This easy vegan split pea soup recipe is hearty, flavor-packed, warming, and lick the bowl scrumptious! There is a reason this classic soup recipe is a staple for many: it's easy to make, it uses inexpensive ingredients, and oh my is it ever delicious.
Traditionally split pea soup is made with ham making it not vegan at all, but in my recipe, I coat small cubes of tofu in liquid smoke before baking it, which results in chewy smoky blissful tofu bites. Seriously, you may have to stop yourself from eating all the tofu straight from the pan!
Vegan split pea soup does require several ingredients and about an hour to make, but every ingredient I use is easy to find at your local grocery store, and every step is very simple. Most of the time is spent letting the soup simmer and the tofu bake. So it's actually a very easy meal to prepare, my kinda recipe.
I'm in love with how flavourful but also how healthy this soup is! Vegan split pea soup has become a regular for me during the chillier months. This soup is also the perfect make-ahead meal. It stores well in the fridge and can even be frozen. While you can stir the tofu into the soup, the tofu won't stay as chewy so I like to store the prepared tofu and the prepared soup seperately.
How to make Easy Vegan Split Pea Soup with Tofu Ham:
I like to make the tofu ham first, because the tofu will get chewier the longer it sits out... and I LOVE chewy 🙂
To make the tofu ham: Mix the soy sauce, liquid smoke, and garlic powder in a large bowl. Add the tofu and toss well to coat.
Spread the tofu on the baking sheet and bake for 30 - 40 minutes, stopping to stir a few times, until the tofu is golden brown and chewy. The tofu will get chewier as it sits out.
Next, make the split pea soup:
In the meantime, melt the vegan butter in a large soup pot over medium-high heat. Add the carrot, celery, onion, and garlic and sauté for about 5 minutes until the onions turn translucent and begin to brown.
Add the vegetable broth, split peas, bay leaves, thyme, salt, and pepper.
Bring to a simmer and cook for 30 -45 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the split peas are cooked through and the soup has reached your desired thickness and mushiness. If your soup is too thin, simply cook it longer until it reaches desired thickness. If your soup gets too thick, add a splash more vegetable broth or water to thin it out. Serve the soup hot with a handful of prepared tofu ham on top, and an optional sprinkle of fresh parsley.
Vegan split pea soup is the perfect make-ahead meal. It get's even better tasting the longer it hangs around, and the tofu bites get even chewier the longer they sit around. I like to serve this as a main with a slice of garlic bread.
Bon appetegan!
Sam Turnbull.
Easy Vegan Split Pea Soup with Smoky Tofu Ham
Ingredients
For the tofu ham:
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce (gluten-free if preffered)
- 1 teaspoon liquid smoke
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 block (12oz) extra-firm tofu, chopped into small cubes
For the vegan split pea soup:
- 2 tablespoons vegan butter (sub oil of choice if preferred)
- 2 medium carrots, peeled and chopped
- 2 ribs celery, chopped
- 1 yellow onion, chopped
- 4 cloves garlic, minced or pressed
- 8 cups vegetable broth
- 2 cups (1 pound) dried green split peas, rinsed
- 2 bay leaves
- 2 teaspoons dried thyme leaves
- ½ teaspoon salt (or to taste)
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- 1 handful parsley, roughtly chopped (optional for garnish)
Instructions
To make the tofu ham:
- OVEN: Preheat your oven to 325F (170C). Lightly grease a large baking sheet or line it with parchment paper.AIR FRYER: Preheat your air fryer to 305F (160C).
- Mix the soy sauce, liquid smoke, and garlic powder in a large bowl. Add the tofu and toss well to coat. OVEN: Spread the tofu on the baking sheet and bake for 30 - 40 minutes, stopping to stir a few times, until the tofu is golden brown and chewy. The tofu will get chewier as it sits out.AIR FRYER: spread the tofu in the air fryer and fry for 20 - 28 minutes, stopping to shake a few times, until the tofu is golden brown and chewy. The tofu will get chewier as it sits out.
