051 / 75 · A Little Meat or Fish
Smoky Ham, Split Pea and Carrot Pie
4 generous portions of split-pea filling under mashed potato · Active 30 min · Total 2 hr 5 min
Print recipe · PDFA small amount of cooked ham flavors a thick split-pea and carrot filling under mashed potato. The peas need to become completely soft before the pie is assembled; the oven stage browns the topping rather than finishing hard peas. Potatoes cook in a second pan during the simmer. The completed dish makes four generous portions.
Make a filling, not a pot of soup
Rinse and sort the split peas, then simmer them with the onion, carrot and measured water. They should soften enough to break down when pressed with a spoon. The exact time varies with the age of the peas, so keep cooking if the centers remain gritty. Stir more often as the mixture thickens and add a little water if it catches before becoming tender. At the end, uncover briefly if needed. A spoonful should mound rather than immediately spread across the plate. That thickness supports the potato topping and keeps the finished pie from separating into broth and mash.
Ham arrives after the long simmer
The ham is already cooked, so it only needs to be distributed through the hot filling before baking. Adding it late avoids making small pieces dry through a long boil. Smoked paprika provides the clear smoky seasoning even if the ham itself is quite mild. Mash the potatoes while hot, then spread them in small spoonfuls over the filling rather than dropping one heavy mound into the center. A fork makes simple ridges that brown well. Rest the baked pie before serving so the lower layer settles enough to lift with the topping.
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon neutral oil (15 ml)
- 1 medium onion (150 g), finely diced
- 2 large carrots (250 g), cut into small dice
- 1 cup dried yellow split peas (200 g), rinsed and sorted
- 4 cups water (960 ml), plus small additions if needed
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika (2 g)
- 1/2 teaspoon fine salt (3 g), divided
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper (0.5 g)
- 5 oz cooked ham (150 g), diced
- 1 lb 12 oz potatoes (800 g), peeled and cut into chunks
- 3/4 cup milk (180 ml)
- 2 tablespoons butter (28 g)
Set out
Large saucepan, Medium saucepan, 9 x 13-inch/23 x 33 cm baking dish, about 3 quarts/3 liters, Potato masher, Food thermometer
Allergens
Milk. Check labels and substitutions.
Make it
- Heat oil in the large saucepan over medium-low heat. Cook onion and carrots for 7 minutes. Add split peas, measured water and paprika. Bring to a boil, then lower to a gentle simmer. Cook partly covered for 40–50 minutes, stirring, until peas are completely soft. Add small amounts of water if needed before they are tender; uncover at the end to make a thick filling.
- While peas simmer, cover potatoes with cold water in the second saucepan. Bring to a boil and simmer for 15–20 minutes until very tender. Drain, steam-dry in the hot empty pan for 1 minute, then mash with milk, butter and half the salt.
- Heat oven to 400°F/200°C. Stir ham, remaining salt and pepper into the thick split-pea mixture. Transfer to the baking dish. Spoon mash over in small mounds and spread to the edges. Roughen with a fork.
- Bake for 25–30 minutes until the top has golden ridges and the center of the filling reaches 165°F/74°C. Rest for 10 minutes before dividing into four portions.
A small ham portion still has a purpose
Cut ham into small dice and distribute it through the full filling so every portion receives some. The peas and potato supply the rest of the meal’s substance.
Ingredient labels
Check ham ingredients for soy, wheat or other added allergens.
A useful detail
Split peas must be completely tender before assembly. If they take longer than 50 minutes, extend the simmer and total time; baking the assembled pie does not reliably fix gritty peas.
Another way
- Use cooked smoked turkey instead of ham at the same weight, keeping the 165°F/74°C final temperature.
- Use the same weight of already prepared plain potato mash if it was chilled promptly and is within its original storage window; add only enough milk to make it spreadable and observe the earlier use-by limit.
Keep it well
With newly opened cooked ham, cool portions within 2 hours, or 1 hour above 90°F/32°C, and refrigerate at 40°F/4°C or below for up to 3 days, subject to its label. If using home-cooked leftover ham or leftover mash, their original cooking date sets the shorter limit; assembling a pie does not restart it. Reheat once to 165°F/74°C.