I’m the guest who haunts the kitchen after holiday dinner, saying “Wait! Don’t throw those bones away. I’ll take them with me.” (Yes, I’m a big hit at parties.)
I only do this to family members. Now, when they see me come into the kitchen, they shake their heads and dig under the counter for the gallon ziploc bags. They're family, so they have to invite me back, right?
Now, what do I do with those bones? In this case, I got a great hambone from my brother-in-law; I threw it in the freezer, saved it for a couple of weeks, then used it to make lentil and ham soup.
If there’s extra meat on the bone, I’m good to go; if not, I ask for a care package of leftover ham to dice and stir into the soup. (Which is a good idea in general, even with a meaty bone. But I’m usually pushing my luck asking for bones; I don’t want to get greedy.)
After that, soup is easy with my pressure cooker. Saute an onion and some garlic in the pot, then add the hambone, a pound of lentils, and water. When the beans are done, I pull out the bone, pick off the ham, and stir it back into the soup. Season to taste, add a splash of vinegar for a little acidity, and the soup is ready to serve.
No pressure cooker? No worries. See the notes section for stovetop instructions.
Recipe: Pressure Cooker Lentil and Hambone Soup
Print
Pressure Cooker Lentil and Hambone Soup
- Total Time: 55 minutes
- Yield: 3 quarts of soup 1x
Description
Pressure Cooker Lentil and Hambone soup. What do I do with a leftover hambone? Make soup, of course. Lentil soup in under an hour, thanks to my pressure cooker.
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
- 1 onion, minced
- 2 large carrots, cut into ½ inch pieces
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- Bone from 1 ham, meat still attached
- 1 pound brown lentils, picked over and rinsed
- 8 cups water
- 1 teaspoon sherry wine vinegar (or balsamic vinegar)
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Saute the aromatics: Heat the vegetable oil in the pressure cooker pot over medium-high heat until the oil is shimmering. Add the onion, carrots, and garlic to the pressure cooker pot, and then sprinkle with the salt and red pepper flakes. Saute until the onion softens, about five minutes.
- Everything in the pot: Add the ham bone to the pot, then the pour in the lentils and cover with the water. (It's OK if the end of the bone pokes up out of the water.) Lock the lid on the pressure cooker.
- Pressure cook the soup for 15 minutes with a natural pressure release: Pressure cook at high pressure for 15 minutes in an electric pressure cooker, or for 12 minutes in a stovetop cooker. (On the Instant Pot, use the Manual setting, and set the cook time for 15 minutes.) Let the pressure come down naturally, about 20 more minutes. Remove the lid, tilting it away from you to avoid any hot steam.
- Thicken, season, and serve: Fish the hambone out of the pot and set it aside until it is cool enough to handle. While the bone cools, scoop 2 cups of lentils and broth out of the cooker and puree them (I put them in a quart measuring cup and use my stick blender.) Pour the pureed lentils back into the pot. Pull the ham from the hambone, discard any pieces of fat or gristle, chop the ham into rough ¼ inch cubes, and stir the ham into the pot. Add the sherry vinegar, then add salt and pepper until you just taste the salt on the tip of your tongue. (The soup will already be seasoned by the salty ham; I usually add a teaspoon of kosher salt to the pot.)
Notes
- No ham bone? Substitute 2 smoked ham hocks.
- No pressure cooker? No worries. Cook everything in a dutch oven with a lid. Follow the instructions until the “pressure cook” step. Instead of pressure cooking, cover the pot, bring it to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for an hour. Continue with the “thicken, season and serve” step.
Tools
- 6 quart or larger Pressure Cooker (I use an Instant Pot electric PC)
- Stick blender (I like this one from Breville)
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 40 minutes
- Category: Weeknight Dinner
- Method: Pressure Cooker
- Cuisine: American
What do you think?
Questions? Other ideas? Leave them in the comments section below.
Related Posts
Pressure Cooker Senate Bean Soup
Pressure Cooker Pasta and Bean Soup
Pressure Cooker Black Bean Soup
My other Pressure Cooker Recipes
Enjoyed this post? Want to help out DadCooksDinner? Subscribe to DadCooksDinner via eMail or RSS reader, recommend DadCooksDinner to your friends, and buy something from Amazon.com through the links on this site. Thank you.
Jeanne Monroe says
I just put the lid on and am excited for dinner. I also realized i already put the vinegar in hope its not a big deal?!! anyone else make this mistake? thanks
★★★★★
Mike Vrobel says
Shouldn't be a big deal, but it might cook out the hint of sour. Taste it once it's done cooking, and if you think it needs it, add a little splash of vinegar.
Michael says
This was a breeze to make and for so little effort the results were awesome. The only change I made was to add two finely chopped celery sticks. You can easily feed a family of four. Add a baguette and you have dinner.
★★★★★
Katie says
This was the best instant pot soup I've made! I added mushrooms too. I was just about to ask if I can substitute hocks for the ham bone, but I saw your note. I had a leftover bone when I made it. No bone and I want to make it again. Hocks are easier to find at the market. Will see how it goes!
Joyce says
Loved this! Turned out great in my Instant Pot!
★★★★★
Mary Anne says
Cooked this tonight with a ham hock from the grocery store. I always use less salt, esp because the ham hock is salty. It was delicious! Thank you for a great easy recipe 🙂
★★★★★
Lisa says
I made my first ham this Christmas and this was the perfect use for the bone! Really yummy! I added celery but followed everything else as written.
Zipporah says
This was great! I think we'll reduce or leave the red pepper flake out next time since the 3-year-old thought it was a bit spicy (but still ate it). I really like thickening via a partial puree.
Ian says
I substituted yellow split peas for the lentils, added an extra carrot and roasted the ham bone (my wife's suggestion). Delish!
Elyse O says
Delicious! I added cumin and tumeric. So good, thanks!
David says
We have cooked this twice, it's great when the weather is cold. It is a great recipe for branching out with a pressure cooker. Thank you for the recipe.
Mike V says
You're welcome!
Jaclyn says
I used your recipe as my first ever instant pot attempt. It came out perfect! Thank you so much!