Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Food, Cooking, and Game Preparation Split pea soup

The weather is starting to look a whole bunch like fall, the maple leaves are beginning to turn red, the salmon are in the creeks and rivers and the pigeons are in the trees. It's time to begin cooking in the Dutch oven such things as stews, clam chowder and tomorrow Split Pea soup. I love split pea soup made with good split peas and real ham not that processed stuff that has been passed off as lean ham.

I buy my self a real ham and boil it in my crab cooker, turkey cooker to you inland types, the ham is cooked for about four hours or until the internal temp reaches 180 at the bone. I let cool over nite in fridge then cut up into small cubes removing as much fat as possible, Freeze in 1 cup more or less amounts in freezer bags. This is for split pea soup. I get about 10 bags. When I am ready to make soup I wash a 1 pound bag of dry split peas being careful to locate bits of stone and twigs and remove them. I put four times the volume of water to peas in the pot a bit of sea salt, not too much as the ham was salty, then a bag of ham...don't forget to remove the ham from the bag. I like finley chopped carrot and celery heart about a half cup of each. Of course ther is the ever present garlic, This is one dish where garlic powder is better than fresh. Cook on low heat stiring several times, add more water as needed to keep soup creamy and not like brick mortar. Soup should be smooth and creamy not watery or lumpy.

I love fresh ground black pepper but I almost never cook with it, I add the ground pepper after the soup is ladled into the bowl. Cooked pepper gets bitter.

Here is a way to make the very best garlic toast you ever ate: Toast some good quality French bread or rolls under a broiler until toasty looking, flip over and do the other ssde but not as done as the first, just lightly brown. i prefer sourdough french. While still hot rub the the toast with a glove of garlic that has been cut into halves. Rub the whole side then butter and return to broiler till nicley brown. You get a hot garlic toast with strong flavor but without the garlic breath or reruns.

Good eats.



Bullwnkl.

I'm with you Winky except for the celery and I use fine chopped onion and a little less garlic. Also just before serving I like a touch of savory.


BCR

Bog meister, this pot of split pea was the best ever, i forgot to buy some celery heart so there was none put in it, I just always used celery because that was the way it was done when I was a kid. I used a little less onion than normal and a little more carrot. The soup was just fantastic. i have never used savory and am not sure how to use it. The ham was perfect...as usual...Up until recently getting a uncooked ham in these parts was darn near impossible, usually special ordered one every fall at a sizeable expence. Now that Walmart has groceries they stock an uncooked smoked pork sholder for 88 cents a pound this is a real bargin as i usually paid over $2.00 a pound. I am not a bigfan of the Wally world orginazation but times change I guess so should I. Send me your Mail address again as a PM and this winter as it gets cold there will be a care package in the mail for you. Fresh oysters. right now the water is too warm and the critters are soft and mushy I was going to send you a quart last winter but when My confuser puked I lost all address. Long about Christmas the little guys ought to be about ready.

Bullwnkl.