To make the split pea soup:
- In the meantime, melt the vegan butter in a large soup pot over medium-high heat. Add the carrot, celery, onion, and garlic and sauté for about 5 minutes until the onions turn translucent and begin to brown.
- Add the vegetable broth, split peas, bay leaves, thyme, salt, and pepper. Bring to a simmer and cook for 30 -45 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the split peas are cooked through and the soup has reached your desired thickness and mushiness. If your soup is too thin, simply cook it longer until it reaches desired thickness. If your soup gets too thick, add a splash more vegetable broth or water to thin it out. Serve the soup hot with a handful of prepared tofu ham on top, and an optional sprinkle of fresh parsley.
Jan says
Great tasting but I had to cook it much longer for the peas to soften. Probably 30 min more and some still had a bit of crunch.
I did put in blender in batches.
Next time I will do in instant pot.
Eric says
Let me tell you, I did this soup today for the 1st time, for Me , my Wife and Mother-in Law and we all loved it. I made a slight change to it and it came out so Greatttt. I added organic mushrooms, organic corn on the cob, smoke paprika, everglades seasoning , omitted the bay leaves, thyme and parsley only because I forgot. So Delicious and Comfortable. Thank you for this recipe.
Shannon says
I made this a while ago and it was delicious!! I am making it again today!The tofu ham was so good that this time I am making a double batch. I ate about half of it before I even ate any soup lol!!!
Sam Turnbull says
Haha! I love that 🙂
Shannon says
Hey Sam I want to make the tofu ham tomorrow for Thanksgiving dinner for myself. Instead of cutting it into cubes could I just slice it?? I love this version of vegan ham!!!!
Sam Turnbull says
Yes, it might not get as chewy though. Let us know how it goes 🙂
Tracey says
Hi Sam:
Do you think tempeh could be used instead of tofu?
Sam Turnbull says
It would result in a different taste and texture, but go for it!
Tamar says
My husband made this for our Friday night extended family dinner, and it came out perfect. I didn't even realise that you have a counter that adjusts quantities according to the number of portions you want. Just for that feature he fell in love with you! Thanks Sam!
Sam Turnbull says
Haha! Amazing. Thank you so much, Tamar. Glad you enjoyed 🙂
Molly says
Delicious and inexpensive to make!
Sam Turnbull says
So happy you enjoyed it, Molly!
b says
this was delicious. used an immersion blender to smooth it out and made bread from the, flour water salt yeast, book. yum. thank you
Sam Turnbull says
So happy you enjoyed it, b!
Angela says
I’ve just made this without the tofu. It’s absolutely delicious I added 1/4 teaspoon of liquid smoke and one heaped tablespoon of white miso to try to get the flavours that were used with the tofu into the soup. I think this recipe is a keeper & it’s very easy to make with simple pantry ingredients.
Thanks again Sam for another successful recipe!
Sam Turnbull says
Wonderful! SO happy you enjoyed it, Angela 🙂
K C says
Delicious! I simmered about 15 minutes longer, and used an immersion blender for about 1/2 the soup in the end. Thanks for the recipe, Sam. 🙂
Sam Turnbull says
You're most welcome KC 🙂
Suzy says
Hi Sam! I'm hoping to make this tonight and was just laying some things out (mise en place!) - and I noticed that my bag of split peas is 1 pound. But it has 13, 1/4 cup servings or 12 1/4 cup of peas. Do I use the 2 cups you listed, or the whole, one-pound bag? Thanks! Can't wait to try this!
Sam Turnbull says
Hi Suzy, I would measure with cups to be sure. When I measured, 2 cups of split peas was 1 pound. Enjoy!
Suzy says
Too late! I used the whole bag, (2 cups wasn't close to being a pound) added a bit more veggie stock and it was great! Even better the next day! Will definitely be making this again!
