have puréed the soup to the consistency you prefer, return the reserved ham pieces to the pot. Stir with a wooden spoon to combine.

To serve, top each bowl with either freshly cracked pepper or a sprinkle of grated Parmesan cheese if desired. Serve with a crusty loaf of freshly baked bread or bake up some fluffy Buttermilk Biscuits for dunking.

Want to learn how to bake your own bread? It’s actually quite easy to do. Don’t believe me? Don’t think you can do it? I’m here to tell you that yes you can! Read about how to do it here. Don’t let the thought of using a yeast dough intimidate you. If I can do it, so can you! It’s the perfect accompaniment to this thick hearty soup! Slather a slice with butter and dip into the soup. NOM-NOM-NOM!

This easy to do method is perfect for beginners to bread baking and consistently produces delicious loaves of French bread your whole family will love. The crust has a great chew and the insides are fluffy and soft…perfection! Your first loaf of bread can be a beautiful loaf of bread just like the one pictured below.

If you didn’t plan far enough ahead to bake up a fresh loaf of bread, or the thought of baking bread is too much, no worries. I got you covered! You can easily have these made from scratch, fluffy, homemade Buttermilk Biscuits on the table in under 30 minutes. They’re the perfect dunkers for a steaming hot bowl of split pea soup!

OH YAH! Soooo good!

There’s nothing better on a cold night than a thick, rich and creamy, steaming bowl of homemade Spit Pea Soup served with freshly baked biscuits or French bread and a little butter.

Is your mouth watering yet? Mine surely is!

This post was originally published March 2021 and republished with updated photos, recipe notes, and new content January 2024.

Did You Make This?

Be sure to snap a pic and tag it #naturewayblog I love, love, love hearing from my readers!  Please, don’t forget to leave a comment and a review below, and be sure to follow me on INSTAGRAM, FACEBOOK, PINTEREST, TELEGRAM or TWITTER for all the latest happening here at Nature Way!

May I ask a small favor?  If you enjoyed this blogpost would you be so kind and like the page? Just click the “like” button down at the very bottom, at the end of the post. It lets me know what you are enjoying the most.  It also helps me focus my attention on creating content that will be most meaningful and beneficial to you, my readers.  And don’t forget to subscribe:

When you sign up you’ll never miss out on all the latest that’s happening here at Nature Way. I promise to never spam you, ever! Cross my heart. Thank you and God bless!

Then Jesus declared, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty.”

John 6:35