Old Fashioned Pea and Ham Soup
A community recipe by angierichieNot tested or verified by Nigella.com
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The day before: prepare the ham shank and peas. Cover the ham shank with cold water and leave to soak, change the water about three times to get rid of excess salt. Soak the dried peas, if using in a separate bowl or pan according to the instructions on the pack. The following day: Slice up the leek and carrots and sauté gently in a large saucepan in a knob of butter until slightly softened, Drain and pour in the peas and drain and place the ham shank on top, cover with fresh water, give a good grind of pepper and bring to the boil. Turn the heat to medium and, cover pan with a lid and cook gently for about an hour until peas are soft and ham shank is cooked. Take the ham shank out of the pan and carve into nice chunky pieces then add back to the pan. Stir well and taste for seasoning, add salt only if needed as the ham shank should be salty enough, add dumplings now if using and cook gently for a further twenty minutes then serve. The peas should be comfortably mushy and the ham beautifully tender, serve hot to take a trip back to the food your granny used to cook or bring it up to date by blitzing it in a blender (don't do this if you've made dumplings) and adding a swirl of crème fresh and coriander leaves
Introduction
just like your granny used to make. An essential 'must-eat' for cold winter nights. It means you have to prepare it the day before, but it's well worth it. Try adding some dumplings twenty minutes before the end for a belly-busting and hearty meal that's just right for keeping the cold out.
Ingredients
Serves: 4
- 1 ham hocks (soaked overnight in cold water)
- 1 packet mushy peas (dried, soaked overnight in cold water or as per pack instructions - or at a pinch, 1 bag of frozen mushy peas)
- 1 leek
- 3 carrots
- black pepper
- creme fraiche (optional)
- fresh coriander (optional)
- dumpling mixture (optional)
Method
Old Fashioned Pea and Ham Soup is a community recipe submitted by angierichie and has not been tested by Nigella.com so we are not able to answer questions regarding this recipe.
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What 3 Others have said
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Posted by Chiefcooknobottleswashed on 24th December 2015
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Posted by Kenny444 on 20th November 2013
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Posted by davemilnes on 19th October 2013
Show more commentsAfter soaking the ham and peas (I use dryed green peas but split peas work too) I throw everything in together and once cooked remove the ham and then use an old fashioned tattie masher to mash the carrots etc. Then I add a small bag of frozen peas and some of the ham. Heat through and serve. You might have to fish out a couple of cloves first though if you add them but apart from that it's really easy.
Hi, score the skin of the shank into squares and leave it on to cook, it is yummy as it falls into the mixture. You can also add potatoes that are partially cooked, just before the dumplings. This also works well in the slow cooker while you are at work, add the dumplings, when you get in. Use big bowls because the hungry ones will require a refill.
If you're going to blend, do it before you put the pulled ham back in...otherwise it goes a nasty colour