Quick And Easy Pea And Ham Soup With Rice

This rich and creamy pea and ham soup with melty Parmesan cheese and risotto rice is packed with fabulous flavour and a meal in itself.

Why you’ll love this delicious pea and ham soup recipe

• There are two things that to me are the perfect comfort food, soup and risotto. Put them together into one bowl of sheer hug-in-a-mug type feelgood food.
• This is a super easy pea and ham soup recipe to throw together.
• It’s a great way to use store cupboard ingredients and any leftover ham in the fridge to make something really tasty and special.
• Quick to make – this pea and ham soup is ready in just 30 minutes.

I’m a huge fan of risotto and make it all the time. From delicious chicken and asparagus risotto that just sings of spring to hearty pumpkin and sage risotto that is so comforting for Autumn/fall.

And I don’t just use rice in my risotto, I’ve made squash and orzo risotto traybake and an asparagus and quinoa risotto too.

Adding risotto rice to my pea and ham soup recipe takes it up a level and makes it extra special with very little effort.

Ingredients for this pea and ham soup

Peas – I have just used frozen peas to make this simple pea and ham soup.

Pancetta – that’s the ham element in this pea and ham soup recipe.

Rice – I have used Arborio risotto rice as it soaks up all that soupy goodness and gives wonderful texture to this pea and ham soup.

Stock – vegetable, ham or chicken stock work just fine for this recipe.

Spring onions – See notes below on ingredients.

Olive oil and butter are the fat element, the butter giving the soup an added luxury and richness, just like a good risotto.

Parmesan cheese – or any other hard Italian cheese for grating. This adds richness to your pea and ham soup and really plays on the risotto style of this easy yet luxurious soup.

White wine – added luxury and always something I put into my risotto so why not into this super soup.

Herbs – I have used fresh mint and parsley to really add some springtime freshness to my pea and ham soup.

The complete list of ingredients and full instructions for making this recipe can be found on the printable recipe card at the bottom of this post.

What type of rice to use for this risotto soup

I have used standard Arborio (risotto rice) for my soup. The reason this rice is so famous for risotto is that it holds more starch than long-grain rice.

This means that when it is cooked the starch breaks down to make the risotto really creamy. It works exactly the same way in this pea and ham soup giving a rich creaminess even though there is no cream in the soup at all.

What type of ham is in this soup

I have used pancetta because that’s what I had in the fridge at the time. However, this is a soup I make on a regular basis and have used leftover gammon, sliced boiled ham and those little bacon lardons too.

Basically, any ham will do!

What type of onions

I have used spring/salad onions to make my soup. I love their lightness of flavour and also the fact that they cook in mere moments.

Feel free to use a standard onion if you don’t have any spring onions for this risotto soup recipe.

Do you need oil or butter?

I use a mix of olive oil and butter in my risotto soup. The oil adds it’s beautiful olive flavour while the butter adds a rich creaminess to the risotto soup.

How to make pea and ham soup

This is such an easy recipe and the resulting pea and ham soup is so rich and luxurious you’d think it would take a lot more effort.

First you want to heat the oil and butter in your soup pan and saute the spring onions along with your ham (whatever type you are using) for just a few minutes.

Add the risotto rice and stir it around to coat all those rice grains in the oil.

Pour in your chosen stock and give everything a good stir and then simmer the soup for about 10 minutes.

Now chuck in the peas and cook for a further 10 minutes.

Add the wine, remaining butter, parmesan cheese and the herbs and stir well then cook for just 5 minutes more.

Season to taste. I leave this till last as both the parmesan and ham are salty in their own right and you don’t want to overdo it.

How much soup does this make?

I got 6 portions of pea and ham risotto style soup from this recipe.

Soup storage

Your pea and ham soup will keep for up to 4 days in the fridge. You can also freeze it for up to 3 months.

Looking for more super easy Springtime soup recipes to try? Then check these out before you go;

Caldo Verde (Portuguese cabbage soup)

Cream of courgette/zucchini soup with feta

Super healthy watercress and spinach soup

Avgolemono (Greek egg and lemon soup)

Low calorie pea and lettuce soup

Finally, if you do try this recipe don’t forget to leave a comment/star rating below as I just love to hear from readers. Want more Larder Love? Then follow me on Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest and Twitter and sign up for my newsletter too of course.