What Are Yellow split peas and How Can I Use Them?
Yellow split peas rewards a little know-how: how to choose them, cook them, store them, and substitute in a pinch. Browse 31 recipes to cook with them.
Key Points
- Yellow split peas are dried, hulled field peas that cook without soaking and break down into a puree.
- Simmer about 1 cup in 3 to 4 cups of liquid; tender in 30 minutes, pureed by 45 to 60.
- Hold salt and acid until the peas soften, since both can keep the skins firm.
- They love smoke and pork, from ham hock soups to spiced Indian dal.
- Swap one for one with green split peas, or use them in place of toor or chana dal.
What are yellow split peas?
Yellow split peas are field peas that have been dried and hulled, then halved along their natural seam. They are a different crop from the green peas you eat fresh, grown specifically to dry.
The splitting exposes the starchy interior, so they cook faster than whole dried peas and break down readily into a thick puree. Their flavor is mild and faintly sweet, a touch softer and less grassy than green split peas.
That gentleness makes them a blank canvas for spices and a bright squeeze of lemon. They anchor pea soups across Northern Europe and Canada, and across India they stand in for the split pulses used in dal.
How to Cook Them
The big advantage over most beans: no soaking required. Rinse them, pick out any small stones, and they are ready for the pot. Soaking is optional and only shaves a little time.
Simmer roughly 1 cup of split peas in 3 to 4 cups of water or stock. They turn tender in about 30 minutes and collapse into a smooth puree by 45 to 60 minutes.
That breakdown is why they make such a silky soup base, and a Canadian Yellow Split-Pea Soup leans entirely on it.
Hold the salt and anything acidic until the peas are soft. Added early, salt and acid toughen the skins and can keep the peas firm no matter how long they cook.
For a dal like Masala Dal, cook them looser and finish with a tadka of spices bloomed in hot ghee. For a comforting one-pot meal, Khichhari simmers them right alongside rice until everything melts together.
They also fry up crunchy. Crisp Split Peas toasts soaked peas in oil for a snackable, savory garnish.
Pairing and Common Mistakes
Yellow split peas have a deep affinity for smoke and pork. A ham hock or a smoked sausage in a Danish Pea Soup with Pork gives the mild peas a meaty depth they cannot reach alone.
On the spice side, cumin, turmeric, ginger, and a hit of acid at the end wake them up.
The most common mistake is hard water and old peas. Peas that have sat in the pantry for a year or more, or are cooked in very hard water, can stay stubbornly firm for hours.
The fix is fresh peas and, if your water is hard, a tiny pinch of baking soda in the cooking water.
The other mistake is scorching. As the peas thicken they sink and stick, so stir a pea soup regularly toward the end and keep the heat gentle.
Substitutes
Green split peas are the most direct swap, cooking the same way and in the same time, just with a slightly grassier flavor and green color. Use them one for one.
For dal, yellow split peas stand in well for toor dal or chana dal, though chana dal (split chickpeas) holds its shape a bit more and takes longer to soften.
Red lentils are a faster cousin that also cook down to a puree, but they collapse in 15 to 20 minutes, so expect a thinner, quicker result. Whole dried peas work too, but plan on soaking them and roughly doubling the cook time.
Buying and Storing Them
Yellow split peas are cheap, sold in bags or bulk bins in the dried-bean aisle. Look for bright, uniform color and whole halves. A lot of dust or shriveled, broken fragments points to an old batch that will cook unevenly.
Freshness genuinely matters with any dried pulse. The older they are, the drier they get and the longer and more stubbornly they cook, so buy from a shop with good turnover rather than a dusty back-shelf bag.
Stored airtight in a cool, dark cupboard, they keep their quality for about a year and remain safe far longer, though older peas are best for soups where firmness does not matter.
Keep them away from heat and humidity, which speed up the drying that makes them hard to cook.
Nutrition
Nutrition Facts
Serving Size 1 cup (197g)Quick facts
Where to find yellow split peas: Yellow split peas are usually found in the rice & beans section or aisle of the grocery store or supermarket.
Food group: Yellow split peas are a member of the Legumes and Legume Products US Department of Agriculture nutritional food group.
- In Chinese
- 黄豌豆
- British (UK) term
- Yellow split peas
- en français
- pois cassés jaunes
- en español
- arvejas amarillas
How much do yellow split peas weigh?
| Amount | Weight |
|---|---|
| 1 cup | 197 grams |
| 1 lb | 453 grams |
Related
Legumes and Legume Products
Recipes using yellow split peas
There are 31 recipes that contain this ingredient.
Canadian Yellow Split-Pea Soup
Thick, warming Canadian yellow split-pea soup with diced Canadian bacon, carrots, sage, and a hint of allspice. High in fiber and protein, low in guilt.
Burger Mix (Vegetarian)
A tasty make ahead vegetarian burger mix. Make in advance and have vege burgers ready in a flash for a quick and healthy snack or meal.
Sunny Splits Soup
Vegetarian split pea and red lentil soup with sunchokes, carrots, and caraway seeds. A hearty, high-fiber bean soup that's naturally vegan and packed with plant protein.
Traditional Scotch Broth
Traditional Scottish Scotch broth with mutton, pearl barley, split peas, leeks, cabbage, and root vegetables simmered low and slow into a hearty soup.
The South: Split Pea & Coconut Curry Sauce
A fragrant South Indian curry sauce made from split peas pureed with green chilis, tempered with popping mustard seeds and curry leaves, then simmered in creamy coconut milk. Spicy, silky, and ready in an hour.
