Step 1

Place peas in slow cooker, push ham in. Scatter all ingredients around the ham bone, then pour over water.

Step 2

Slow cook 8 to 10 hours on LOW or 6 hours on HIGH. (Or 2.5 hours on low on stove, 1 h - 1 hr 20 min pressure cooker/Instant Pot on HIGH)

Step 3

Remove ham bone, shred ham meat. Discard bone and fatty skin.

Step 4

Remove bay leaves. Use a stick blender to blitz 2 or 3 times - thickens soup but doesn't make it completely smooth (my preference, you can blend completely if you want).

Step 5

Return ham into slow cooker, stir. Taste and add more salt if needed (soup gets lots of salt from ham).

Step 6

Serve garnished with parsley. Serve with crusty bread for dunking - make a quick Irish Soda Bread, Garlic Bread or upgrade to Cheesy Garlic Bread!