Ärtsoppa, Swedish yellow pea soup with ham

Name: Ärtsoppa, Swedish yellow pea soup with ham
Total time: 1 h 10 min
Cuisine: Scandinavian
Ingredients: 300g yellow split peas, rinsed until the water runs fairly clear; 1 smoked ham hock, about 800 g; 1 onion, chopped; 1 carrot, diced; 1.5l water; 1 tbsp olive oil, stops the peas foaming; 2 tsp dried marjoram; 1 tsp dried thyme; 1 bay leaf; 2 tbsp gluten free Dijon mustard, to serve

A thick, savoury Swedish soup of yellow split peas and smoky ham, cooked in a pressure cooker in just over an hour.

Time1 hr 10
LevelEasy
Costabout £1.25 a head

Cost is worked out from Aldi and Tesco shelf prices in October 2026. Your shop and brands will differ.

Estimated nutrition per serving

222kcal
19gcarbs
3.9gof which sugars
10.5gfat
3.2gsaturates
11.7gprotein
6.1gfibre
1.2gsalt

A rough estimate worked out from the ingredients, for the serving size above. It is a guide only and not medical advice. If you count carbs or manage diabetes, check with your own tools and your care team.

4 servings

Ingredients

Tick what you need to buy. It goes on your shopping list.

300 gyellow split peasrinsed until the water runs fairly clear
1smoked ham hockabout 800 g
1onionchopped
1carrotdiced
1.5 lwater
1 tbspolive oilstops the peas foaming
2 tspdried marjoram
1 tspdried thyme
1bay leaf
2 tbspgluten free Dijon mustardto serve

Method

1
Put the split peas, ham hock, onion, carrot, water, oil, marjoram, thyme and bay leaf in the pot. Do not fill past the halfway mark, because peas foam as they cook. Skim off any foam that has risen.
2
Lock the lid and set the valve to sealing. Cook at high pressure for 20 minutes. It will take about 10 minutes to come up to pressure first.
20 min
3
Leave the pressure to drop by itself for 20 minutes (natural release). Do not use quick release for this soup, as foamy pea soup can spit out of the valve. Then open the valve to let out any last steam.
20 min
4
Lift out the ham hock. Pull off the skin and bones and shred the meat. Return about two thirds of the meat to the soup and keep the rest for sandwiches.
5
Stir the soup well. The peas should have broken down into a thick, creamy soup. Add a splash of hot water if it is too thick. Season with black pepper, and taste before adding any salt, as the ham is salty.
6
No pressure cooker? Use 1800 ml of water, bring to the boil, then cover and simmer gently for 1 hour 15 minutes to 1 hour 30 minutes, stirring now and then so it does not catch.
7
Serve hot with a spoonful of mustard stirred in at the table, as is traditional in Sweden.

Double check before you cook. Recipes can contain mistakes. Any diet labels come from the ingredients as written in this recipe and are a guide, not a guarantee. Always check every ingredient and the packet label for allergens and cross contamination, and ask your doctor or dietitian what is right for you, especially with coeliac disease, diabetes or a serious allergy. This is not medical advice.