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Split Pea and Ham
Soup Recipe |
KEY POINTS
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Preparation Time: |
15 mins |
Cooking Time: |
55 mins |
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How Difficult |
Easy |
Freeze? |
Yes |
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Servings |
4
portions |
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SPLIT PEA AND HAM SOUP
This soup uses split peas, but you can just as easily
use yellow or red split lentils instead (same weight and cooking
instructions). Many old style recipes require that the split peas are
soaked overnight before starting recipes but this is not normally necessary.
However, be sure to read the packet instructions carefully. If
the split pas are soaked overnight their cooking time can be reduced to
around 40 minutes. This recipe does not require overnight soaking.
TIME
2 hours cooking time but most of it is unattended
INGREDIENTS
This split pea and ham soup recipe will fill four good-sized bowls.
| Ingredients |
Imperial
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Metric
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| Cooked and chopped gammon / ham (see note at end of
ingredients for different types of gammon / ham for this recipe).
The weights are approximate. |
8 ounces
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225 grams
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| 1 large onion |
-
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-
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| 4 celery sticks |
- |
- |
| 2 large carrots peeled |
- |
- |
| Split peas or split lentils |
3 ounces |
75 grams |
| Two sprigs of parsley (optional) |
- |
- |
| 1/2 teaspoon of grated garlic or 2 fresh garlic
cloves chopped up small |
- |
- |
| Salt and pepper to taste - add the salt at the end
of cooking after tasting the soup to avoid over
salting. |
- |
- |
| Chicken or vegetable stock. This can be made by adding two
cubes of OXO or Knorr to 2 pints / 1 litre of boiling water. |
2 pints |
1.2 litre |
COOKING EQUIPMENT
2 Large-sized pans
Scales
Knife
How To Make Homemade Split Pea and Ham Soup
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Pour 3 pints of water into a largish pan and bring to the boil.
Turn the heat down until the water is simmering (barely boiling).
Place the uncooked gammon in the pan. If the gammon is covered
half way to all the way by the water you're OK. Chop the gammon
into smaller pieces if it's not at least half covered. The cooking
method is the same whatever ham or gammon joint you use. Cook for
around 50 minutes.
Turn the ham over about half way through cooking.
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| Immediately after the ham is put on to cook, start
on the vegetables.
Chop up the onions, carrots and celery into small cubes. Click
on the picture on the right (or the ingredients picture at the top
of this page) to get a better idea of the size to chop the
vegetables.
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Place all the vegetables, split peas, parsley and garlic into a
pan, pour in the stock and bring to the boil. Then lower the heat so that the
mixture is just simmering (just below boiling).
This will need to be cooked for around one hour, maybe one and a quarter
hours if you want your vegetables soft.
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| The ham / gammon should be cooked after about 50
minutes, just enough time to prepare it before the vegetables are
cooked.
Remove from the pan, and chop the ham into small cubes. Click
on the picture on the right to give you a good idea on the best
size for the cubes.
Remember, if you have cooked a much larger joint of ham than
needed (we did), put the remainder in the fridge and use it for
'real' ham sandwiches over the next day or so.
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Vegetables cooked, ham ready, now is decision time for you! Do you want chunky
split pea and ham soup or blended smooth split pea and ham soup? We went for the
blended smooth version because the kids just hate lumps in their soup! Well, to
be honest, we prefer it that way as well.
If you want chunky soup, ignore the next step.
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| If you want a smooth soup, now is the time to
'puree' it before adding the chopped ham. We used a cheap blender which does the job really
well. If you have a professional blender all the better.
It is also possible to use a hand potato masher which will
puree all the vegetables just as well.
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The final step is to add the ham to the soup and heat gently for a couple of
minutes. Stir well and have a quick taste. More salt and pepper can added if the
soup needs more seasoning.
Serve the soup into bowls and add the parsley if you have any available. This
soup freezes well and will keep in the freezer for a month.
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