I love a good pea and ham soup – if you use a really good ham hock, you can create a fabulous dish that can be a main in itself! This dish tastes amazing!
Hints & Tips
- Do not add any salt – the ham hock is naturally salty and will add to the soup.
- GF, DF, SF.
- Category: Dairy Free, Entree, Gluten Free, Main Course, Pork, Soup, Sugar Free
Ingredients
- 500 grams Green Split Peas
- 6 Bay Leaves
- 12 Fresh Thyme Sprigs
- 3 Celery Stalks, Trimmed & Chopped
- 3 Medium Carrots, Sliced
- 1 Ham Hock (1kg)
- 12 Cloves Garlic, Crushed
- 2 Brown Onions, Finely Chopped
- 2 tablespoons Olive Oil
- 2 Litres Chicken Stock
Instructions
- Wash the lentils and soak in water overnight or for at least 6 hours. The less time you soak the lentils, the longer the soup will take to cook.
- Heat the olive oil in a soup pan and fry the onions until golden brown.
- Add the garlic and cook, stirring for 5 minutes.
- Add the carrots and celery and cook for 10 minutes.
- Add the thyme, bay leaves, lentils (drained of all water) and chicken stock and bring to a boil.
- Reduce heat to a simmer and cook for 1 hour with the lid partially on.
- After 1 hour, check the soup, particularly the lentils to see if they are cooked. If not, add 1 cup of water and simmer for a further half hour. Check and repeat until cooked.
- Carefully remove the ham hock from the soup. Shred the meat and put the meat back into the soup.
- Remove the bay leaves and thyme and serve hot with crusty bread!
Leave a Reply