As I've mentioned in earlier posts, risotto doesn't keep well. It has a tendency to dry out and go a bit blah. Those who have had frozen leftover risotto know what I am talking about.
Something that doesn't dry out is soup.
One of my favourites is pea and ham. Before now I had never made it. I had only ever bought it in a can (feel free to judge me). I love how salty this soup is. So when I went to the supermarket and saw bacon hocks on sale, I knew that this soup was meant to be.
The ingredients are simple: most of the flavour comes from the wonderful smoked bacon hock. I added a couple of carrots and some celery for extra goodness.
You don't use fresh/frozen peas for this soup, instead you will need a packet of green split peas. They are packed full of protein and so so cheap. You will find them in the soup section, next to those big packets of dried soup mix.
This is the perfect soup to make on a dreary Sunday. It takes a little longer than your traditional soup because you have to cook the peas as well as let the hock release all its flavour and soften, but it is well worth it, and perfect for lunches for the following week.
Pea and ham soup
Makes a potful
1 bacon or ham hock, skin layer removed (in an attempt to reduce the fat content)
2 cups split green peas
2 carrots, diced
2 stalks celery, chopped
1 onion, diced
4 cloves of garlic, minced
2 bay leaves
6-8 cups vegetable or chicken stock (depending on how thick you like it)
Salt and pepper to taste
Cooking oil to sauté
Soften the onion and garlic in the oil until translucent. Add the bay leaves, celery and carrots and soften for a few minutes.
Add the peas and hock and cover with the stock. Give it a slight stir to get the peas off the bottom and leave to simmer for at least an hour.
You may need to top up the water if you find it boiling off too quickly. Make sure you scrape the bottom of the pan as the peas can sometimes stick and burn.
Remove the hock from the soup and remove the meat from the bone. Return meat to the soup and serve.
Enjoy!
