This recipe for Yellow Split Pea and Bacon Soup is full of flavor and an easy alternative to traditional split pea and ham soup.
Split Pea Soup That’s Easy and Delicious!
Is there anything more comforting than a bowl of thick hearty soup? There’s something so wonderful about it that takes you right back to childhood.
My grandmother always made split pea soup using leftover ham bones (you can see my recipe for split peas and ham soup if that’s what you’re looking for) after a big family gathering.
I absolutely LOVED her soup, but let’s face it, sometimes we don’t have ham bones to work with.
I created this recipe which is a lot easier to prepare but doesn’t scrimp on flavor.
hearty comfort food. It’s packed with flavor and fills you up so this soup is an all-around win!
It’s so good that if you do make the classic split pea soup, you might just find yourself converting to this easier recipe!
How to Make Yellow Split Pea and Bacon Soup
In a large stockpot on medium-high heat, dry fry the bacon until golden brown (you can add a bit of oil if it starts to stick to the bottom of the pan.
Add the onions and garlic to the pan and with the garlic until the onions are translucent, 5-10 minutes.
Add the carrots, celery.
Followed by the stock and split peas.
Add salt, pepper, smoked paprika, and bay leaf.
Bring to a boil, then simmer uncovered (Skimming off any foam that forms foam while cooking) for 1 – 2 hours or until the peas start to break down. Check often and stir frequently to keep the soup from burning on the bottom.
If need be, thin out the soup with more stock before serving.
Serve and enjoy!
Cook’s Tips For Perfect Split Pea Soup:
- Leave a little fat on your bacon. It adds loads of flavor!
- On dry frying bacon – some lean bacon doesn’t brown well when dry frying. If it needs some help, just add a little oil.
- Have some extra stock on hand. Split pea soup thickens a lot and may need some thinning out.
- For extra pork flavor, make some stock using ham hocks and replace the chicken stock with ham stock.
- For an extra smokey flavor, use smoked bacon.
- Can’t find Yellow Split Peas? Green work just as well.
- Careful salting – Some bacon can be quite salty so you may want to wait to season the soup and taste at the end.
Top Tip:
- Over seasoned your soup? All is not lost. Acid neutralizes the salt. Add a teaspoon of white vinegar at a time and taste in between. You won’t taste the vinegar, but you’ll save the soup!
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Let's Make Yellow Split Pea and Bacon Soup
Ingredients
- 8 ounces Thick sliced bacon or pancetta chopped
- 1 large yellow onions chopped
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 2 tablespoons olive oil for sautéing
- 3 carrots diced
- 3 Celery Stalks diced
- 1 pound dried split yellow peas
- 8 cups chicken stock
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- salt and pepper to taste
- 1 bay leaf
Instructions
- In a large stockpot on medium-high heat, dry fry the bacon until golden brown (you can add a bit of oil if it starts to stick to the bottom of the pan.
- If needed, add one-two tablespoons of olive oil, add the onions to the pan and with the garlic until the onions are translucent, 5-10 minutes.
- Add the carrots, celery, split peas, chicken stock, smoked paprika, and bay leaf.
- Bring to a boil, then simmer uncovered (Skimming off any foam that forms foam while cooking) for 1 - 2 hours or until the peas start to break down. Check often and stir frequently to keep the soup from burning on the bottom.
- Taste for salt and pepper. Serve hot.
Tips + Notes
- Leave a little fat on your bacon. It adds loads of flavor!
- On dry frying bacon - some lean bacon doesn't brown well when dry frying. If it needs some help, just add a little oil.
- Have some extra stock on hand. Split pea soup thickens a lot and may need some thinning out.
Nutrition Information:
Update Notes: This recipe was originally posted in 2014, but was updated in March of 2019 with slight changes to the recipe as well as new photos, nutritional information, tips, and a video.
Lynda says
Living in a cold country, I’m a long term fan of pulse based soups & habitually use leeks in the recipe. Replacing them with onions and celery gave a completely different taste, so thank you for that!
Also have a question – is the calorie content for the whole pot of soup or per portion?
Erren's Kitchen says
Hi Lynda, thank you for your lovely comment! The calorie content is worked out automatically and it is per portion. It is really only an estimate. I hope that helps 🙂
Sophia says
Is it possible to substitute the bacon with a different meat or other type of pork?
Erren's Kitchen says
Hi Sophia, I have made it with pancetta, but never any other kind of pork or meat. I’m sorry I can’t be of any more help.
Kelly Jackson says
Adding vinegar to combat over-saltiness is the best soup tip I’ve ever read. I always use bacon when I cook split peas, chickpeas, black-eyed peas…well, you get the picture! It was always so frustrating when I neared the end of my soups and the bacon turned out to be really salty. I had to ruin my perfect texture by adding more water and that often threw everything off. I’m so happy I stopped by your kitchen today; thank you! (Your soup recipes look tantalizing.)
Erren's Kitchen says
Thank you so much Kelly. I hope you try some more 🙂
Eogh says
I have made this soup twice. It is the best split pea soup I have ever had. My husband loves it. I make it in the crockpot. So easy. And it stores well. It tastes better the next day.
Erren's Kitchen says
Thank you, I’m glad you enjoyed it 🙂
Douglas Hunt says
This turned out better than I expected! In fact it’s probably the best soup I’ve ever made!!
Erren Hart says
Wonderful! I love that soup! Glad you did too!
Kerri says
Made this for the first time. I was given a couple bags of yellow split peas, and didn’t know what to do with them. I’ve never cooked with yellow split peas before. I added a few ham shanks to it for more meat. Other than that I followed the same directions. I am amazed at how good this was. I will continue to use this recipe.
Erren's Kitchen says
I’m so pleased you liked it, you can never have too much meat 😉
Pattie says
Good recipe. I substituted cumin for the paprika. It takes a good hour and a half for the peas to soften so would change the time listed above. I cooked it on low covered so the liquid would not evaporate as much. Will make this again.
Erren Hart says
Hi Pattie, I had a look and the recipe step does say 1-2 hours. It all depends on the brand of peas you use. I’m so glad you enjoyed it!
Steffy says
This recipe was excellent! I added spinach and sauteed the carrots with the onions, garlic, and bacon and it turned out delicious! Definitely a new favorite in my household.
Erren's Kitchen says
That’s good to hear! Glad you enjoyed it 🙂
David says
Absolutely gorgeous! First time I have made this and it won’t be the last, mine came out a little darker than the photo, although I suspect I put in a lot more smoked Paprika in than the recipe suggests! : )
It thickens beautifully with the lid off the casserole dish, but make sure you’re not short of stock! I actually put the carrot and celery in there with the bacon, onion and garlic for a few minutes and the aroma was fantastic!
This will be wonderful to come home to after one of the long Autumn walks .
Erren Hart says
Thanks so much for the great feedback! So glad you enjoyed it!
Janell says
The recipe says simmer uncovered but the video shows a lid placed in the pot. Which way do I need to cook it?
Erren Hart says
Hi Janell, Thanks for pointing that out! Please go by the recipe.