Sam Turnbull says
Wonderful! So happy you enjoyed 🙂
in2insight says
The soup, as promised, was super easy to make and very good. The star however is the tofu cubes. Simple yet delish! The non veg said they "tasted like the real deal".
Thank you for sharing!
Sam Turnbull says
Amazing! So happy you loved it 🙂
Adrienne Harding Jacques says
Hiya Sam,
What is your favourite "go-to" broth for soups?
Thank you ☺️
Sam Turnbull says
I use PC Organic or I also like to make my own homemade vegetable broth powder which is a recipe in my new cookbook! 🙂
Donna Williams says
I absolutely LOVE split pea soup. I always add dehydrated vegan "ham" for the flavoring. One thing I've noticed since going vegan 5 months ago is that the sodium content in most recipes is so extremely high. I take b/p medicine so I can't always substitute salt in the recipes. 🙁
Sam Turnbull says
Hi Donna, you can reduce the sodium by buy a low sodium vegetable broth, or making your own without salt, using low sodium soy sauce, and omitting the salt in the soup. Hope that helps! Enjoy!!
JP says
Hi, Can you sub smoked paprika instead of liquid smoke? If so, how much would you recommend? Thanks!
Sam Turnbull says
Yes, I would sub 2 teaspoons smoked paprika. ENjoy!
Sonya says
I absolutely love split pea soup! I never thought of adding tofu to it I usually make mine nice and thick with carrots and a bit of onion and garlic to it. I'm gonna give this one a go I have basically all ingredients. Thank you
Sam Turnbull says
Wonderful! I hope you love it, Sonya!
Haleigh says
Hi Sam! I haven’t made this yet but I have a bunch of split peas in my pantry. Do you think the flavor will be similar with yellow peas instead of green?
Thanks!
Sam Turnbull says
Hi Haleigh! Yellow split peas tend to have a more earthy flavour, while green split peas are sweeter. Both will taste great! If you like, you can always add a small amount of agave or sugar to your soup to sweeten it ever so slightly if you find it needs a bit of sweetness 🙂
Heather says
Every time I've made split pea soup, the peas take FOREVER to get soft. I usually have to cook it for 3 hours before they are remotely soft. What am I doing wrong?
Sam Turnbull says
Hmm I'm not sure. If your split peas are very old they might take a very long time to cook. For me they just took 30 minutes with freshly bought green split peas 🙂
Emily says
Split peas that have been sitting around in the pantry or on the grocery store shelf for a while will take longer to cook. You might have a faster experience with a new bag of split peas.
The other thing is I personally think a lot of recipes underestimate the time split peas take to get really soft and creamy. My go to non-vegan recipe for "swamp soup" (what my kids call spit pea) calls for bringing the peas to a boil, then killing the heat and leaving them covered for an hour, then bringing back to a boil, adding the other ingredients and a ham bone, and then simmering for ANOTHER hour and a half. You'd think all that time was mostly for the ham flavor but in my experience the peas don't get to that smooth mush until at least an hour and 15 in. Or maybe some people like their peas a little more toothsome?
Jet says
Why go to a vegan site and skite about dead-animal soup?
Claire says
Is the taste ok without the ham tofu?
Sam Turnbull says
Yes! It will still be delicious. If you want a slightly smoky flavour to the soup add a dash of liquid smoke to the soup 🙂
Claire says
Thank you - I am definitely going to give this a try. Love your recipes!!!
Adrienne says
I usually don't submit a comment before I've tried the recipe, but the look of this reminds me so much about the delicious split-pea w/ham soup my mother made when I was a kid. I made the same for my own family. I sure hope it tastes like my memories! I have all of the ingredients so it's time to make some soup! I'll check in again later. Thanks for all you do for us!
I'm sorry but I had to giggle about your typo: "1 block (12oz) extra-firm tofu, chooped into small cubes".
Sam Turnbull says
Wonderful, I hope you love it, Adrienne! And typo fixed, haha!