Split Pea and Ham Soup
User Reviews
4.9
Split Pea and Ham Soup
Description
This soup starts with dried green split peas soaked overnight and rinsed, then simmered with a smoked ham hock, bay leaves, and aromatic vegetables such as onion, carrot, celery, and garlic. The slow cooking, lasting about four hours, softens the peas and melds flavors into a thick, creamy consistency once blended. Cayenne pepper adds a gentle warmth, balanced by the savoriness of the ham hock, while diced cooked ham is browned separately to provide texture contrast and added depth at serving. Fresh or frozen peas are briefly blanched and stirred in to enhance pea flavor and add a bit of variety to the texture. The result is a rich, smooth soup featuring smoky, salty ham and the natural sweetness of vegetables and peas. It is designed to be comforting and filling.
Ingredients
- 1 lb green split peas dried
- 8 ½ cups water
- 1 ham hock smoked
- 1.5 cups ham diced, cooked
- 3/4 cup pea fresh or frozen
- 1 talk celery chopped
- 1 onion chopped
- 1 carrot chopped
- 3 bay leaf
- 3 cloves garlic
- 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- butter
- black pepper freshly ground
Instructions
- Soak the peas overnight in water.
- Rinse the peas and discard water.
- Place a couple of tablespoons of butter in a large heavy-based pot. Over a medium to high heat, soften the onion, carrot, and celery.
- After a couple of minutes, add the garlic and continue cooking.
- Add about a liter of water, the hock, bay leaves and rinsed peas. Stir and add another liter of water.
- Bring to the boil and reduce to a simmer.
- Allow to simmer for 4 hours (more liquid may be added if the contents become too dry).
- While the soup is cooking, sauté the diced cooked ham in a frying pan over a high heat with a little butter. When it starts to brown, remove from the pan and set aside.
- Pour boiling water on the fresh or frozen peas and allow to stand for 1 minute, then strain and set aside.
- Once the soup has finished cooking, allow it to cool slightly, remove the hock and bay leaves, and blend or process the soup until smooth.
- Return the blended soup to a medium heat and taste for seasoning; it will have been infused by salt from the hock.
- Add the cooked ham and peas and serve.
Notes
User Reviews
Overall Rating
4.9
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