Stuffed Grape Leaves
Vegetarian stuffed grape leaves filled with rice, yellow split peas, mushrooms, and warming spices like turmeric and cayenne. Baked until tender, these make a hearty appetizer or meatless main.
Mom's Smooth Split Pea Soup
Smooth pureed yellow split pea soup with potato, celery, caraway, mace, and bay leaf. A vegan family-recipe soup with subtle warm spice notes setting it apart from typical green split pea.
Split Pea & Coconut Curry Sauce
South Indian split pea and coconut curry sauce with mustard seeds, cumin, curry leaves, green chiles, and ginger. A creamy, spicy condiment for rice, dosa, or idli.
Masala Dal
Masala dal made with yellow split peas, turmeric, and a ghee tadka of cumin seeds and slow-fried onions. Vegetarian Indian comfort food, creamy and warming.
Vegetables & Side Dishes
Traditional Polish holiday side dishes: golden fried cabbage with split peas, pearl barley, buckwheat, baked rice, breadcrumb-coated potatoes, and seasoned beans. A complete Wigilia spread.
Pea Soup with Pork
Yellow split pea soup with salt pork: dried peas quick-soaked and simmered with clove-studded onion, salt pork, marjoram, and thyme. Classic Scandinavian-style pea soup tradition.
Brown Split Pea Soup
A velvety vegetarian split pea soup blended smooth with potato, celery, and garlic, seasoned with caraway seeds and a whisper of mace. Hearty, warming, and naturally creamy without any dairy.
Sambaar
Sambaar is a South Indian vegetable and split pea stew spiced with cumin, coriander, turmeric, and dried chili. Loaded with cauliflower, carrots, eggplant, and cabbage.
Erbsenpuree (Yellow Split-Pea Puree)
Erbsenpuree, a traditional German yellow split-pea puree with carrot, turnip, marjoram, and thyme, thickened with a butter-flour roux and beaten until fluffy.
Kiros Kai Faki
Kiros Kai Faki is a thick split pea soup slow-simmered with pigs feet or pork hocks for 6 hours until the meat falls off the bone. Brined overnight for clean, rich flavor.
Susan's Turkey Soup
Susan's Turkey Soup: a hearty post-Thanksgiving soup made from the turkey carcass with yellow and green split peas, chickpeas, small pasta, and aromatic vegetables. Three legumes, one pot.
Vegetable Patties with Peanut Sauce
Yellow split pea patties spiced with cumin, ginger, and cayenne, pan-fried until golden and served with peanut sauce. A hearty vegan main dish packed with protein.
Danish Pea Soup with Pork
Traditional Danish yellow split pea soup with smoked pork, sausage links, leeks, and celery root. Hearty Scandinavian comfort served with dark bread, mustard, and beer.
Vegetable Dahl Soup
Creamy Indian dahl soup blended silky smooth with split peas, mung beans, basmati rice, and vegetables. Spiced with garam masala, cumin, coriander, and a hit of asafetida.
Piquant Lemon Rice
Piquant lemon rice is a South Indian vegetarian side: fluffy basmati folded with turmeric, fresh lemon juice, toasted cashews, black mustard seeds, and coconut. Bright, tangy, and nutty in every bite.
Veggie Burger Mix
DIY dry veggie burger mix from blended chickpeas, soybeans, lentils, split peas, rice, and oats. Just add water to form patties. The pantry-staple shortcut.
South: Split Pea & Coconut Curry Sauce
South Indian split pea and coconut curry sauce built on a rice-split-pea puree, tempered with mustard seeds and curry leaves. A fragrant, mildly spiced vegan sauce for rice or dosa.
Yellow Split-Pea Puree
Yellow split pea puree with carrots, turnip, and herbs, slow-simmered in stock then blended silky smooth with a buttery onion roux for rich, velvety flavor.
Khichhari
Khichhari (khichdi) with yellow split peas, brown rice, turmeric, cumin, and tomatoes cooked in ghee. A one-pot Indian comfort dish that's vegetarian, warming, and deeply spiced.
Five Dahl Soup
Five dahl soup, an Indian vegetarian classic blending mung beans, pigeon peas, chickpeas, and yellow and green split peas with ghee, turmeric, ginger, and a fragrant tarka of cumin, chilies, and asafetida.
Split Pea Stew with Chunky Vegetables
A thick vegan split pea stew packed with sweet potato, broccoli, Roma tomatoes, and fresh dill. High in fiber and protein with under 1 gram of fat, this plant-powered bowl is weeknight meal prep gold.
Crisp Split Peas
Crunchy deep-fried yellow split peas tossed in warm spices like chili, coriander, cinnamon, and cloves. A high-protein vegetarian snack inspired by Indian street food. Stores beautifully in an airtight jar.
Golden Split Pea & Sweet Potato Soup
Vegetarian golden split pea and sweet potato soup spiced with cumin, coriander, turmeric, ginger, and jalapeno. Topped with yogurt, lime, and fresh cilantro.
Millet with Yellow Split Peas
Millet with yellow split peas toasted in cumin, turmeric, and coriander. A fragrant vegan Indian-spiced grain dish with nutty millet and creamy split peas. Naturally gluten-free.
Habitant Pea Soup
Traditional Quebec habitant pea soup with yellow split peas, smoked ham hocks, savory, and thyme simmered three hours until thick and creamy. A French-Canadian classic.
