Soup, Split Pea and Ham (Pressure Cooker)
This is my Mom's famous split pea soup recipe adapted to the pressure cooker. It really cuts the cooking time—from several hours to about 30 minutes. Great for cold winter suppers.
This is my Mom's famous split pea soup recipe adapted to the pressure cooker. It really cuts the cooking time—from several hours to about 30 minutes. Great for cold winter suppers.
- Carbohydrate 105.921570087 g
- Cholesterol 0 mg
- Fat 2.042872743 g
- Fiber 40.9369176466844 g
- Protein 39.625766158 g
- Saturated Fat 0.3349773798 g
- Serving Size 1 1 (2994g)
- Sodium 1223.99609066411 mg
- Sugar 64.9846524403156 g
- Trans Fat 0.464033133 g
- Calories 584 calories
Step-by-step
- Fill pressure cooker with water and other ingredients, except Sherry.
- Make sure the pot is no more than half full.
- Put lid on cooker, place rocker (if model has one) on vent pipe and bring to high pressure.
- When at correct pressure start timing for 20 min.
- Let cooker release steam naturally.
- If using a pork bone, remove and pull all meat off and add to soup.
- Adjust salt to suit your taste at this point.
- Serve with a splash of Sherry if you wish.
- Note: You can start this recipe with frozen pork hock by first covering bone with 8 cups water and pressure cook as directed above for about 30 min. Then cold water release pressure and add all other ingredients. Replace lid, bring to pressure and time for 10 more minutes. and let pressure naturally drop.
Cooking dried split peas without a prior soak typically demands hours of simmering, yet sealed pressure environments compress that lengthy timeline down to twenty minutes at high pressure. Many cooks err by filling the cooker past the halfway mark, ignoring the expansion capacity of expanding legumes and foaming starches that can clog the steam vent. Dried peas break down reliably under sustained moist heat, releasing starches that naturally thicken the broth without requiring flour or other thickening agents. Adjusting the salt should always wait until after the pressure cycle finishes and any bone is stripped, because cured ham yields varying amounts of sodium into the surrounding liquid during cooking.
Adapting Batch Volumes
Scaling this recipe requires strict adherence to the manufacturer's maximum fill line, which generally restricts total contents to no more than two-thirds capacity for liquids and even lower for expanding foods. Halving the ingredient quantities works well in standard six-quart cookers, while doubling demands moving up to an eight-quart model to maintain safe headspace above the liquid level.
- Natural pressure release takes approximately fifteen minutes; forcing the release prematurely will cause frothing starchy liquid to spray from the valve.
- Dry split peas stored past one year lose internal moisture and require extended cooking times to achieve the same smooth purée consistency.
- Adding sherry directly to individual bowls preserves the aromatic volatile compounds that would otherwise degrade during prolonged heating under pressure.
