Name: Instant Pot Split Pea Soup
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 8 min
Ingredients: 2 cloves garlic (minced); 2 cups green or yellow split peas (rinsed); 5-6 cups water; 1 medium onion (cut in quarters); 2 ribs celery (cut in large chunks); 1 large carrot (cut in chunks); 2 teaspoons salt; ½ teaspoon liquid smoke; 1 bay leaf; ½ teaspoon dried thyme leaves; ½ teaspoon dried marjoram

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Last Updated on May 29, 2023 by Heather Reseck

In honor of World Pulses Day, which happens on February 10 each year, I am featuring a plant-based split pea soup. This quick and easy Instant Pot soup is perfect for cold weather.

1980: The Restaurant Edition

This recipe takes me back to my college days when I was studying to become a dietitian at Loma Linda University. To break up the 20-hour road trip from home in Washington state to southern California, I liked to stop at Pea Soup Andersen’s along I-5 in Santa Nella, California.

Photo from www.peasoupandersens.net

Their famous pea soup was meatless, a testimony to how good it can taste without ham. They only added ham on request. With the Traveler’s Special, you got unlimited refills. Enjoying a bowl (or two) of vegetarian soup provided a welcome change of pace on my long drive. (To learn more about the history of Pea Soup Andersen’s, see Tori Avey’s beautifully written history of their first restaurant in Buellton, California.)

Back then it was harder to find vegetarian options, and even harder to find “total vegetarian” options–now called vegan or plant-based–unless you found a natural food restaurant or perhaps a hippie-operated health food store with a café.

In the early 1980s, the only vegetarian options at most restaurants consisted of iceberg lettuce salads, baked potatoes, cottage cheese, eggs, or grilled cheese sandwiches. If you asked for a vegetarian dish that was not on the menu, you might get served a vegetable platter with steamed broccoli, carrots, and potatoes.

1990: The Stove Top Edition

Fast forward to 1990. As a newlywed. I cooked split pea soup on the stove, which took 1½ to 2 hours to cook. I based my recipe on the Pea Soup Andersen’s recipe that they freely shared.

2000: The Slow Cooker Edition

Split pea soup became a regular menu item in my kitchen. While developing recipes for the Fix-it-Fast Vegetarian Cookbook (published in 2002), I created a slow cooker version of split pea soup. As a busy mother of young children, I found it revolutionary to let the soup cook unattended (as long as I planned ahead.) It took 4 to 5 hours on high and 9-10 hours on low to cook.

2021: The Instant Pot Edition

Now I’ve updated the recipe for the Instant Pot, which makes it as hands-off as the slow cooker. The pressure cooker takes about 45 minutes total, with only 8 minutes under pressure. This is how time breaks down.

10 minutes prep
15 minutes to come up to pressure
8 minutes pressure cooking time
10 minutes natural pressure release
2 minutes to blend

The 12 minutes hands-on time is the same for all methods of cooking, with one exception. If you make chunky split pea soup, you’ll need to spend a few extra minutes chopping to get the vegetables into smaller pieces. But then you don’t have to blend it.

How to Make Vegan Instant Pot Split Pea Soup

Put all of the ingredients in a 6 or 8-quart electric pressure cooker: split peas–either green or yellow, plus water, coarsely chopped onion, celery, and carrots, garlic, salt, liquid smoke, bay leaf, thyme, and marjoram.

Secure the lid and close the pressure release valve. Select the Pressure Cook/Manual setting and set it for 8 minutes. When the cooking is completed, allow the pressure to release naturally for 10 minutes. Release any remaining pressure. Carefully remove the lid.

Remove the bay leaf. Use an immersion blender to blend until smooth. Or transfer it in batches to a blender and process until smooth. If desired, thin with additional water. It’s done in 45 minutes from start to finish.

Variations

I like to blend the soup before serving. It makes the soup smooth and disguises the vegetables. Plus, it means that I can coarsely chop the vegetables, which makes preparing this soup even faster.

Of course, if you want a chunky soup, you can chop the vegetables and skip the blending.

My friend Hank makes his pea soup extra thick. He doubles the vegetables and seasons the soup with chicken-style seasoning. Before serving he adds his secret ingredient: coconut milk and then simmers it to meld the flavors. It disappears quickly at potlucks (pre-COVID when we could have potlucks.)

Tips:

For ease of preparation, leave the vegetables in large chunks then let the blender disguise them just before serving.
This soup will thicken as it cools.

What are Pulses?

Pulses are nutrient-dense edible seeds from the legume family. They include beans, chickpeas, lentils, and dry peas. Here’s a short video by USAPulses.org that describes more:

Why Eat Pulses?

They are eaten frequently in the Blue Zones–the areas of the world where the longest-lived and healthiest people thrive. They are good for the planet. In short, pulses deserve superfood status. And they deserve a place on your plate. Pulses are:

high in protein
high in fiber, including prebiotic fiber
high in iron
high in folate
high in potassium: ½ cup cooked peas contains as much as a banana
can lower cholesterol levels
can lower blood sugar levels
economical
readily available
versatile

What about Lectins?

Lectins are present in all plants. Adequate cooking destroys lectins. To learn more, watch Dr. Michael Greger’s video called, “How to Avoid Lectin Poisoning.”

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