Vegetarian Split Pea Soup Recipe (2024)

FAQs

How do you add flavor to a bland split pea soup? ›

My typical go to additions are onions, carrots, and potatoes and maybe a little garlic.

You do not need to soak the split peas before cooking. If you do so, it will reduce the cooking time; however this will also reduce the amount of time the vegetables are cooked which is fine if you don't mind them to be firmer, but the cooking time of this recipe results in soft, silky vegetables.

How to Thicken Split Pea Soup. The potato should make your split pea soup perfectly thick and creamy. However, if the soup is still too thin for your liking, you can thicken it up with full-fat cream (though it may alter the flavor a bit) or a cornstarch slurry.

Add a bit of lemon zest to make those peas really sing. You can try the fresh pea approach with your favorite split pea soup recipe, but this super traditional, easy version is an Epicurious favorite.

Ham, bacon, and sausage all go exceptionally well with peas. One of the most traditional ways of making split pea soup is to flavor it with ham bones. Most recipes include onion, celery, carrots, and potatoes. In the herb department, bay leaves, thyme, mint, marjoram, rosemary, and parsley are all delicious additions.

If your split peas are hard after this length of cooking time, there is something wrong with the peas or with your water. If the peas are very old and dried out, they won't soften.

Two things can be attributed to bitter taste in peas. Peas that did not receive enough water during their growing season and peas that were grown in hot weather.

Yellow and green split peas have a similar nutritional content and cooking time, but yellow peas tend to have a more earthy flavor, while green peas are sweeter. Due to their versatility, both green and yellow split peas are found in the traditional dishes of a variety of cultures.

Whether you soak or not, split peas should be rinsed, simply to remove dust or dirt. You can also soak them in water to pick them over for stones, but the chances of finding one are slim.

Here's how: Rinse your legumes and split peas thoroughly before using. This helps to reduce the sugars present on the outside of the bean that can cause bloating. If you have extra time, you can soak your split peas in water overnight, which will continue to support digestibility.

Why did my split pea soup turn brown? ›

If you cook peas for too long the soup turns a brown color more than a green color.

Skim the foam that rises to the top of the water. Be very diligent about this; the foam contains the little bits of dust and dirt that you weren't able to rinse off the dry split peas. The more foam you can get rid of, the better your final product.

Update: If you overcook, the soup will get even thicker than usual! and turn a little bit of an olive drab color--it will still taste good though!"

The common denominator will probably be meat (ham bones are common), more salt, and pepper to taste. If you want to take a shortcut, you could use bouillon cubes or paste to provide both meaty flavor and salt, though pork is a lot harder to find than chicken or beef. Salt and pepper you can just stir in.

Perk up a Bland Soup With Simple Pantry Staples

Add a splash of vinegar (any kind!), or a squeeze of citrus. Chances are, you could use a little more salt. Go ahead—it's ok. Salt perks up flat flavors and helps balance out bitter-tasting ingredients.

Because the ham bone and any meat clinging to it will impart the soup with both flavor and salt, you'll need to season the soup more generously with salt. You also could use vegetable stock in place of the water, though it's truly delicious when made with water alone.

For a variation, add 1/2 teaspoon dried tarragon and 3 tablespoons of white wine to the soup instead of the garam masala. No ham on hand? Fry up some bacon and crumble it on top of the soup. A pale ale or an Alsatian gewurztraminer teams well with the spicy soup.