Peace oop

Despite the looooverly weather we've been having in Cape Town, it's officially cool to make soup till its coming out of your ears. Although I have already made a medley of el classicos - minestrone, fish soup, and leek & potato soup, I am digging the pea soup I made over the weekend the most. I am eating it as I write this...

PEA SOUP

INGREDIENTS:
500g split peas ( you can buy ones that you don't have to soak overnight)
200-250g pork ie bacon, kassler, eisbein etc or lamb/beef bones
1 medium onion, finely chopped
3 big stalks Celery with leaves, roughly chopped
3 leeks, white part only, roughly chopped
3 cloves garlic , roughly chopped
3 bay leaves
1 dried chilli
2L water + 1 chicken stock cube OR 2L real chicken stock
1 knob butter



METHOD:

In a large pot with a little! oil, brown your bones or cook you bacon a bit.

Add onions, celery, leeks, garlic, bay leaves, chilli and knob of butter.


Allow them to come together - as John Lennon requested - that's to say, don't let them colour, just soften, the flavours need to release a little. Add the split peas, stir and leave for about 3 minutes. Either add your stock cube now and mix in a little, then add 2 L cold water and allow soup to come to the boil, or just add your 2L chicken stock and allow to come to the boil, then turn down to a good simmer.

Simmer until the peas are quite soft ( if you squish one on your tongue then it goes soft with a little bite left).

At this stage I like to take the hand blender, and whiz about 60 % of the soup, so just a little chunk/texture is left.

Serve with fresh parsley and a drizzle of olive oil and some toasted chunky bread.


Tastes even better 3 days later.

*Remember when refrigerating liquids like soups and stocks to be quick to cool them and get them in the fridge when not using them. You essentially have 4 hours between the temperatures 5 - 65C, and the last of those four hours should be for cooling or re-heating to above 65C.