Rick's Yummy Split Pea Soup With Ham

Ingredients

• Servings: 8
• 1 (14 ounce) bag green split peas, rinsed
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 1/2 cups finely chopped onion
• 1 1/2 cups finely chopped carrots
• 1 cup finely chopped celery
• 1 teaspoon minced garlic, or to taste
• 7 cups chicken broth, or more as needed, divided
• 1 bay leaf, or more to taste
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon ground thyme
• 2 pounds smoked lamb neck bones (such as smithfield®)
• 10 ounces cubed smoked ham (such as carolina pride®)

Recipe

Preparation Time: 30 mins Cook Time: 2 hrs 15 mins

Ready Time: 5 hrs 45 mins


• place the split peas into a large container and cover with several inches of cool water; let stand for at least 3 hours. rinse peas until the water runs clear; drain.
• heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. saute onion, carrots, and celery in hot oil until soft, 8 to 12 minutes. add garlic and saute until fragrant, about 1 minute.
• combine peas, onion mixture, 6 cups chicken broth, bay leaf, black pepper, and thyme together in a large pot. stir neck bones into chicken broth mixture, adding more chicken broth as necessary to cover bones completely. bring mixture to a boil, reduce heat to medium-low, cover the pot, and simmer until peas have dissolved and meat is falling from the bones, 2 to 3 hours. transfer bones to a plate to cool.
• stir cubed ham into soup. when neck bones are cool enough to handle, remove remaining meat from the bones; discard bones and stir meat into soup. continue to simmer until ham and meat are heated through, about 5 minutes.