A Deliciously Tasty Bright Green Pea Soup Recipe
Green pea soup is a great meal for these cold winter days. Make no mistake, if done correctly, pea soup is a meal all on its own. It will satisfy your stomach and tantalize your taste buds. It’s full of fiber, iron, calcium, protein too.
Typically made with dried green peas, the soup originated in Ancient Greece. The Greeks started growing green peas around 500 B.C. It didn’t take long before street vendors in the country began selling pea soup.
Word soon spread of this delightful and inexpensive dish. Australia went on and added meat pie to the mix and called it a “pie floater.” The British loved it so much they came up with a nursery rhyme. You may be familiar with it.
“Pease porridge hot, please porridge cold, pease porridge in the pot, nine days old.”
It was also the English that added salt pork, which evolved into the ham bone. Eastern Europeans added potatoes, carrots, and whatever else was in abundance. Kind of like a worldwide Stone Soup.
Today, some version of odea soup is enjoyed in most parts of the world.
The following recipe combines ingredients from many cultures to make it delicious. As well as one that will make it a nice bright green. You’re sure to enjoy this deliciously tasty bright green soup.
A Deliciously Tasty Bright Green Pea Soup Recipe
- Serving: 6
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook time: 1 hour and 45 minutes
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons of olive oil
- 1-1/2 cups of chopped onions
- 1-1/4 cups of diced celery
- 1 teaspoon of minced garlic
- 4 cups of water
- 4 cups of low sodium chicken broth
- 10 ounces of dried green peas
- 1 bag (14 to 16 ounces) of frozen sweet, green peas (defrosted). This will make the soup a brighter green.
- 2 bay leaves
- 1-1/2 teaspoons of thyme (fresh)
- salt and pepper
- 1-1/2 pound meaty ham bone
- 1 cup of diced carrots
- fresh parsley (for garnish)
Directions
- Purée the defrosted frozen peas and set aside.
- Heat the olive oil in a large pot over a medium high flame. Add the onions and celery and sauté for 3 minutes. Add the garlic and sauté for 1 more minute.
- Pour in the chicken broth and water. Add in the dried green peas, bay leaves, and thyme. Season with pepper and salt. You may want to go light with the salt until you know how salty the ham makes the stock.
- Submerge the ham bone into the soup and bring it to a boil, then reduce it to low. Cover the pot and let it simmer. Stir every 10 to 15 minutes, until the peas and ham are tender. About 60 to 80 minutes.
- Remove the ham bone and let it sit for about 10 minutes, then shred the meat. Cover and put aside.
- Add the carrots and green pea purée. Mix well. Cover and let the soup simmer until all the carrots and dried green peas have broken down (about 30 minutes).
- Stir the shredded ham into the soup and add salt if needed. Garnish with parsley and serve.
Tips
- You can add some diced potatoes in, if you like, when you add the carrots and pea purée.
- If the soup is not as thick as you would like, leave it uncovered for the last 30 minutes.
- The soup will get thicker as it cools. Add water if you prefer it thinner.
- You can also make this recipe in a crockpot. Just reduce the water by 2 cups. Add all the ingredients to a 4-6 quart crockpot for 7 hours on low. Remove the ham bone, shred the meat, and stir it back into the soup.
Nutritional Information
- calories; 450
- fat: 7.6 grams
- cholesterol: 66 milligrams
- sodium: 202 milligrams
- potassium: 1358 milligrams
- carbohydrates: 54 grams
- fiber: 20 grams
- sugar: 9 grams
- protein: 43 grams
- iron: 4.8
- calcium: 93 milligrams
- vitamin C: 7 milligrams
FAQs
Should I Soak My Peas Overnight?
Some people think that it’s required to soak dried peas (all dried legumes for that matter) overnight. The belief that they will have to spend an entire day boiling them if they don’t. The truth is, that although it does shorten the cooking time, it’s not by that much.
Dried peas that have been soaked overnight will take about 40 minutes to cook. While non-soaked peas will take about 1-2 hours to be tender. If you like them mushier, you can cook them longer. Dried peas absorb a lot of water as they cook, so keep an eye on them and add water as needed.
Can You Over Cook Pea Soup?
Unless you burn the soup by having the flame too high, you can’t really overcook pea soup.
The great thing about this soup is, that you can make it as thick or as thin as you like with a magic potion called water. Too thick? Add water to thin it out. Too thin? Let it simmer longer and the water will be absorbed by the peas even more.
If you’re still not happy with the consistency, there’s always purée.
How Should I Store My Leftover Bright Green Pea Soup Recipe?
If you end up with more pea soup than you can handle at once, no worries, because it stores very well. If you plan on finishing it soon, you can put it in the refrigerator where it will keep for up to 5 days. Allow the soup to cool down, then transfer it to an airtight container.
If you don’t think you’ll be using the soup within the next week, then the freezer is where it should go. Just place the room temperature soup (do not leave out for more than 2 hours) in a freezer-safe container or bag.
If you’re using bags be sure to squeeze out any excess air. Lay the bags flat in the freezer. The soup will stay tasty for about 3 months. After that, it will still be safe to eat, but may lose some of its flavor.
